Original artwork, not a still
Fill your hand, you son of a bitch!
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
It is a challenge to a fair fight from a man who has no intention of letting the other side think about it. Rooster is old, one-eyed and outnumbered four to one, and he picks the fight anyway. The line is the high point of the Western's old-lawman mythology, the reason Wayne's performance is the one people remember, and a ready quote whenever someone needs to stop talking and act.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for True GritShow the scene
True Grit (1969, repeated in the Coen brothers' 2010 remake). Near the climax, one-eyed U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn confronts the outlaw Lucky Ned Pepper and his three men in a clearing. He tells Ned he means to kill him in a minute or see him hanged at Fort Smith, and Ned calls that bold talk for a one-eyed fat man. Rooster's answer is this line. He then puts the reins between his teeth and charges the four of them alone. John Wayne won his only competitive Best Actor Oscar for the part and, as on screen, took the reins in his teeth for the shot.
Sources (3)
- True Grit (1969 film) - WikiquoteRooster Cogburn quotes and meadow dialogueReference checked
- True Grit (1969 film) - WikipediaProduction and AwardsReference checked
- True Grit (2010 film) - WikiquoteDialogue sectionReference checked
Context reviewed
