This western "Taming of the Shrew" finds Wayne hiring local widow De Carlo as his cook. She brings along her two children, a 7-year-old daughter and a teenage son who is hired as a ranch hand (both played by Wayne's real-life kids). All seems well until his estranged wife, O'Hara, returns
from the East with divorce on her mind. She also wants custody of their 17-year-old daughter, Powers, a college girl. Powers returns from school and is immediately courted by the younger Wayne and a Harvard beau, Van Dyke. The two suitors take to fighting it out, and it's revealed that Van Dyke is
the son of one of Wayne's worst enemies. Wayne's problems are compounded by Indian raids, as well as his never-ending arguments with O'Hara. Finally out of patience with his wife, he publicly spanks her, which gathers an appreciative audience. He then tells her to get the divorce if she really
wants it; instead, she throws herself into his arms and proclaims her love. Loud and brassy, Wayne does a good job in his broad comedy role, although it is doubtful that the picture could have gotten away with the spanking scene if it were made today. High points of the film are O'Hara being
chased by Wayne all over town in her white pantaloons and practically the whole cast sliding down a hill into a big mud hole.
