John Wayne spends most of this film searching for his niece, Natalie Wood, who was abducted by Indians when she was only a child. The American Film Institute rates this the best western ever made, though fans of High Noon, Shane and others may beg to differ. John Wayne fans may be disappointed, too. Non-Wayne fans may be surprised. Like Hitchcock with Vertigo, The Searchers represents a master director working at the top of his form.