The 1956 John Ford western starring John Wayne as a man searching for his kidnapped niece is The Searchers.
Wayne plays Ethan Edwards, a battle-hardened Civil War veteran who returns to Texas just as his brother's family is attacked. Ethan's niece Debbie, played by Natalie Wood, is abducted, and he spends years pursuing her with his adopted nephew Martin Pawley, played by Jeffrey Hunter.
The film was adapted from Alan Le May's 1954 novel and was shot in VistaVision across Monument Valley and other striking Southwestern locations. Its vast landscapes helped define the visual language of the classic American western.
The Searchers is sometimes confused with Rio Bravo, another John Wayne western, but that 1959 film is a town-under-siege story. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance also stars Wayne, but it is a 1962 drama about memory, politics, and a disputed legend. The Searchers is notable for combining an adventure plot with darker questions about racism, obsession, family, and belonging.