Devil's Doorway
Posted: April 14th, 2010, 1:39 pm
.
This just ended on TCM. I saw it probably 30 years ago while my 50's teen aged brain was still under the evil control of most western directors, but for the adults in the audience, along came Anthony Mann with his honest, and forth right non-fiction application of facts. I honestly remember wondering why the Captain saluted Lance Poole as they walked towards each other, at the end. Since my Dad didn't know, I asked my uncle who had been overseas, and he explained.
Lance Poole (Robert Taylor), is a full blood American Indian who has been away fighting for the North in the Civil War. Not only did he fight, but he was at Antietam, and Gettysburg, to mention a few. During the process, he managed to acquire himself a Congressional Medal of Honor, thus the salute. Also while he was away, Louis Calhern arrives in his home town somewhere in Wyoming, to play as he often does, the sleaze bag of the century, convincing people that Indians should not be in control of the beautiful valley and lake just the other side of the Devil's Doorway, a passage through the mountains, which Lance Poole's father has made into a lovely homestead. Well, Lance finds himself a lady lawyer (Paula Raymond), to help in his fight, but unfortunately, there is little she can do because Calhern is within government protocols, not necessarily humanities though.
As said earlier, Anthony Mann's hand is visible here, giving us not only a good shoot-em up western that the kids would have loved, but a great plot for the adults to watch with interest, instead of boredom, as well as westerns beginning to tell the truth about the plight of the American Indian. Actually, this was pretty early being 1950.
Did anyone recognize James Mitchell of As the World Turns and/or the dream Curly in Oklahoma, playing Red Rock, Poole's Indian side kick? Marshall Thompson also had a mediocre role as one of the sheepmen who wanted to farm the land. In all I would say this is worth more than just a rainy Saturday afternoon, it's good for the whole family to enjoy together.
.
This just ended on TCM. I saw it probably 30 years ago while my 50's teen aged brain was still under the evil control of most western directors, but for the adults in the audience, along came Anthony Mann with his honest, and forth right non-fiction application of facts. I honestly remember wondering why the Captain saluted Lance Poole as they walked towards each other, at the end. Since my Dad didn't know, I asked my uncle who had been overseas, and he explained.
Lance Poole (Robert Taylor), is a full blood American Indian who has been away fighting for the North in the Civil War. Not only did he fight, but he was at Antietam, and Gettysburg, to mention a few. During the process, he managed to acquire himself a Congressional Medal of Honor, thus the salute. Also while he was away, Louis Calhern arrives in his home town somewhere in Wyoming, to play as he often does, the sleaze bag of the century, convincing people that Indians should not be in control of the beautiful valley and lake just the other side of the Devil's Doorway, a passage through the mountains, which Lance Poole's father has made into a lovely homestead. Well, Lance finds himself a lady lawyer (Paula Raymond), to help in his fight, but unfortunately, there is little she can do because Calhern is within government protocols, not necessarily humanities though.
As said earlier, Anthony Mann's hand is visible here, giving us not only a good shoot-em up western that the kids would have loved, but a great plot for the adults to watch with interest, instead of boredom, as well as westerns beginning to tell the truth about the plight of the American Indian. Actually, this was pretty early being 1950.
Did anyone recognize James Mitchell of As the World Turns and/or the dream Curly in Oklahoma, playing Red Rock, Poole's Indian side kick? Marshall Thompson also had a mediocre role as one of the sheepmen who wanted to farm the land. In all I would say this is worth more than just a rainy Saturday afternoon, it's good for the whole family to enjoy together.
.
