Cattle Drive

[mrsl]

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Cattle Drive - 1951: Starring: Joel McCrea, and Dean Stockwell

I would venture to call this an "A" Western movie. Stockwell is the spoiled brat son of Leon Ames, president of the Atlantic railroad. Little Dean gets off the train when it stops for water from the big overhead water tank in the desert and he wanders off too far to get back in time as the train pulls away. (Nobody knew he was getting off.) Lucky for him, he runs into Joel trying to catch a wild black stallion, and returns with him to his cattle drive. Half of the men taunt 'the kid', while the other half takes him under their wing. Naturally he causes some tragic problems but is forgiven as he grows.

The scenery is beautifully photographed. One thing I always loved about desert mountains were the horizontal lines of color whch are exhibited perfectly here. LIttle Dean does a good turn around from spoiled brat to 'nice kid'. Joel of course, is the kids main mentor and the chemistry is good between them. I've seen Joel co-star with other kids and he does a good job in letting them have their lead.

This is a good western movie, playing on Encore this month, and if you have it, I suggest you go ahead and watch it. It's no Oscar material, but it is better than the average bear.
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[JackFavell]

It sounds like Captains Courageous. I like both McCrea and Stockwell so much. This sounds like one I would like.