Paxton Holley and Michael May hit the dusty trail in search of great Westerns
Tuesday, March 1, 2022
The Furies (1950)
Pax and Michael watch another Barbara Stanwyck western, The Furies, this time directed by the great Anthony Mann. Also, Michael watches a little more 1883 and Pax reads Hailstorm, a comic by Rafael Scavone and Rafael de Latorre.
I just watched The Furies and I didn't love it. Ironically it reminded me a lot of Duel in the Sun, also about a father's large ranch starring Lionel Barrymore. Stanwyck's role in this film is very reminiscent of The Forty Guns, which I liked slightly more than this one. I know of Stanwyck was in The Big Valley TV Show which I've only seen clips of because of Lee Majors. This is not to be confused with the great film The Big Country with Gregory Peck! This movie felt very dramatic and it felt like we were being told how great the movie is and why we should love it. But I never found a character I truly liked and wanted to root for, except for Juan Herrera. The Herrera's seemed like the only decent people in the film. In the end, I did want to see Vance destroy her father, but more for my dislike of her father after Herrera's hanging and not because I loved Vance. This almost "happy ending" felt rushed and undeserved. I probably would have liked this movie better had it gone the Hollywood way and Vance married Juan and ran the ranch in the end over her father's objections. But, that's not the way this movie played out. Gilbert Roland reminded me a lot Ricardo Montalban in appearance and from his role in The High Chaparral, of which I've only seen an episode or two. This may be why I instantly liked Juan.
I just watched The Furies and I didn't love it. Ironically it reminded me a lot of Duel in the Sun, also about a father's large ranch starring Lionel Barrymore. Stanwyck's role in this film is very reminiscent of The Forty Guns, which I liked slightly more than this one. I know of Stanwyck was in The Big Valley TV Show which I've only seen clips of because of Lee Majors. This is not to be confused with the great film The Big Country with Gregory Peck!
ReplyDeleteThis movie felt very dramatic and it felt like we were being told how great the movie is and why we should love it. But I never found a character I truly liked and wanted to root for, except for Juan Herrera. The Herrera's seemed like the only decent people in the film. In the end, I did want to see Vance destroy her father, but more for my dislike of her father after Herrera's hanging and not because I loved Vance. This almost "happy ending" felt rushed and undeserved.
I probably would have liked this movie better had it gone the Hollywood way and Vance married Juan and ran the ranch in the end over her father's objections. But, that's not the way this movie played out.
Gilbert Roland reminded me a lot Ricardo Montalban in appearance and from his role in The High Chaparral, of which I've only seen an episode or two. This may be why I instantly liked Juan.