Cimarron

I did not see this when it was new. I remember thinking that it wasn't worth the effort then. It is less worth it now.

Its device is its scope, both in time and size. There are not one but two land grabs. it spans 25 years and much attention is spent on the theatrics of the sets. It must have been a strange year for this to have done well. At least we can value it to the extent that its success for Columbia made the scope of Lawrence of Arabia possible for MGM.

The story here is only there to support a celebration of settlers of Indian territories and to pull out a specific type which we are to admire as an ideal, an ideal American.

He is a champion of justice and a man of action. His adherence to certain principles punishes him. He is a proponent of civil rights here coded as Indian rights. What's not to like?

Well. He loves the adventure of the land. We get great vistas that anchor him in the place, a convention of Westerns since Ford. But he is not a man of the land, he is a city boy who likes adventure. That's this film's basic undoing of ideals.

It's reflected in the parallel western convention of woman as place. This guy loves deeply but he just can't settle with a woman. We see two.

When they meet, they talk of wives as mothers, companions and lovers. We are to admire that he does not need the first, is companion to nearly everyone and is deep in his love.

The narrative power of this idea by itself would be weak in any package. It is even worse here because of the inept direction. We see this more sharply now because of the obsolete acting and staging styles.

Ann Baxter is a pretty prostitute whose story of self is close to our hero. Though she has less screen time than the immigrant wife, we are to see her as genuine. It's really about her as the land, as the place, and why it isn't the blond wife.

Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.

I admit to not having read the book (but will now go to abe.com to find it!) or seen the earlier film, but find it interesting to compare this enjoyable movie with 'Giant'(Stevens, 1956), which incidentally also had Mercedes McCambridge in it, also concerned an essentially ill-matched couple, prejudice, mixed-race marriage, early oil-barons, and also takes in a number of years in which we see the characters grow older.

Unlike the other reviewers here, I did NOT find Maria Schell's accent annoying in the least. She makes a wonderfully believable pioneer (note: the accent is genuine, which also sets her apart from many other Hollywood 'foreigners') and she has a pleasingly natural acting style. She shines beautifully when she is interacting with other women, be it the wildcat and part-time prostitute Anne Baxter in one of the finest scenes of the film (smouldering and feisty but underused I think) or the earthy and magnificent McCambridge, whose subtle but hilarious Southern accent is expertly modulated and a joy to the ear. So many scenes between women in Westerns of this time are somewhat flat and stagey, but I think they're superb here and set this film apart.

Glenn Ford is good, and although the film rather tries to do too much (as does Giant, in my opinion), it's really a fun way to spend a rainy afternoon or even a hot afternoon. Plenty happens along the way and it has something to say.

I just caught this movie on TCM and, up front, I tend to hate these kind of oats-sudsers. This movie had so much going on (plot, characters, cameos, Western clichés) that it just screamed Cinerama (Think 'How the West was Won') but it had one major aspect that took me by surprise: a well-written and extremely well-acted characterization by Maria Schell. She's actually the major star of this movie...Glenn Ford disappearing entirely the last 1/4.....and she handles every bit of it with humor, passion, and just the right amount of country ham. She's never a perfect wife or mother, and doesn't just change to fit the scene. I was just killing time watching this...and I honestly was fascinated. I had no idea who it was until I looked it up here (I hate that TCM often doesn't run credits) but now I want to see some other performances by her to see if she was this good all the time.

Cimarron is mostly directed by Anthony Mann and written by Arnold Schulman. It's based on the Edna Ferber novel of the same name and was previously made into a film in 1931. It stars Glenn Ford, Maria Schell, Anne Baxter, Harry Morgan, Russ Tamblyn, Mercedes McCambridge and Lili Darvas. Franz Waxman scores the music and Robert Surtees is the cinematographer. It's a CinemaScope production, filmed in Metrocolor and exterior locations were shot in Arizona.

--At high noon April 22, 1889, a section of the last unsettled territories in America was to be given free to the first people who claimed it. They came from the North, they came from the South and they came from across the sea. In just one day an entire territory would be settled. A new state would be born.

They called it Oklahoma--

With changes from both the novel and the 1931 film, Cimarron 1960 was a big budgeted production. With a huge cast and a running time to match, it was expected to be an epic winner for MGM. It wasn't. For although it has undoubted qualities to please the keen Western fan, it has just too much flab on its belly to let it run free. On the plus side is Surtess location photography and Anthony Mann's ability to stir the blood by way of his action know how. The highlight of the film, and certainly a Western fan's must see sequence, is that of the actual "land-rush" that forms the narrative starting point of the film. A stunning collection of crashes, bangs, death and heartbreak are put together by Mann and the heroes that form the stunt team. Sadly the bar is raised so high so early in the film, it's all down hill from there for expectation and actuality. With the last third of the film laborious in the extreme as an ill equipped Maria Schell attempts to carry the dialogue driven heavy load.

The story is a good one, and Schulman's adaptation doesn't want for trying to reach epic horse opera status. But it's just not a fully formed whole, it comes out as a small group of fine scenes slotted into a gargantuan story of no real distinction. How else can you react to having sat thru two hours of film, to get to the big historical oil strike, to find the film petering out into a series of uninteresting conversations? Much of the problem can maybe be put down to problems off screen? Mann was fired towards the end of production, to be replaced by Charles Walters (High Society), while producer Edmund Grainger himself added scenes in an attempt to clarify the relationship between Yancey (Ford) and Sabra Cravat (Schell). The latter of which was without Mann knowing. This probably accounts for why the final third is so dull. The cast are mostly safe, with Charles McGraw and Aline MacMahon standing out in support slots, the latter of which excels during a graveside scene. But Tamblyn is hopelessly miscast and McCambridge and Baxter are, for different reasons, underused. Waxman scores it as more reflective than sweeping, tho the accompaniment for the "land-rush" sequence is boisterous and uplifting, while hats off to the nice costuming by Walter Plunkett; where Baxter, and us the viewers, benefit greatly.

The great scenes make it a film for Western fans to seek out. But in the context of two of the genre's heroes in Ford and Mann, it's one to easily forget about. 5.5/10

There is a lot right with CIMARRON, but a lot wrong too. Now on DVD in a great transfer/wide screen/stereo sound, it's interesting viewing. Not having read the book I can't compare, but there are several plot doings that don't have any conclusions. The movie is an epic of sorts and would have run hours if everything came together. A bit illocgical at times. Main plot line is Glenn Ford and Maria Schell a newlyweds coming to settle in Oklahoma when free land is available. In the span of over 30 years there is much going happening both good and bad, just like in real life. If I hadn't seen Glenn Ford in so many films I would think his performance would be excellent, but he kind of mumbles and hems and hahs every other sentence in every film he's in. He acts very much like he did in TEASHOUSE OF THE AUGUST MOON just a few years earlier. Better direction was needed for his character. Maria Shell was quite wonderful in a difficult role and she's in almost every frame the last 1/4th of the movie. The support actors are all good to fair. Russ Tamblyn disappoints as the baddie. Anne Baxter does well in an ill-defined role. Looks like most of her performance ended up on the cutting room floor or wasn't even filmed. Too many conflicts go unresolved...but it's still an interesting film with much to admire, especially the the cinematography and music score. Worth a look.