A Marca Rubra

Some have said it's too bad Ladd made "Shane", because it overshadowed this great piece. I'd like to think there's room for both great Westerns to fill the honor roll of classic Westerns.

Ladd plays a gunman named Choya. He's probably a lot like Shane, only perhaps a month before Shane becomes the character we see in his film.

He's recruited by an older man to pretend to be the son of a wealthy rancher, a son who was kidnapped at the age of five.

Many revelations come about during the movie, and most of them very early. The new partner of Choya (Ladd) quickly shows himself to be the last person you'd want near you, a true monster. Yet he's a very believable monster. The first death scene, which is a murder committed by this man, may be one of the best Hollywood stunt scenes ever done. It's worth watching all on its own. Too bad we never see the victim again, as he is a character we could truly like, which makes the act even more deplorable.

The dramatics and action that unfold are rugged "tough guy" Western traditions united with very believable motivations. This is a great script, and it is superbly directed, which also means the acting is superb.

I won't spoil the film any more. It is a truly great Western, made during the golden age of Westerns, when people actually knew some of the rugged individualists of the late nineteenth century and the West, before all of our information came from self righteous rich kids and bubble boys who probably never stepped foot in a park by themselves.

Enough of the cynicism. Back to the film. It's rich and full of every ingredient, action, drama, three dimensional characters, pathos, scenery, everything that makes a great film. So sit back and enjoy.

This film begins with a gunslinger by the name of "Choya" (Alan Ladd) escaping from some men who intend to lynch him for killing a friend of theirs in a gunfight. Although he manages to escape two bystanders by the names of "T. Jefferson Leffingwell" (Robert Keith) and "Tattoo" (John Berkes) find him camping in a cave and offer him a certain proposition. Essentially, they tell him of a young boy who was kidnapped from a wealthy family 30 years ago and since he fits the general description they ask him to ride to this ranch owner and claim to be his missing son. To help with the impersonation he is given a tattoo on his right arm which resembles a birthmark that the young child had. However, what he doesn't expect is the outpouring of love given to him by this family when he successfully deceives them-and this begins to gnaw on his conscience from that point on. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that, although it started off rather slow, it developed rather nicely after that and kept my attention all the way until the end. Admittedly, there were some parts toward the end which could have been condensed a little but it was still a pretty good western all the same and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

A fine western that was better than I expected It to be.Alan Ladd, although sometimes wooden puts In a good performance here. The cinematography and the colour process of this movie are outstanding. This western has a few good plot twists to make It stand out.The location scenery Is stunning too. Alan Ladd has something of a mystery persona here not unlike his role In Shane. The colours In this movie are very vivid and lifelike not at all garish as I thought they might be. This western has good support acting too, Charles Bickford plays his part with ruthless relish ala Big country. Robert Keith Is a shady slime ball who's demise In the film Is very fitting. This Is an out and out satisfying western and one I can thoroughly recommend.

One of Alan Ladd's lesser-known westerns is this adventure of a scheming outlaw with a conscience who sets out to solve the mystery of a lost son and return him to his parents. Of course, the mission is fraught with danger, from a partner and assorted crooks. After getting to know the missing lad's family, Choya's change of heart takes across the Rio Grande where the boy is being raised by a tough, mean outlaw who aims to keep the boy, using gun play if necessary to get his point across. The picture is helped by great scenery and several scenes show a realistic slice of ranch life and cattle drives. Ladd gets a great boost from Robert Keith, Charles Bickford and Joseph Calleia, and Mona Freeman, always tough and spirited, is pretty as she takes a fancy to the dashing outlaw who would be her brother.

Excellent Paramount western, which I regularely confound with William Dieterle's RED MOUNTAIN, starring the same Ladd. Rudolph Maté the director shows us here his talent for westerns, as he also will for THREE VIOLENT PEOPLE, VIOLENT MEN. A bit less with RAWHIDE YEARS though. I would prefer SHANE, I admit, and also maybe RED MOUNTAIN. Of course there is not much surprise in this classic western, nothing much unpredictable. Robert Keith is excellent in this role. Photography is also jaw dropping, and it contributes a lot to the pleasure I had to watch it after several decades. Awesome settings with desert and valley landscapes. One of the best of Alan Ladd.