Les rivaux du rail

Despite the picture was based on real facts, the producers changed the names of two Companies involved in the past, however the screenplay introduces a far-fetched layout, the both leading roles Edmond O'Brien as Jim Vesser plays a violent man, always yelling louder to impose through the force his point of view, Sterling Hayden fits in the same character, however was supposedly on wrong side, the plot looks like a bit contrived somehow, but the gorgeous presence of the Kasey Rogers as Linda Prescott relief the a little bit, meanwhile the old couple Paul Fix and Zazu Pitts are a separate chapter, bringing humor and warm romance, the crash of the two old locomotives is a true highlights, the casting is fabulous, having in Dean Jagger as General Palmer a reliable Boss, there a lot of action, fights, blowouts, betrayal, murders, anyway a fine picture!!

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First watch: 2019 / How many: 1 / Source: DVD-R / Rating: 6.5

The Denver and the Rio Grande is purportedly the story of the construction of that line financed by Dean Jagger, designed by J. Carrol Naish and constructed by Edmond O'Brien. They meet some stiff opposition from the the bad railroad where Sterling Hayden and Lyle Bettger run things.

With some elements taken from films like Union Pacific and Saratoga Trunk, Denver and the Rio Grande is entertaining, but not consistently. Part of the plot is where the baddies convince Edmond O'Brien he killed Don Haggerty. They do a weak job of it in my opinion. Unfortunately that weakness leads to some rather silly motivation on the part of other characters.

What is nice is the good Rocky Mountain location photography and two very good performances by Zasu Pitts and Paul Fix in sidekick roles. They have a very cute romance going and at times they're better than the leads.

What we have here is the typical western shoot-up between two rival railway companies attempting to build through the Colorado Rockies. What makes this film somewhat unique is the head-on collision of two trains engineered by the "bad guys." The collision is for real! The Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad provided two narrow-gage trains that we destined for the scrap-heap for the Big Scene. With adequate dynamite placed on the engines, the crash was carried off. There were, obviously, no re-takes. After close-ups, the engines were hauled off to the steel-mills at Pueblo. A good Western that rail buffs will appreciate.

Denver & Rio Grande is one of those entertaining 1950's "B-plus" Westerns -- that is a "B" picture cast but top-notch "A" production values. This Technicolor oater about a right-away shooting war between rival railway companies actually qualifies as a minor classic of the genre. Not for the dramatic acting or Frank Gruber's average screen play, but because of high powered action sequences in, on, and around authentic 19th Century railroad rolling stock, all enveloped in gloriously scenic Colorado Rocky Mountain locations.

Unlikely leading man Edmond O'Brien is one of yours truly's favorite actors, whether he is in a lead or a supporting role. But Eddy looks somewhat uncomfortable in his Western togs, even a little peaked at times, as if all that Rocky Mountain sunshine and fresh air disagreed with his constitution. Could be he was wishing to be back in one of those dimly lighted, smoke-filled, noir bars which were his more typical cinema habitat. A much more familiar face to the celluloid Western environment, tall, stiff actor Sterling Hayden is cast against type here as the ruthless leader of the bad guys. You may have thought Hayden was stiff in his more typical heroic roles, but as a villain in Denver & Rio Grande, he's so wooden it's difficult to distinguish him from one of the telegraph poles. Dean Jagger, as real-life railroad builder General William J. Palmer, adds a touch of class to the cast, but doesn't have much to do. He looks like he's about to go to sleep through most of the picture, but as always, he has his moments. On the other hand leading lady Laura Elliot (aka Kasey Rogers), best known for her role in popular TV sitcom Bewitched, shows a little spark as the General's pretty secretary with a grudge against O'Brien. The ever reliable J. Carrol Naish, often seen as a gangster or a cynical cop, refreshingly gets a sympathetic, clean-cut role as the nattily attired railroad construction engineer. But never mind, the real stars of this picture are gorgeous Rocky Mountain scenery and the thrilling, nostalgic steam locomotives.

If the dramatic acting of the fine cast did not seem up to par, you can blame flabby direction by director Byron Haskin, who was more of a special effects technician than a director anyway. But once the action sequences start, Haskin is in his element. Denver & Rio Grande is nothing if not action-packed, and isn't that what we all love in Westerns? When the two railroad companies get serious about going after each other, they employ military tactics along with prolific volleys of (mostly inaccurate) gunfire from railroad cars to take and re-take miles of track and telegraph stations. One of the top action scenes is the actual "head-on collision of two bull locomotives", as it was heavily advertised at the time of the picture's 1952 release. The result is not disappointing, though Haskin cheated a bit with a dynamite explosion at the point of impact to make the shock of collision more spectacular. He really had to. Those old locomotives were such solidly constructed masses of steel, they could have just bounced apart without showing much apparent damage or the desired boiler explosions. By the way, as a minor point, this much ballyhooed train wreck does not happen at the climax of the movie, as stated by Leonard Maltin and others. It is one of the events building toward the climax, and it occurs quite some time before the end of the picture.

Denver & Rio Grande is a nicely turned out Western. The sets are very good, though most of the scenes are filmed in the great outdoors. Costumes are true to the time, place, and occupation of the characters. Particularly impressive were the authentic looking six-gun leather and the colorful variety of hats. The chubby O'Brien liked to foster an everyman image, and he did little to improve his unglamorous looks. Here his rough working man outfit includes a floppy black hat which looks as if it has been roundly stomped on by a couple of overweight saloon floozies. But it is the trains steaming around the mountains, the water tanks, stations, piles of cross-ties, telegraphs, and other supporting railroad equipment that really grab the eye. The excellent train sound effects made all of this as stimulating to hear as to see.

For all its flaws this is a highly entertaining picture. If you are a fan of exciting, flavorful Western action with chugging, puffing, hissing, clanging, whistling, steaming, smoke-belching, greasy, sooty, oil-dripping, jerking, screeching, cinder-flinging Nineteenth Century trains -- and how could anyone not be -- Denver & Rio Grande will take you where you can find it!

Rousing locomotor from Paramount (can't call it an oater since there are no horses). The action rarely lets up as two railroad companies compete for most scenic rail line in the mountain west. Jim (O'Brien) works for the D&RG, while McCabe heads up the CC&SJ (Canon City & San Juan). Trouble is McCabe's outfit doesn't care what they have to do to win. Plus, they've got a spy in Jim's camp, so they've got a big advantage. But don't count out the D&RG, since Jim's road gang knows how to fight back, and is headed up by a general, no less.

Pudgy O'Brien may look more like a San Francisco barfly (DOA {1950}) than a leader of men, but he's plenty spirited. And get a load of that great mountain scenery. I may be mistaken, but I think the whole time is spent along the rail line, so we get lots of alpine views. Clearly, the producers knew what the draw was. Sure, developments are sometimes either obscure or don't make much sense. But the action quickly moves on, so it's hard to get stuck. The centerpiece head-on between two speeding locomotives remains an eye-catcher, even though the enhancing explosives are pretty apparent.

All in all, the 80-some minutes add up to a visual treat, but don't expect much in the way of extended dialogue. The language here is action, not words.

(In passing-- There's a commemorative statue of General Palmer, founder of the D&RG, astride a steed in downtown Colorado Springs. Thus his name remains well known in the area.)