Roughshod

Unfortunately, this was the only Western directed by the talented Mark Robson. It has an excellent, tight screenplay by Daniel Mainwaring (aka Geoffrey Homes) and Hugo Butler, from a story by Peter Viertel. Most surprisingly it boasts unusual violence for the Genre, thus making ROUGHSHOD hold up the test of time so well. Uniformly outstanding performances by a very young and luminous Gloria Grahame, Claude Jarman Jr, Myrna Dell, John Ireland and Jeff Donnell. Character actors James Bell, Jeff Corey and Sara Haden were very good in small roles and it must be said that the usually dull leading man Robert Sterling here proved he could act.

It has impeccable photography by Joe Biroc, an evocative score by the underrated Roy Webb and remarkable women costumes by Renie. Unfortunately, as with so many RKO Titles, WarnerVideo never released it on VHS and the first DVD Edition (Made on order) came out as late as January 2016!. Fans of Westerns should not miss ROUGHSHOD, unavailabilty pushed it into oblivion but definitely is worth of a reappraisal.

Unusually adult Western for its time. Brothers Sterling and Jarman have to drive their horse herd over a dangerous mountain pass so they can start a ranch on the other side. Along the way, however, they encounter four stranded dance hall girls (Production Code euphemism for hookers). Now the brothers are torn between helping the women or getting their herd safely across. And, oh yes, there are the three baddies chasing Sterling, but they're in the movie mainly to provide action and not to drive the plot.

Now, Robert Sterling doesn't exactly fit my image of a cowboy lead. He seems a shade too boyish and perhaps a little soft looking (likely why the unshaven stubble was added). However, he does well with the part, being convincingly tough when he needs to be. In fact, acting skill means more in this Western than in most because of the emotional interplay between the three principals, Sterling, Jarman, and Grahame. And, as it turns out, the chemistry between Jarman and Sterling is outstandingly unforced. There seems to be a genuine rapport between the brothers. Grahame, of course, specialized in this kind of compromised role in her all-too-brief and exotic career. Having her teach the skeptical Jarman to read amounts to an interesting character sidelight. In my book, however, the youthful Jarman walks off with the movie since he manages to be genuinely appealing without piling it on.

For Sterling the challenge is whether to follow conventional morality and reject Grahame's overtures or to follow instinct and see the real potential in her. Jarman sees such inner qualities immediately since he has not yet learned to judge others according to stereotype. Fortunately the screenplay avoids getting sentimental over the conflict, and in fact handles the whole risky theme quite intelligently.

The mountain shootout is scenic and well-staged. I wish I had a nickel for every nasty heavy John Ireland played during this period. But then, he was so very good at it. For a Western with a strong human interest side, director Robson avoids the usual pitfall of too much talk by moving things along nicely. All in all. the movie's an entertaining and satisfying 90 minutes with a genuinely humane message.

Brothers Robert Sterling (Clay) and Claude Jarman Jr ((Steve) are heading to Sonora with 9 horses to start up ranch life. On the way they pick up 4 ladies of ill-repute who are heading the same way – Gloria Grahame (Mary), Myrna Dell (Helen), Jeff Donnell (Elaine) and Martha Hyer (Marcia). Sterling also has John Ireland (Lednov) and two other escaped outlaws after him for revenge. We follow Sterling and his merry band as they follow their dreams to Sonora. Not all of them make it there, though.

This engaging western is easy to watch as the fates of the 2 brothers and 4 women is revealed. The end shoot-out scene is well done with a degree of tension that sustains itself throughout. The cast are all good with particular mention to John Ireland, Gloria Grahame and Myrna Dell. Robert Sterling in the lead isn't as memorable as these three. John Ireland makes the most of his screen time and he is definitely not a good guy. The fate of Myrna Dell is the most unfortunate and is dealt with in, what was for me, the film's most powerful segment. It will leave you asking yourself what happened.

I usually find children in films quite annoying, especially if they run around saying "swell". Well, Claude Jarman Jr is the exception to this rule and he adds some nice moments to the developing relationship between Sterling and Grahame. I would have liked to see some Indian trouble as well but you can't have everything! And there is no need for it, really. It's an enjoyable character-driven western.

Born in 1965, I cannot count how many westerns I watched as a child, not including TV western series' reruns ad nauseum, such as Gunsmoke and Bonanza. I stopped watching them in the '80s, except for maybe the critically acclaimed feature films that are few and far between since then. But when I saw Ms. Grahame was in the cast, it piqued my interest; and I'm glad I gave it a go.

It's your average plot. Good guy 20s-something cowboy and his teenage brother set out to deliver ten horses to a buyer. Hot on their trail are three escaped convicts bent on revenge. To spice things up, the two brothers encounter four stranded women along the way and agree to let them ride in their wagon.

You can pretty much figure the rest. If you can't, then you must be a newcomer to the genre. But what really propels this one into the much-better-than-average category is Ms. Grahame.

Usually associated with sassy, unstable dames that deliver sarcastic quips with a dangerously sharp tongue, here she's given a much more approachable, likeable character to play. And she does a great job of showing us her softer side. But don't be fooled, she can still keep up with the rest of them.

The cast is good The direction is good. The editing is good. And the music score fits very nicely, especially with a melodic yet bold opening theme that sets the tone, composed by Roy Webb, a sadly overlooked, strong contributor to film music.

As good as it is, it's still like pulling teeth to get me to watch a western. Just like war movies. Grew up on those, too.

The first western by Robson who had already made some extraordinary movies (who says they were Val Lewton's work?) such as "the seventh victim" 'the ghost ship" or "bedlam".And his western is quite good ,if not as mind -boggling as his precedent efforts.

First of all,Gloria Grahame,who was often cast in films noirs ,shines in her part of a dance hall gal who dreams to be a housewife and to educate her young protégé,Robert Sterling's kid brother:my favorite scenes show her teaching him the alphabet and the "true" culture;it's a destruction of the bad gal cliché;and I love when Sterling tells her that he knows a lot of things she can't teach him: the nature ,the animals,the weather,an empirical knowledge for sure ,but one that is more useful than the culture you get from the books,when you are in the wilderness tracked down by outlaws (John Ireland is the ideal bandit,but his part is underwritten and his relationship with the hero is skimmed over);it seems the director was more interested in the Sterling/Grahame relationship:a hero who is (perhaps?We are not told about it) illiterate but who demands a "respectable" woman for his wife :the other one is just good for a kiss,but you cannot marry a chick with a racy past;his kid brother knows better than he does:the young actor is excellent and endearing.

A rare thing in the forties (and in the westerns of the era),the action begins a few seconds before the cast and credits.