Terre damnée

First off, I love Ray Milland. He's so cool and collected. The man can wear golden hoop earrings and fend off Marlene Dietrich without looking the slightest bit unnerved (see "Golden Earrings"). He's calm in this also, and he doesn't even attempt to let you in on the whole "Is he the guy or isn't he?" conflict that runs through this film. (I also enjoy the COMPLETELY different "Is she or isn't she?" of "Johnny Guitar," but that's another story.) I rarely discuss the plot (I'm usually distracted) but Ray Milland is approached to help some former Rebels who are being cheated by former Yankees. Sort of a "You killed my son so I won't buy your product" thing. That gives Ray a chance to deliver a disgustingly sappy speech direct from Abraham Lincoln. Discrimination of any kind is a touchy subject, and it is difficult to get it into a film without offending someone, so A for effort on that point.

Hedy "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" Lamarr is the good-bad girl. Or is it the bad-good girl? She's the seemingly bad girl who proves to be good in the end. There we go. She's gorgeous in color, and that's definitely the highlight of her performance. There has never been any reason to have women in westerns--I've always hated that. They just stand around looking delicate and lovely (how they managed to do that in the old West where the ratio of men to women was staggering I'll never know). They're something to fight over, but that's it. Hedy tries to worm her way into the plot, but when the action starts she's out of the running. "Johnny Guitar" isn't like that, but those aren't regular "women" in the usual sense of the word. I for one desperately wanted to see Hedy pick up her shotgun and blow her corrupt not-boyfriend right out of the saddle. But no. She had to stand on the porch and watch the action from afar. She did blow him out of the saddle a few times, but that was different, and of course sex-related.

I think I would have appreciated this film more had Ray Milland been a simpering entertainer and Barbara Stanwyck a rough-and-ready female rancher with bone to pick with everyone. Not that Hedy Lamarr's bad, but this isn't her thing. (I also love the obligatory explanation of her accent. In this, she's from New Orleans, where everyone has an accent of some kind. In "Come Live With Me," she's naturally from Austria. They can't just let us wonder why a foreign-accented beauty turns up in Nevada and starts playing poker with the sheriff.)

All in all, it's entertaining, but don't roll out the red carpet yet.

Hedy Lamarr decided to go west following in the footsteps of Marlene Dietrich who saw Destry Rides Again rejuvenate her career. I'm sure that was why she decided to do Copper Canyon where she was saloon girl villainess who falls big time for fancy sharp shooter Ray Milland who brings his trick shot act into her town and saloon.

Milland arouses the jealousy of crooked sheriff Macdonald Carey. But Milland has a past of his own. He's a former Confederate colonel who robbed a Yankee payroll in escaping before the war ended. He's a hunted man for that reason though the local hunter, army lieutenant Harry Carey, Jr. really hasn't got his heart in the job.

Milland's been sent for because the local copper mine smelter with the connivance of Carey has been exploiting the Confederate veterans. His prowess with weapons comes in mighty handy before the film is over.

It's a good, not great western, but the reason it became popular because of the title tune which is heard, but not sung in the soundtrack. Young Teresa Brewer had a hit record of it back in the day.

Copper Canyon didn't really give Hedy Lamarr the Dietrich like assist in her career. Still she does fine and it's a good Saturday afternoon film for enjoyment.

Ray Milland gives an excellent performance to lift this above most of the Westerns of the period. Milland often lifted movies with his generally laid back style and occasional moments of striking intensity. One thinks of "Dial M for Murder," "X, the Man with X-ray eyes," "Love Story," and his appearances on "Columbo." He is like a great singer who knows you only have to hit a few striking notes to make a memorable song.

His character, Johnny Carter, is a gentle, humorous, trick shooter and vaudeville performer who dislikes violence and enjoys women. The character foreshadows the wonderful gambler, Maverick, that James Gardner would make famous seven or eight years later. Milland has the roguish charm of Cary Grant and a little of the blushing modesty of George Reeve.

Hedy Lamarr doesn't come off quite as well. This movie was two years after her hit movie "Samson and Delilah," She brings only a little of Delilah's sexiness to her role. At moments she does foreshadow Joan Crawford in "Johnny Guitar," but unfortunately there's not enough for her to create a memorable character as Crawford did in that role.

Macdonald Carey shines as a sheriff who abuses his power and gives law and order a bad name. He is not as psychotic as Jack Palance in "Shane," but he does stoop to shooting men in the back and refusing to fight fair.

As others have noted, the Technicolor is good and the movie is pretty fast paced, with enough plot twists and action sequences to hold our attention. Fans of Westerns should enjoy it and fans of acting should appreciate Milland's delightful performance.

Plot-- An ex-Confederate officer turned trick-shot artist is enlisted by townsfolk looking to get their copper ore past a crooked sheriff and his men. At the same time, he has to deal with a glamorous saloon girl whose allegiance sort of wobbles.

When I think westerns, LaMarr and Milland don't come readily to mind. Here they're just okay, though I'm sure their names looked good on the marquee. Though Milland can project grit, he's too laid-back (unmotivated?) here to anchor an action movie. He's better when he's just a smooth trick-shot artist. Then too, LaMarr projects a lot more beauty than the emotion needed for her tricky role. Her part unfortunately calls for a stronger, more Stanwyck-type personality, as others point out. Nonetheless, the production does have two things going for it. First is the great red rock scenery of Sedona, AZ, familiar from a hundred other big budget oaters, but well- staged and photographed here. Second is Macdonald Carey who delivers much needed spark and energy as the conniving bad guy. Then too, no film that includes exotica like the gnomish Percy Helton (Scamper) or the amazonian Hope Emerson (Ma Tarbet) can afford to be overlooked.

Anyway, the movie's a decent time-passer, but lacks the tightness and force needed to really register.

I have not seen this movie recently; but I remember it as an unusually attractive looking film. Color by Technicolor, and colorful costumes by Edith Head, for Hedy Lamarr, helped make this otherwise run of the mill story, eye candy for viewers. Hedy Lamarr looked wonderful as usual; of course this role could not possibly rival that of Delilah. Ray Milland was more fun than usual. I thought character development was superior to most westerns of the time; except perhaps for Hedy's role, which seemed a little ambiguous. Good western. Hedy Lamarr's physical presence was an added bonus.