Au-delà du Missouri

Across the Wide Missouri (1951)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Clark Gable plays a beaver hunter who heads to the Rocky Mountains but encounters Indians as he explores the new territory. There's some nice things in this film but in the end it comes as a major disappointed especially about Gable and Wellman did so much better with The Call of the Wild in 1935. When this was shown on TCM, William Wellman, Jr. talked about all the problems with MGM during post production. Apparently this was originally meant to be an epic picture but the studio started cutting it to pieces and they eventually cut so much that they had to hire Howard Keel to do narration to bring any sense to the film. Watching the 78-minute movies it's easy to tell that there's all sorts of stuff missing and there are even some very strange edits, which make it clear that we were originally meant to see more. As for the final version, it's really not too bad but it's not too good either. Gable is pretty good in his role but Ricardo Montalban steals the film. J. Carroll Naish has a nice role as well. The Technicolor really brings out the great locations but in the end one can't get over the edited product. The "shock" at the end of the picture is also ruined due to the narration, which kills the suspense of how the film plays out.

When one watches western films of the latter half of the 19th century, the settlement of the west was on a course that was nothing but bad for the American Indian. As good as some westerns are, always lingering in the back of any viewer's mind is the thought that no matter what the predicament of a given hero/heroine in any film is the fact that the might and power of the United States Cavalry will ultimately tip the balance towards the white man.

But the fur trappers of the early half of that century faced a far different situation. They were few and the Indians at that point outnumbered them. These people as typified by Clark Gable and the rest of the cast in Across the Wide Missouri were the really brave ones in our history. They wanted to trap their beaver and sell their pelts and the last thing they wanted was wholesale immigration of settlers. It took a lot of nerve to live in that lonely existence, days and weeks at a time where you couldn't count on a troop of soldiers to bail you out of trouble.

I'm a big old sucker for films about the earlier west and two good ones came out at this time, this one and the following year from RKO, The Big Sky. I give the nod to this one thought because it was done in color and on location.

Gable gets one of his best post World War II parts as the sturdy Flint Mitchell, mountain man who falls big time for Indian princess Maris Elena Marques. While grandfather Jack Holt approves of a white husband for his granddaughter, the match don't sit well at all with Ricardo Montalban his successor. The climatic duel between Gable and Montalban is staged very well indeed and quite thrilling.

Playing various fur trapper roles are Alan Napier, James Whitmore, John Hodiak and most of all Adolphe Menjou. Though one normally expects the debonair Mr. Menjou in tuxedo, he's really quite good as the French Canadian trapper and sidekick to Gable.

Maria Elena Marquess got her first of two chances in Hollywood and did well as the Indian princess. She was already a name in Mexican cinema and became an even bigger star down there due to this film with Clark Gable.

This film marked the farewell performance of Jack Holt who died soon after it was completed. His career spanned all the way back to the earliest years of Hollywood. He makes a very impressive chief of the Blackfeet.

Gable was a rugged outdoors-man in real life, he liked to fish and hunt and brought his fourth wife, Lady Sylvia Ashley on location. Unfortunately Lady Sylvia was not a big fan of the great outdoors and her experiences roughing it contributed to the Gables getting unhitched.

Director William Wellman kept things going at a good clip and though Across the Wide Missouri is slightly over 75 minutes for an A film, it's still a great item and rates being an A film for its cast and its production values.

This is one of Clark Gable's better films of the 1950s, though it never really got that much attention and many have unjustly written it off as "just another Western". However, if you watch it you'll find that the film has two major points that make it unique and a very beautiful film. First, the film is about the period BEFORE that shown in most Westerns. The typical Hollywood Western occurs between 1866-1880, though there are a few exceptions before and after. However, very few deal with life in the West circa 1829 when the only White men were fur trappers. Since I am a history teacher, I admire this about ACROSS THE WIDE MISSOURI. Second, the film humanizes the Native Americans much more than most films and there are no "black and white" groups in the film. Many of the Indians are quite decent but they also are not uniformly good either--and the same goes for the trappers. I particularly loved the relationship that developed between Clark Gable and his Indian bride. It did a lot to build sympathy for the characters and once again truly humanized both characters. The only real negative about this is that three of the key Indian roles are played by non-Indians (J. Carrol Naish, María Elena Marqués and Ricardo Montalban)--a standard practice in the time it was made.

While these two points make this a memorable film, it sure doesn't hurt that this film has some of the most vivid and beautiful scenery of any film of the 1950s. It's obvious that this wasn't filmed on some sound stage or filmed in the outskirts of Los Angeles! So overall, what's not to like about this film?! Excellent acting, a great script and a uniqueness make this a film worth seeking.

By the way, this film is highly reminiscent of the wonderful Robert Redford film, JEREMIAH JOHNSON--another film well worth your time.

This is a lyric Western about trappers , it's a homage to integration between human being and Nature , being inspired by the book by Bernard De Voton with screenplay by Talbot Jennings . The story of a tough trapper , titan of a woman and her love for dashing Indian girl . Created by a a great picture maker at incalculable cost with a superb cast of thousands in especially recreated old Rocky Mountains . Turbulent adventure set against the rich ,romantic tapestry of early Colorado state . Trapper Flint Mitchell (Clark Gable) and other mountain men from the Rendezvous join forces to enter virgin trapping territory but must contend with a resentful Blackfoot chief . Flint marries an Indian woman (Maria Elena Marques) so he can trap beaver pelts on her people's rich land . On the trip to the Indian territory however , he falls in in love with his bride .

This colorful film contains beautiful scenery , tempestuous Indian attacks , war , lawless raids , a love story , intrepid men and women ; at last , in all its wild , brave magnificence , the motion picture of valiant trappers . Deliberately paced , elegiac Western , including marvelous landscapes from Rocky Mountains . Interesting historical/drama/Western is slightly marred by the continuous use of narration provided by Howard Keel . This poetic film focuses the insertion of human being into nature . Most of the "Native Americans" in this movie are all portrayed by Hispanic or Caucasian actors, because there was a noticeable lack of Native American actors at MGM at the time this movie was made. When the original version of the finished film was submitted to MGM executives, they didn't like it. The film went through heavy editing, and a producer had the idea of tying together the surviving pieces by adding voice-over narration from Mitchell's grown up son, as if he is telling his father's life story. Howard Keel, who had just finished making Magnolia, was brought in for this purpose as voice in off . The changes led to director William A. Wellman effectively disowning the film. When asked about it in an interview, he said "I've not seen it, and I never will" . Gable gives a good acting as a rugged fur trapper who marries an Indian woman , Clark along with Maria Elena Marques form a memorable couple . Clark Gable personally chose William A. Wellman to direct because he admired ¨Battlegroud¨. Lively acting from support cast as Adolphe Menjou as a French tippler , J Carrol Naish as quirky Indian Chief , and John Hodiak , Alan Napier as two Scottish men . Furthermore, debut of Timothy Carey and final film of Jack Holt .Evocative cinematography shot with heavy Technicolor cameras by William Mellor , filmed on location in Durango, Colorado,La Plata Canyon, San Juan National Forest, Durango, Molas Lake, Silverton, Colorado,Ouray County, Haviland Dam, San Juan National Forest, Little Boyce Lake, San Juan National Forest,Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad, Durango, Colorado . Sensitive as well as enjoyable musical score by David Raskin , including an agreeable leitmotif .

The motion picture was stunningly directed by William A Wellman , a veteran professional from silent cinema . Wellman has directed all kind of genres as Wartime : ¨Alas¨ , ¨Battleground¨ , ¨The story of GI Joe¨ , ¨Lafayette Escadrilla¨ , Drama : ¨Nothing sacred¨, ¨Blood Alley¨ , ¨Good my lady¨ , ¨Magic Town and the Oscarized ¨A Star is born¨ , his greatest success , Adventure : ¨Beau Geste¨ , Gangster movie : ¨Public enemy ¨, and Western : ¨Buffalo Bill¨ , ¨The Ox-Box incident¨ , ¨Westerward the woman¨ and this A¨cross the wide Missouri¨. rating : Above average , worthwhile watching .

One of the most frustrating things in cinema is that of the interfering studio. Too many films, since cinema became the medium so massively loved by so many, have fallen victim to this most poisonous fly in the cinematic ointment. One such film to suffer greatly is the William A. Welman directed Western, Across The Wide Missouri. All the elements were in place, a fine story written by Talbot Jennings & Frank Cavett, which is worked from Bernard DeVoto's historical study of the American fur trade in the 1830s. Wellman (The Call Of The Wild/Beau Geste/Battleground) at the helm, Hollywood's golden boy Clark Gable in the lead, and a sumptuous location shoot around the San Juan Mountains to be photographed by William Mellor. With all the talk coming out of MGM that they wanted to make an "epic" picture, hopes were high for the early 1950s to have a Western classic on its hands. Enter studio boss Dore Schary who promptly cut the piece to ribbons. So much so that the film, where once it was epic, is now a choppy and episodic 78 minute experience. With a narration by Howard Keel tacked on by Schary just so we can try to make sense of what is (has) gone on. Wellman was rightly miffed and tried to get his name taken off the credits.

Amazingly, what remains is still a recommended piece of film for the discerning Western fan. The locations are just breath taking, expertly shot in Technicolor by Mellor, at times rugged and biting, at others simply looking like God's garden. This part of the world is the perfect back drop for the story as the white man's greed brings them into conflict with the Native Americans. The film also boasts an array of interesting characters, we got the Scots and the French represented alongside the usual suspects, while the tracking and fighting sequences are expertly filmed by the astute Wellman. It was a tough shoot all told as well. Ricardo Montalban {Blackfoot Indian Ironshirt} was involved in a horse riding accident, the consequence of which would severely affect him later in his life, while stunt man Fred Kennedy suffered a broken neck when his intentional fall from a horse did not go as planned. The horses too you can see really earned their oats, trekking up hill across sharp jagged rocks and ploughing through snow drifts, magnificent beasts they be. Joining Gable and Montalban in the cast are John Hodiak, James Whitmore, María Elena Marqués, Adolphe Menjou and Alan Napier. David Raskin provides a suitably at one with the atmosphere score. With Gable on form mixing with the high points that Schary left alone, Across The Wide Missouri is more than just a time filler. But the problems do exist and it's impossible not to be affected by the annoyance that comes with the old "what might have been" that gnaws away at the viewer at every other turn. 6/10