Bend of the River (1952) User Reviews

excellent and well-thought-out Western

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 18 February 2006]

The acting of both Jimmy Stewart and Arthur Kennedy lifted this film well above the norm for a Hollywood Western. In particular, I liked Kennedy as the slimy guy you know MUST go bad before the picture is complete. Rock Hudson is fine, though not especially distinguished in his supporting role. On top of these two excellent performances, the writing is stellar, as the story is far from the typical production. It takes a lot of twists and turns and keeps your attention throughout. And, finally, the location cinematography is excellent, as the film has realism that is so often lacking in other Westerns--it is obvious this was filmed outdoors and not in some studio. All-in-all, an excellent film.

A good standard Western with pace and period feeling...

[Nazi_Fighter_David · 8/10 · 23 January 2001]

"Bend of the River" welcomes the fine blend of a passionate action with intense characterization that had become Mann's masterful specialty...

Stewart (in his second feature with Mann after "Winchester '73") is seen as a reluctant hero, stumbled, brutalized and confused, chasing a personal mission with severe determination, and giving life to the complex moral and psychological forces that drive Mann's heroes...

Vivid as a laconic quiet man driven by betrayal to violent rage, Stewart is a former raider on the Missouri-Kansas border, who guides a wagon train of settlers to Oregon... There he gets double-crossed by associates who try to turn aside necessary food and supplies to gold-rush activities...

Ingenious and malicious, Arthur Kennedy (very much in his element), is Stewart's former companion-in-crime whom Stewart saves from hanging, and helps him fight the Indians on the way to Oregon...

Adroit, insincere, and dishonest, Kennedy turns on Stewart stealing the settler's supplies for a handsome profit but is later dispatched by an irritated and enraged Stewart...

Kennedy has been preferred in Westerns as the more insidious kind of villain: friendly, smiling, charming and smooth-talking on the surface, weak and corrupt underneath... His specialty is the courteous type who befriends the hero and then turns out to be planning something illegal to his own advantage on the side...

Julie Adams is along the ride as a love interest getting short penitence in all the macho interplay...

Rock Hudson is cast as a soft gambling man from San Francisco, adept at cards as well as women, defender of a fair deal, ready to fight beside his friends...

Filmed against a breathtaking Technicolor panorama, with nice music that highlights the action, "Bend of the River" is a good standard Western with pace and period feeling, rolling along to its predictable happy ending, discarding any unwanted characters...

Incredible Scenery

[mikem-45 · 8/10 · 22 November 2005]

The plot may be weak even if the action is only decently played out. But what really makes this film, is the landscape. Breathtaking shots of Mount Hood, some taken from near Timberline lodge, others on the White River on the east flank, fed by the White River Glacier. Those of the stern-wheeler trudging up the Columbia River past what is now Rooster Rock State Park, but in those days was just a sandy spot below Crown Point, perched high on the surrounding cliffs. Occasionally where the action takes place at high altitude on Mount Hood, a panorama so vast as to take in most of Oregon in a single frame. Even if you have lived in the area your whole life, the photography will grab you every time you watch Bend in the River.

In case the title doesn't quite make sense, think of life as the places in time and space where you made a turn, just as you would when traveling down a river and once again there is the bend you just passed, or the one you are about to encounter. The old timers saw life in these terms of metaphors, and they had a saying about "going to see the elephant", alluding to seeing something the likes of which no man could even imagine.

Biscuits, apples and the troubled past.

[hitchcockthelegend · 7/10 · 26 November 2009]

The second of five genre defining Westerns that director Anthony Mann made with James Stewart, Bend Of The River was the first one to be made in colour. The slick screenplay is written by Borden Chase, adapted from William Gulick's novel "Bend Of The Snake," with support for Stewart coming from Arthur Kennedy, Julie Adams, Rock Hudson & Jay C. Flippen.

Stewart plays guide Glyn McLyntock who in 1847 is leading a wagon - train of homesteaders from troubled Missouri to the Oregon Territory. What the group are hoping for is a new start, a paradise, with McLyntock himself hoping for a new identity to escape his own troubled past. Unfortunately, after rescuing Emerson Cole (Kennedy) from a lynching, it's an act that once McLyntock and the group get to Portland turns out to have far reaching consequences.

In typical Anthony Mann style, McLyntock is a man tested to the maximum as he seeks to throw off his shackles and find a new redemption within a peaceful community. Cloaked in what would be become Mann's trademark stunning vistas (cinematography courtesy of Irving Glassberg), Bend Of The River is often thought of as the lighter tale from the Stewart/Mann partnership. This is most likely because it has more action and no little amount of comedy in the mix, yet although it's a simple story in essence, it is however given a hard boiled and psychological edge by the makers. An edge that asks searching questions of the "hero" in waiting. Can "McLyntock" indeed escape his past? And as a "hero" is it OK to use violence when he is wronged? This is potent stuff that is acted with tremendous gravitas by Stewart.

One of the main plus points on offer is that of having a strong cast operating within. It's thrilling for a Western fan to see Stewart and Kenendy side by side, particularly as the screenplay provides them much opportunities for machismo play. There's also a surprise in store, further allowing two fine actors of their era to solidify the film's credentials. Flippen is a reassuring presence, overseeing things like a genre uncle, Hudson rocks up for some dandy dude duties who joins in the gun play, and Adams (here billed as Julia Adams) is beautifully vivid under Glassberg's colour lenses.

Bend of the River is very much a recommended picture, as in fact are the other four films on the Mann/Stewart CV. 7.5/10

Why haven't I heard of this fantastic movie before?

[evelyndanielle66 · 10/10 · 5 November 2014]

Being a huge movie buff, I had thought I had seen every western film ever made with the leading actors of the mid-20th century. We purchased a DVD with 4 old westerns starring James Stewart - "Bend of the River" was the first on the disk. I had never heard of it, but the cast included Rock Hudson and Harry Morgan so I thought it would be interesting at least.

It started out with action right from the start - which really caught me off-guard. I kept thinking to myself that it must get really slow/boring/stupid or something to merit it's lack of public awareness. Not so - this film kept me completely rapt with all its twists and turns.

The writing was incredible - comedy, drama and human angst all combined within a scene and then again, and again throughout the story. You felt you could relate to each character, no matter how minor or repugnant their role.

I am also a history buff with respect to ghost towns and the Gold Rush. What I have read about the real prospectors and the greedy businessmen who preyed on their pursuit of riches only enhances the believe- ability of this story.

Regardless of the goofs, errors or historical/geographical inaccuracies that have been listed within this site - this movie is a real gem.

Not my favorite Mann/Stewart western, but pretty good all the same...

[westerner357 · 7/10 · 1 September 2003]

The second of five westerns Anthony Mann did with James Stewart, this one involves a trail boss with a shady past named Glyn McLyntock (Stewart) who takes a wagon train of settlers west from the Missouri to Oregon. Along the way, he saves a man named Emerson Cole (Arthur Kennedy) who's about to be hanged by some trappers for stealing a horse. He pulls a rifle on them and tells them to clear out. Cole feels indebted (for now) and hooks up with McLyntock and the wagon train.

Then they run into some Indians and Laura Baile (Julie Adams), the daughter of the trail master (played ably enough by Jay C. Flippen) gets wounded by an arrow. They finally reach Portland and purchase supplies there that will later be sent to them upriver. They also leave Laura in Portland to heal up while Cole stays on to seek his fortune at the gambling tables, running into good-natured Trey Wilson (Rock Hudson) in the process.

When they go upriver and reach the spot they want to settle down in, the settlers start to clear the land before the winter sets. In the meantime the supplies they paid for down in Portland haven't come yet, so they send McLyntock down to see what's happened and to get word from Laura Baile with whom they haven't heard from in months.

It turns out that the seller of the supplies, Tom Hendricks (Howard Petrie) has ripped them off and reneged on the deal. McLyntock, Cole (who goes along for the ride) and Trey Wilson shoot it out with Hendricks' men, and head upriver in the steamboat with the supplies (and Laura Baile) while Hendricks' men are right behind. McLyntock wants the boat to stop downstream in order to throw Hendricks off their trail for a little while, but Hendricks picks up on it and is still doggedly determined to get those supplies back. They ambush Hendricks and his men, killing most of them including Hendricks himself.

There's more double cross and backstabbing going on as we already suspect that Emerson Cole is the low down dirty snake that he really is, and is only concerned about his own greed. Cole knows full well he can get more money for those supplies at the mining camp, so he and his crew overpower McLyntock and take the supplies, leaving McLyntock behind to fend for himself.

But McLyntock trails not far behind on foot and then rides a stray horse that was secretly left behind by Laura so he can catch up. There's the inevitable showdown in the rapids when McLyntock and Cole get into a fistfight and Cole is swept away by the rapids and drowns.

This is an above-average western that has some of the elements we'd later see in THE NAKED SPUR (1953) and THE FAR COUNTRY (1954), both of which I prefer over this one. I guess this is mostly due to the fact that Robert Ryan and John McIntyre make better over-the-top villains than Arthur Kennedy does.

7 out of 10

Survival

[bkoganbing · 10/10 · 17 September 2005]

Bend of the River is the second Anthony Mann/James Stewart western and the first in technicolor. The technicolor is used to best advantage here with some great footage of the Columbia River and surrounding vicinity. And Mann used in support of Stewart, Jay C. Flippen, Harry Morgan, Arthur Kennedy and Rock Hudson all of whom had appeared in Mann films before and/or would again. Anthony Mann is never given credit for the stock company he had. Like John Ford, Mann liked using the same players in his films.

Jimmy Stewart is guiding a group of settlers west and along the way saves Arthur Kennedy from a lynching. Turns out they're both former border raiders from the Missouri/Kansas area, but Stewart's decided to go honest.

When they arrive in Portland, the settlers are warmly greeted and a deal is made by settler leader Jay C. Flippen for needed supplies for his people during the winter.

When Stewart and Flippen return for the supplies, there's been a gold strike and the town is mad with gold fever. They have to take what was due them and then have to fight to get the supplies back to the settlers. Seems some prospectors want them also.

The point is that there are no options for Stewart and Flippen. These supplies have to get to their colony or they will freeze and starve during the winter. They have to fight prospectors, townspeople and treachery in their own group to get the goods where they are needed.

There's no law here to help them. It's broken down totally along with all kinds of behavioral virtues when gold fever has struck. One of the best performances in the film comes from Howard Petrie town merchant who can't do enough for the settlers on their first arrival. When we see him next when Stewart and Flippen come for their goods, it's like we're seeing a totally different human being. Petrie has practically morphed into Fred C. Dobbs.

I don't think Jimmy Stewart has ever been more ruthless on the screen than he is here. His characters in Anthony Mann films are always purpose driven whether it's revenge like in Winchester 73, an outlaw bounty so he can start a new life in The Naked Spur, or even an idea he has like offshore oil drilling in Thunder Bay.

But in Bend of the River it's a matter of survival and to prove to himself that he can and has changed his character for the better. It's as much an internal struggle for Stewart as it is with the forces allied against him.

It's another ten star winner for the Stewart/Mann team.

A cut above usual Western fare

[matchettja · 7/10 · 16 July 2006]

The story revolves around a group of pioneers traveling the Oregon Trail on their way to start new lives in the Oregon territory. After purchasing supplies in Portland and a promise to have them delivered before winter, they begin building their settlements in the valley they have chosen. In the meantime, gold is discovered in the territory and a dispute arises as to who will get those precious wagon loads of supplies.

There is much to enjoy. The cinematography, filmed in the Columbia River Gorge and around Mt. Hood in Oregon, is wonderful. We also get a glimpse of Celilo Falls, once a sacred fishing site for native Americans in the area but now buried beneath the waters backed up behind the Dalles Dam. The music score blends in nicely with the action and there is plenty of that. Of the actors, Rock Hudson seems out of place, but James Stewart more than makes up for it with his frenzied performance. He is electric when, left behind on the mountain side, he tells his adversary, "You'll be seeing me!"

However, this film is not without its faults. Quite a lot of blood is shed trying to get those wagons delivered but it doesn't seem to be much cause for concern or regret, as if life out on the frontier didn't hold much value. Characters are introduced one moment to be summarily disposed of the next. Trail boss Stewart, a former border raider during the Civil War looking to change his life, still uses violence on behalf of the settlers, who seem to enjoy moral superiority over the miners.

Thus, I don't consider "Bend of the River" among the best of several director Mann/actor Stewart collaborations of the 1950's. Even so, it is a cut above usual Western fare. The scenery, music and steel-eyed Stewart are all magnificent.

Good western

[Petey-10 · 8/10 · 20 February 2007]

James Stewart plays Glyn McLyntock whose job is to lead the settlers west.Emerson Cole, a man with a shady past, is played by Arthur Kennedy.He's there to help Glyn with the job.The settlers are gonna need some food for the winter and soon the other side of Cole steps out.Anthony Mann worked for the second time with James Stewart in Bend of the River (1952).Jimmy does good work as always.Arthur Kennedy is brilliant in his role.The beautiful and talented Julie Adams plays Laura Baile and she does it great.Lori Nelson is wonderful as Marjie Baile.Rock Hudson is a gambler named Trey Wilson and he's terrific.This movie has got the most wonderful scenery.It's great to watch all those wagons travel there towards a better future.This is a good western from 55 years back.The world has changed in that time- and so have the movies.

Mann and Stewart, above average.

[rmax304823 · 6/10 · 19 June 2005]

You have to consider Jimmy Stewart's career in context. Before the war he usually played in lighthearted roles, romantic comedies or mysteries. (Once the poor guy was forced to sing.) Then the war, in which he earned a record of distinction. Afterwards his performances for a decade or two tended to be edgy. Never villainous, but suggestive of anguish under the condescending self reliance. (Watch his expression when he's on the telephone being offered a job and throws it away to mash Donna Reed against him.) Anthony Mann -- a tyrant on the set -- cashed in on this hidden dimension in Stewart's character. In Mann's films, Stewart isn't only driven by some goal, he tends to be obsessed by it, even when the reasons for it aren't clear to his friends.

Come to think of it, it's a little hard to imagine how he came by as many friends as a movie like "Bend of the River" gives him. He's not particularly amiable. He's not even polite really. Somebody saves his life and Stewart understates his expression of gratitude until it's almost unrecognizable -- he lowers his face and smiles slightly, maybe, or says, "Thanks for the loan of the gun." (Not, "Thanks for saving my skin.") There is also something irritatingly complacent about his character. He never seems to experience any doubt or temptation.

But if his character is a little difficult to decode, Arthur Kennedy's is mostly on the surface. He's a smiling pal who jumps in a number of times to aid Stewart, yet is overcome (without much preamble) by greed enough to betray Stewart and leave him alone in the wintry mountains of Oregon. If he is so easily won over by the opportunity to make some quick money -- even though it means the deaths of 100 people -- why was he so anxious to jump in and save Stewart in the first place? (And he does it repeatedly.) Why does he suddenly turn rotten? This has nothing to do with Kennedy's performance. The problem seems to be in the script.

Rock Hudson's part isn't too well written either. He also jumps in several times, unasked, to aid Stewart, yet when Kennedy takes over the wagon train and deserts Stewart, Hudson offers no objection.

But, again, it's not the acting. All of the performances are quite good. Julia Adams has a strangely beautiful face with striking eyes. And she seemed to mature in later years from a juicy young woman to a comely and elegant person who still had a lot of what the French call le sex appeal. (Just kind of joking there.) The photography is good, the scenery monumental, raw, majestic, colossal, stupendous, effulgent, phallic -- and phat.

It's an enjoyable movie, especially if you're interested in the Westerns of the 1950s, a good example of the joint work of Anthony Mann and Jimmy Stewart.

Stewart, Adams & Mann: A Good Combination

[ccthemovieman-1 · 8/10 · 20 February 2007]

Now that this is out on DVD, I hope to be able to view this on a better format: widescreen and a clearer prettier transfer. As with many westerns, there is a lot to like visually. That includes Julia Adams, who plays one of the leads: "Laura Baile." Adams was a decent actress and had a very pretty face. I wonder why she never made it as a "star?"

Overall, this classic-era western has a pretty good story, a good cast led by James Stewart, and enough action to keep ones interest for the hour-and-a-half. I enjoyed most of the characters. Arthur Kennedy, Jay C. Flippen, Rock Hudson, Lori Nelson, Stephin Fetchit and Henry Morgan all comprise a well-known cast.

My only complaint was the "Rambo mentality," with two scenes in which good-guy Stewart should have been easily shot, but wasn't. In summary, pretty good storytelling and one to have in your collection if you are a fan of westerns, especially when Anthony Mann is the director. He and Stewart teamed up on several very good westerns in their day, and this is one of them.

Flawed

[dougdoepke · 23 June 2014]

Across mountains, two cowboy-drifters with suspicious pasts try to get provisions to settlers in 19th century Oregon.

Despite the talent involved, the western's far from a classic. It's got plenty of action and loads of great scenery. But it's also got enough plot for five westerns. It's like the screenplay didn't want to exclude anything in the novel. So if you can follow the various threads and intrigues between the army of characters, there's a place for you at MIT. Then too, the editing doesn't help. Too often, developments are cut off before they can clarify (follow Trey's changes, if you can). The result is a series of clouded events, anchored only by McLyntock's moral steadfastness.

Of course, Stewart's grouchy good guy and Kennedy's slippery smile do a lot to compensate, and I can see why director Mann used them again and again. But speaking of noir-meister Mann, the shootouts here are poorly staged, a surprise for such an accomplished filmmaker. Catch how the bad guys ride in again and again, only to be mowed down by Stewart and crew. Yet no riderless horses leave, and surprisingly, about the same number of men ride away from the attack as rode in. I guess I expect better attention to important detail from such an expensive production.

I'm not trying to discredit the entire movie, only point out those facets I believe prevent it from reaching the caliber of other Stewart-Mann westerns. Certainly, a tighter script and better editing would have made a notable difference. Otherwise, it's got great scenery and good acting.

Not the Best of the Mann/Stewart Westerns

[JamesHitchcock · 6/10 · 6 February 2016]

"Bend of the River" is the second of the five Westerns made by James Stewart with director Anthony Mann during the 1950s, and the first they made in colour. Here Stewart's character, Glyn McLyntock, is the scout for a wagon train of settlers heading to Oregon. Along the way the settlers have to contend with all the perils which normally beset wagon- train pioneers in movies, including an attack by hostile Indians. (During this period Hollywood only occasionally acknowledged that there could be any other sort of Indian; Native Americans who were happy to let wagon-trains pass by unmolested clearly did not make good box- office). Most of the film, however, deals not with the journey itself but with what happens after they arrive at their destination.

The plot is quite a complex one so I won't set it out in full. Basically, it revolves around a consignment of food which the settlers will need if they are to make it through their first winter. Although the supplies have already been paid for, a gold rush in the region has inflated the cost of food and Tom Hendricks, a corrupt trader in Portland, wants to renege on the deal and re-sell the supplies at a higher price to the gold miners. McLyntock manages to foil this plan, at considerable risk to his life, but on the way back to the settlement he discovers that there are others who covet the supplies. Another important element in the story is the relationship between McLyntock and a man named Emerson Cole whom he saves from being lynched for alleged horse-stealing.

The Mann/Stewart Westerns often tried to get away from the traditional "good guys versus bad guys" theme and to introduce a greater emphasis on character development into the genre. They also introduced a new persona for Stewart, who in his films from the thirties and forties usually played straightforward good guys. In his collaborations with Mann his characters were often rougher, edgier, more willing to resort to violence and more ambiguous, although never straightforward bad guys.

For most of its length "Bend of the River" seems more like a traditional Western with a traditional morality, a straightforward adventure story with some exciting action sequences such as the Indian attack and the battle with Hendricks and his gang. McLyntock and the settlers are the good guys, while the bad guys are Hendricks and the Indians. The one ambiguous element is supplied by Arthur Kennedy's Cole. Although he seems amiable enough, befriending McLyntock and even saving his life during the Indian attack, there is always something of a roguish air about him and we begin to suspect that those horse-stealing accusations may have had some substance to them. We learn that he was at one time a "border raider"; the exact significance of this phrase is never established, but it appears to mean some sort of outlaw or bandit. Jeremy Baile, the settlers' leader, shares the viewer's distrust of Cole, but McLyntock does not, arguing that a man can change from good to bad. The film only becomes more character-driven in the last few scenes when Cole finally shows himself in his true colours and we discover that McLyntock also has a chequered past of his own.

Stewart is not as successful here at suggesting a "man with a past" as he was to be in "The Naked Spur" and we never learn enough about the psychological journey which has led him to try to make amends for his previous misdeeds. Apart from Kennedy, who is good as the mysterious Cole, the rest of the cast do not have a lot to do. Julie Adams as Laura, one of the pioneers, is there to provide a love-interest for McLyntock and a young Rock Hudson is there to provide an ally for McLyntock and a love-interest for Laura's sister Marjie. (Adams, here billed as "Julia", is today best remembered as the glamour girl from "Creature from Black Lagoon"). I could certainly have done without Stepin Fetchit's caricatured performance. There were plenty of black people in the Old West, but you rarely see them in Westerns except in racist stereotypes like this.

The film is a decent action Western shot against some spectacular scenery in the Pacific North-West, but I didn't enjoy it as much as some of the later Mann/Stewart Westerns such as "The Naked Spur" and "The Man from Laramie" or for that matter its predecessor "Winchester '73". Its theme of men being corrupted by greed was dealt with much better in "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre". 6/10

It was the early 1950's

[schles-1 · 5/10 · 14 November 2021]

It is interesting from the vantage point of 2021 to look back at a film from the early 1950's. In Bend of the River I found 2 elements that would be totally out of place even by the standards of the 60's.

1. The casual, matter of fact portrayal of killing. Whether it's a few Indians or a few bad guys the killers appear as moved as if they'd just gotten rid of a pesky fly or mosquito. They smile and joke as if it's just all in a day's work. Taking the life of another human being ("white" or Indian) seemed to have no significance, meaning or ambivalence attached.

2. The small, bit parts of 2 black characters (the actors Stepin Fetchit and Lillian Randolph) are as belittling and stereotypical as could possibly be.

Of course the fact that this is a Western adds its own context to the 50's mentality of this one, as to be expected. For those viewers who grew up with and were influenced as children by movies such as this it is valuable to see them again as adults and realize what some innocent Saturday matinees did to us. And then came the 60's!!

A brilliant Stewart/Mann Western

[slymusic · 18 November 2005]

Produced by Aaron Rosenberg and directed by Anthony Mann, "Bend of the River" is an excellent James Stewart Western. After Stewart had proved himself a tougher, harder-edged Western hero in his first Rosenberg/Mann picture "Winchester '73" (1950), he was ready for more challenges to stretch himself as an actor. "Bend of the River" boasts a first-rate cast, which includes Arthur Kennedy, Julia Adams, Rock Hudson, Jay C. Flippen, Henry Morgan, Jack Lambert, Chubby Johnson, Stepin Fetchit, and Howard Petrie. Not to mention the beautiful color photography by Irving Glassberg of the cold, hazardous Mt. Hood, Oregon scenery. Stewart recalled, in fact, that it was the most difficult location shooting he had ever endured. (Don't read any further until after you see "Bend of the River.")

The main thrust of this well-crafted screenplay by Borden Chase involves a former Missouri/Kansas border raider named Glyn McLyntock (Stewart), who has now taken the straight & narrow path and proves to be an excellent guide for a wagon train of settlers led by the kindly Jeremy Baile (Flippen). McLyntock meets another former Missouri/Kansas outlaw named Emerson Cole (Kennedy), who seems to be quite affable and easygoing until the climactic moment when he suddenly turns his back on McLyntock and leaves him to die in the stark, icy mountain terrain. And it is at this very moment that we arrive at the main highlight of the picture. Before Cole leaves, McLyntock tells him with a quiet intensity, "You'll be seein' me. You'll be seein' me. Every time you bed down for the night, you'll look back into the darkness and wonder if I'm there. And some night I will be. You'll be seein' me." The cold look on Stewart's face and his delivery of these lines are frightening, banishing any doubt that Stewart could hold his own against his nastiest foes.

"Bend of the River" was a hit, and Stewart followed it up with even more bitter, cynical, and sometimes neurotic characterizations in Westerns such as "The Naked Spur" (1953) and "The Man from Laramie" (1955), both directed by the capable Anthony Mann.

A ton of moving parts

[mloessel · 7/10 · 6 July 2022]

A strong cast well anchored by james stewart. This movie is about how oregon was initially settled. Another movie, "the oregon trail", had a similar theme. In both movies you get a fairly accurate account of how oregon was populated by the settlers who risked everything. Stewart's character has to deal with some unscrupulous folks that make the trip challenging yet doable. It's worth the view.

James Stewart leads a wagon-train across Oregon territory facing off mean miners , starving prospectors and corrupt officials

[ma-cortes · 8/10 · 7 April 2017]

Moving Western in which a gunfighter called McLyntock must battle nasty miners , ambitious prospectors and a corrupt owner , including spectacular landscapes . From Universal-international a breathtaking as well as rip-snorting Western that shows the greatness , the glory , the fury of the untamed Northwest frontier . Stars a tough , hardened gunslinger guide McLyntock (James Stewart) who leads his wagon train challenging the gold-rich glory that was Oregon full of mountains with snow , scarlet with sin , yellow with the dust that lured him on . As a self-minded , haunted cowboy (James Stewart) leads his wagons plenty of settlers (Julie Adams , Lori Nelson , J.C.Flippen) and herd to Portland , in hopes of huge profits . Glyn McLyntock saves from a lynching and befriends another gunfighter , Cole (Arthur Kennedy) , and when they arrive in Portland both of whom lead and transport cows by boat . At last , they arrive in Portland , a bustling little town filled with prospectors and usual saloons . Later on , they have to escape from nasty town boss who confiscated homesteader's supplies after gold is discovered nearby . McLyntock and his partners end up having supplies and herd back from the villain baron .

One of a series made by star Stewart with director Anthony Mann , it features splendid Western vistas , fierce gun-play and fist-play , ambiguous roles , impressively busy crowd sequences and many other things . Adventure western movie in which a two-fisted cowboy leads his wagons and herd through Oregon territory , pitting himself against the wilderness , bandits , mean prospectors , traitors and an ambitious , corrupt boss town . This is an epic western filled with ambiguity , thrills , emotion , dual characters , some ambivalent roles in which stand out their corruption and ambition and being ¨Greed¨ their essential objective . The film is divided in three parts , the first one describes on rout to their destination ; the intervening period dealing with the busy town Portland and third part concerning on the trip back to the settlement , up river and over a mountain . Set late XIX Century , it shows the moral obligation to build a civilized community and need to a collective effort , joining individuals against corrupt and selfish people . Interesting and stirring screenplay based on the novel titled ¨Bend of the snake¨ by Bill Gulich . Sympathetic as well as brave acting by the great James Stewart as the stubborn Mclyntock who must fight frontier lawlessness and locks horns with a crooked colleague , magnificently played by Arthur Kennedy . Stewart is top-drawer as an ex-Pistolero who risks his life to attempt and get provisions to homesteaders to build their promised land . Stewart has top grade character written all over it . Gorgeous Julie Adams as the good-bad girl who must be forgiven in the end . Support cast is frankly extraordinary with a large plethora of illustrious names , such as : Lori Nelson , Harry Morgan , Jack Lambert , Frank Ferguson , Royal Dano , Cliff Lyons , and special mention for Jay C. Flippen as the grizzled westerner and a show-stealing acting by the always great Chubby Johnson who gives the comic relief talking about river Mississipi . And one of the first important roles for Rock Hudson who received extreme cheering and applause at the premiere .

Lyric and stirring musical score by Hans J. Salter . Colorful cinematography in Technicolor Irving Glassberg , and the Oregon sets takes it out of the ordinary Western scenarios , being shot in Oregon , mostly in Mount Hood, Timberline, Columbia River, Sandy River, Oregon , Sacramento river in northern California , Rooster Rock State Park, Palmer Glacier , Mount Hood, Columbia River Gorge , Washington . The motion picture was stunningly directed by Anthony Mann . Being made during Mann's best period of work . The film forms a stunning diptych along with ¨Bend the river¨ by the awesome quartet : Anthony Mann , screenwriter Borden Chase , producer Aaron Rosenberg and James Stewart who made a great number of top-notch films . This is another superbly powerful triumph from Anthony Mann who realized various Western masterpieces such as ¨The furies¨ , ¨Devil's doorway¨ , ¨Tin star¨ , ¨Man of the West¨ and several with his habitual star , James Stewart , many of them playing more violent , ruthless and cynical roles than usuals , such as : ¨Winchester 73¨ , ¨Bend the river¨ , ¨The far country¨ , ¨Man from Laramie¨ , ¨Colorado Jim¨ , ¨Thunder Bay¨ , ¨The Glenn Miller story¨. Rating : Above average ; it is probably one of the best Western in the fifties . Well worth watching .

Another complicated Stewart/ Mann western

[jordondave-28085 · 7/10 · 31 March 2023]

(1952) Bend of the River WESTERN

Adapted from a novel by William Gulick called "Bend of the Snake" with professional outlaw, Glyn McLyntock (James Stewart) guiding a wagon train of settlers to a new life in the Oregon county, in the intentions of forming a new town. Along the way, he also intercepts an outlaw, Emerson Cole (Arthur Kennedy) from an attempted hanging, who ends up tagging along with them. Rock Hudson also stars as a professional gambler, Trey Wilson who makes friends with Glynn. The second of 5 Westerns writer/ director Anthony Mann collaborated with James Stewart.

Viewers are quite aware who is the villain in this movie for it is a matter of when the star and him are going to butt heads and to what circumstance.

Awesome Adventure!

[FightingWesterner · 10/10 · 31 October 2009]

Jimmy Stewart leads a wagon train to the Oregon wilderness and settles down to help build a settlement and after a gold rush, having to battle thieves and a greedy merchant to get a shipment of supplies back before the settlers are snowed in for the winter.

Tense, exciting, and extremely violent for a fifties movie, this film really delivers the goods in terms of action and drama.

Jimmy Stewart is especially hard boiled in (for him) a darker-than-usual role.

Arthur Kennedy and Rock Hudson are excellent as a couple of shifty gunmen who are tentatively on the side of good. They try hard (Kennedy especially) to steal the movie away from Stewart!

Julie Adams was one of the most beautiful women of the nineteen-fifties. Despite a long career in films, (which isn't over yet) she's almost entirely remembered as the girl that made the gill-man go Ga-Ga in The Creature From The Black Lagoon.

One of the better of Mann/Stewart Westerns

[doug-balch · 7/10 · 30 July 2010]

I don't hear this said often, but this might be the best of the Mann/Stewart Western. Personally, I thought "The Far Country" was better, but not by a whole lot.

Here's what I liked:

• As usual in a Mann movie, it is thematically interesting. This time a haunted loner is trying to redeem himself from his sordid past.

• Very good tension is created and maintained throughout the movie.

• Restless change of location keeps the plot from stagnating and reinforces theme of the wide open West. This was done very well also in "The Far Country" and "The Naked Spur".

• Tough, tough location shooting results in brilliant technicolor scenery. Very limited use of studio sets. Also, location is authentic i.e. they are actually shooting the movie in Oregon where it is supposed to be taking place.

• James Stewart's charisma as a cowboy is off the charts.

• Arthur Kennedy is fantastic in this. You like him, but don't trust him for the entire movie. Kennedy knows how to project a unique mixture of charm, menace and sliminess all at once.

• Julia Adams is very good looking and has a lot of sex appeal (watch for her in a much better role playing opposite Raymond Burr and Robert Ryan in "Horizon's West", released the same year). Also, her character isn't purely ornamental. She develops and contributes.

• It was very interesting that the movie had rotating heavies. The mantle was passed from the Shoshones to Hendrix to the wagon train crew and finally to Cole.

Now here's where it wasn't so great:

• Mann's not big on comic relief, yet he attempts it here. He misfires badly, employing Stepin Fetchit as the attempted humor. I try show a little more understanding for these flaws in films made in earlier eras, but this was released in 1952. No excuses.

• Indian presence is almost completely absent, except for an attack at he the beginning of the movie when they are presented one dimensionally

Also, there are a couple of long windy speeches about how important it is for settlers to clear this "unclaimed" and "uninhabited" land.

Listen, I'm not saying every movie has to side with the Indians on this issue, but the debate should at least be acknowledged.

• Finally, we encounter typical Mann plot holes, although they are not nearly as severe as those in "The Man From Laramie" and "The Naked Spur" and "The Man of the West". However, there are still several, the worst of which is during the film's climax, when McClyntock teleports himself around the forest, magically appearing wherever it suits the plot best.

Fantastic Photography & Great Western Story!

[whpratt1 · 10/10 · 16 April 2004]

This is truly a great Classic Western with the best super stars of all time. The special photography with cattle going up and down rocky hills and the many covered wagons and beautiful scenery of the Northwest was outstanding. James Stewart,(Glyn McLyntock),"Broken Arrow",'50, was a wagon train guide, and also had a wicked past life he was trying to forget about. Glyns wicked past came in hand having to face many situations that required lots of fighting and gun action. Arthur Kennedy(Emerson Cole),"Nevada Smith",'66 gave a very outstanding performance and also gave Glyn a real hard time because they both had past careers that were almost the same, however, Glyn was hateful deep in his very soul! Julie Adams,(Laura Baile), "Slim Carter",'57 was very beautiful and had a hard time trying to find out which guy she really wanted to HOOK! Rock Hudson,(Trey Wilson),"Iron Man,",'51, was a gambler and gave a rather weak performance, however, he was just starting his career and took almost any role that he was presented with. Jimmy Stewart always was very particular about any picture that he appeared in and I can see why he liked this film. Enjoy!!

Well done but it has the Western clichés that many of us find wearing

[secondtake · 7/10 · 17 June 2017]

Bend of the River (1952)

A Technicolor Anthony Mann Western starring Jimmy Stewart. That says a lot already, and you might just remember that Mann and Stewart did 5 Westerns together (this is the 2nd, and the first in color) and they all have what you might just call integrity. Each is a bit different, and this starts by being one of a handful of Westerns that focus on Oregon.

It's before the Civil War, and the innocent pioneers have Stewart, who is unnaturally good at detecting and fighting Indians, as their guide and protector. Lucky for him (early in the plot) he saves Arthur Kennedy playing another man with a mysterious past, and the two team up.

There is a lot of nice filming here, not widescreen so it's tightly composed, including some rather nice day-for-night stuff that is convincing and has great restrained color. If you are squeamish about the characterization of Native Americans as ruthless killers, then the beginning to this story isn't for you. All stereotypes (true or not) are intact, but they are realistic and vigorous enough to work the plot, including some guerrilla warfare scenes, over-simplified but good drama.

Later, there are more archetypes that might seem like clichés if you want to see it that way. But focus on the unique qualities, the big plot twist half way in, the use of some African-American bit actors (who are given painfully stereotypical roles), and the grinding moral certitude that makes the main character, McLyntock, one reason Jimmy Stewart is admired for the movie. And oh, yeah, a young and not totally convincing Rock Hudson shows up, too.

The real conflicts here are between settlers, all pushed to their limits by food shortages and high mountains. Distrust turns to treachery turns to murder. And the love story beneath it all, which has no real grit, wins the day. The story has some jumps and a few places you have to let the improbable be possible. But things keep moving fast and it's a good ride overall.

A First-Class Western Epic About Pioneers Battling Indians and Greedy Whites

[zardoz-13 · 10/10 · 6 December 2009]

The second western collaboration between director Anthony Mann and actor James Stewart, "Bend of the River" qualifies as a sprawling oater about a reformed Missouri border hellion who leads a pioneer wagon train west into the mountains when they plan to establish a new settlement. Mann depicts the trials and tribulations that come with western migration and the effects on people. The peaceful settlers are led by a man who doesn't believe that men who handle guns can be trusted. The theme of the effect of violence on men is scrutinized. James Stewart delivers an outstanding performance as an easy-going trailblazer with a secret history of violence in his past, while Arthur Kennedy makes a sympathetic villain who suffers from greed. Before he changes sides, Kennedy joins up with Stewart and they make a charismatic duo. Kennedy plays my favorite character. Julie Adams is on hand for romance, and Jay C. Flippen of "The Hellfighters" is the prudish settler who believes men are like apples. There isn't a bad performance in the cast and if you look closely you will spot none other than Frances Bavier of "The Andy Griffith Show" where she played Aunt Bee as one of the settlers. The bad guys that help out the heroes but turn on them later consist of several seasoned character actors, including Harry Morgan, Royal Dano, and Jack Lambert.

The film unfolds with a wagon train crossing the plains. Glyn McLyntock (James Stewart of "Winchester '73") scouts ahead of the wagon train and stumbles onto a lynching party with Emerson Cole (Arthur Kennedy of "Desperate Journey") about to be hanged for horse thievery. McLyntock, who remembers his moment of truth with a noose around his neck, takes pity on Cole and rescues him. They become fast friends and help the pioneers defend themselves from the Native Americans. Later, in the woods, Cole saves Glyn from getting scalped. This western has a little bit of everything, including a Southern riverboat, complete with none other than legendary Stepin Fetchit as the first mate and Chubby Johnson as Captain Mello who constantly observes that he should never have left the Mississippi. When the settlers arrive in town, they are welcome with open arms by the most influential businessman in town, Tom Hendricks (Howard Petrie of "Rocky Mountain"), who sells them supplies and promises to deliver their food stocks later. However, extraordinary things happen, chiefly a gold rush, and Hendricks refuses to deliver the settlers the goods that they had paid for in advance. Glyn and Cole hire men to load the supplies onto the riverboat and they head up river with Hendricks and his men at their heels. Before they leave town, our heroes get some help from a well-dressed gambler, Trey Wilson (Rock Hudson) who is rather handy with a six-gun.

"Bend of the River" is nothing short of an epic movie. Aside from some obvious studio interiors, most of the action was lensed on location in scenic Columbia River Gorge and around Mt. Hood in Oregon. Veteran western writer and Mann collaborator Borden Chase penned his excellent screenplay from a novel by prolific author William Gulick.

Bend of the River

[jboothmillard · 6/10 · 12 February 2007]

For some reason I thought I had seen this film, but I didn't recognise it, so I "refamiliarised" myself with this western, from director Anthony Mann (Winchester '73, The Naked Spur, The Man from Laramie). Basically Glyn McLyntock (James Stewart) is trying to hide a past, and with former partner Emerson Cole (Arthur Kennedy), they lead a wagon-train load of people and supplies from Missouri to Oregon. They set up a home in Portland for a little while, and are making sure not to let the supplies fall into officials' hands. They continue, travelling over mountain and up river, and Glyn is not going to be swayed by gold miners. There is the point when the bad guys come along to try and get their stuff, and Emerson it turns out is one of them, so it is all up to Glyn to save the people and the supplies and deliver them safely. Also starring young little known Rock Hudson as Trey Wilson, Julie Adams as Laura Baile, Lori Nelson as Marjie Baile, Jay C. Flippen as Jeremy Baile, Stepin Fetchit as Adam, Harry Morgan as Shorty, Chubby Johnson as Cap'n Mello, Howard Petrie as Tom Hendricks, Frances Bavier as Mrs. Prentiss, Jack Lambert as Red, Royal Dano as Long Tom, Frank Chase as Wasco and Cliff Lyons as Willie. I will admit I didn't pay full attention to this film (may that is why I can't see myself giving it seven out of ten), but from I did watch, Stewart gives a very good performance, and there are some good action sequences, maybe another viewing and I'll give it an extra star. Good!

Image Reversal

[jldmp1 · 5/10 · 8 April 2006]

What strikes the viewer right away is the compositional framing; the lone snow covered mountain, the forest, the river, side view of the wagon train in the foreground. The parts of the story that matter are imbedded in this frame, centering on the back-and-forth seizure of the winter supplies.

Superimposed on this are the vicissitudes of complex loyalties, backstabbings and skirmishes. It all has a simple, unironic resolution. We reach the end credits with the wagon train movement reversed, balancing the beginning with the end.

Two instances of good visual storytelling involve Kennedy's facial reactions when Stewart fires shots offscreen; the first time, Kennedy is disappointed that there are no antagonists left for him to deal with; the second time, he is enraged at the loss of his fair-weather allies, balanced against the earlier scene.