The Gal Who Took the West (1949)

Simply A Masterpiece

Best movie of this year hands down!

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

Yvonne De Carlo (Lillian) rides into town and becomes the focus of attention for two cousins - Scott Brady (Lee) and John Russell (Grant) - who really don't like each other. They are both super powerful and run half of Arizona each. They are just waiting for old-timer Charles Coburn (General O'Hara) to pop his clogs and then they can battle it out to take complete control of the state.The story is told in flashback as three old-timers relate their viewpoint of how De Carlo interacted with the two cousins and we learn what happened in the gaps between the stories. The film is basically about the rivalry between the two cousins with the added interest of who De Carlo will ultimately choose to procreate with. That's what we watch for - who will she choose?The cast are pretty unpleasant - including De Carlo - apart from Coburn who is the funniest as is to be expected. He shines whilst the others don't in this completely unrealistic story. Throw in some terrible songs as well. Not a particularly good film.

The screenplay purports to tell the story of Lily Maldoon(Yvonne De Carlo) and her ambition to marry the future richest man in Arizona Territory. But there are 2 candidates for this distinction: Grant and Lee O'Hara(John Russell, and Scott Brady, respectively), who are still under the thumb of their patriarchal grandfather, being the offspring of 2 brothers who fought on opposite sides in the Civil War, and died then or later. The story is told from a flashback viewpoint, by 3 old timers(Houseley Stevenson, Russell Simpson, and Clem Bevans) in the then modern world. That should make it around the turn of the century when these events took place. Others may disagree but, in my opinion, the device of telling the story from 3 viewpoints, not including Lily's own story near the end, was a poor choice, as it makes the story too repetitive.Easily recognizable Charles Colburn has a gay time as the virtual dictator of Arizona, and of the interactions between the 3 younger generation. Thus, he is rather like Ben Cartwright of "Bonanza" in relation to his sons, only Colburn's "sons" are continuously at each other's throats. Initially, Colburn told Yvonne she had to go to avoid a civil war between Grant and Lee and their respective supporters. Later, he told her she had to stay and make up her mind which grandchild she wanted to marry before they killed each other. It's interesting that, in the end, Lee tells Grant he'd better hurry up and marry Yvonne or he will shoot him. Talk about a shotgun marriage!Colburn thought he had contracted for a plump old opera singer from NYC to come to celebrate the opening of his opera house. But Yvonne finally tells him what he suspected all along: she's an imposter(we never are told her real name), attracted to the $10,000. salary Colburn offered for a single appearance. She says she is a (very) different kind of singer. In Grant's saloon, she sings "Clancy Lowered the Boom", while in the opera house, she sings "Frankie and Johnnie". Colburn seems to take this turn of events in stride.It's obvious that part of the film was shot in the Saguaro cactus forest, while other parts were shoot on a ranch near Calabasas, CA.The main reason for seeing this film is to experience Yvonne and Colburn at their respective peaks. Also, John Russell, as Grant, is quite handsome, rather like Clark Gable. Also, there is a ferocious indoor fight between Grant and Lee near the end.See it at YouTube in Technicolor

A clever framing device (flashbacks telling the story from the perspectives of three different characters, who however do not contradict but complete each other - each account gives one more piece of the puzzle) leads to some unusual moments: did you expect to see a helicopter in an Yvonne De Carlo Western?! And Yvonne herself has a role that suits her just fine, as it taps into her comedic side, and gives her two fun songs (in which she parodies "operatic" singing). The problem is with the story itself: it's really quite tiresome and repetitive (we get it, the two cousins don't like each other; now what?). And after a point you realize that this is a clear-cut comedy, and nobody is going to get (seriously) hurt anyway. ** out of 4.

The fun of this film is telling the story from three different viewpoints -- each version diametrically opposed to the others -- what is the truth? probably a mixture of all of them -- it's a fun film with DeCarlo in fine form and the feuding brothers fighting it out for her affections is half the fun.