Westward the Women (1951)

Caravan of graft, guile and stoicism.

Westward the Women is directed by William Wellman and adapted to screen by Charles Schnee from a story written by Frank Capra. It stars Robert Taylor, Denise Darcel, John McIntire, Hope Emerson, Julie Bishop and Henry Nakamura. Music is by Jeff Alexander and cinematography by William Mellor.

A most important Western, one that demands to be seen by lovers of the genre. Plot finds Taylor tasked with escorting over 100 women from Chicago to California, their goal is to find marital harmony at Whitman Valley. They must overcome extreme conditions, from that of the natural terrain, hostile invasions, and inner fightings via passions and suspicions. This is a wagon train of some difference.

The key issue here is that this MGM production puts up front and centre the fact that women played a key part in the shaping of the frontiers. It manages to have the expected cute and funny scenarios, but not at the expense of viable assertive drama, nothing denigrates how strong, brave and driven these women were.

Some of the gender politics look a touch suspect today, and occasionally some of the framing devices for the women are over staged. There's also the irritant of stereotyping Nakamura's Asian character, but these are small quibbles all told. For this is a unique and fascinating Western, something of a banner movie for telling a side of the "West" we hardly have ever see on film. 7/10