Strange Lady in Town

source: Strange Lady in Town

Strange Lady in Town

This movie is truly awful. The dialogue and events are plodding clichés. I will watch just about anything - I am not picky. But I've seen better stories written by 14-year- olds. Even Harlequin Romance would not have bought this dreck on their worst day. Great actors Garson and Andrews were given nothing to work with here. There was no logic for Andrews random cliché barking love/hate attitudes towards the entirely passive female played by Garson. We kept expecting the "forced kiss to put her in her place" trope. We kept watching in hopes the movie would get better. It didn't. EDIT: I also kept watching expecting to see a closeup of my beloved Garson's face. They never did one. Not ONE. That's when I realized she must have been deemed "old" in Hollywood's eyes. :-(

I watched this on TCM first, didn't think it good enough to keep, though there were parts I really liked. I'm a big fan of both Garson and Andrews- I thought Garson's character well-acted and inspirational (strong, principled, etc.), while Andrews' was bizarre and his character development made little sense. He acted like a nutcase. This had partly to do with the writing, of course. That said, there were lofty, and quite profound, ahead-of-their-time ideas expressed (like "enabling"), one reason I think it worth watching. Also, I found the character development of supplemental characters (Garson's brother and Andrews' daughter) intriguing and integral to the plot. The main critique I have is of Andrews' whacko behavior and a failure to show how he went from point A to point B. The way Latinos were depicted was also cringe-worthy. But I never found the film boring, and I liked the ending.

It's 1880 Santa Fe, New Mexico. Dr. Julia Winslow Garth newly arrives in town from back east. She's an oddity. She's a woman AND a doctor. The most interesting actor for me is Lois Smith who plays Spurs O'Brien. I've only known her as an old woman. It's weird to see her as a fetching twenty something. It would have been interesting to see a buggy crash after a buggy chase. This western romance struggles to be interesting. There is no heat in the lead romance which generates no tension. Greer Garson starts off interesting but only for being a doctor. Dana Andrews is doing nothing after screaming for his buggy. The two of them really face no real hurdle. There is more energy in Spurs' crush. At least, that has a bit of drama. At two hours, this simply drags on too long with no intensity.

Somewhat noneventful tale of a woman doctor in 1880s Santa Fe. She tames local doc Andrews, but her brother (Mitchell) turns out to be a bad seed. The best thing about this film is Lois Smith's gamine performance as Andrews' daughter -- very cute and pretty nice performance.

First off, someone took the easy way out on the naming the title of this movie. They must have left it for last or someone in corporate said hey call it strange lady in town. What? Okay, let's move on. Dana Andrews plays his part as does Greer and what's not to like in a Western. The West of the 1880's was full of never ending stories all from different perspectives and here is one of them. Lady doctor and a man doctor in one small town? Add some horses, festivals, gun-play, good and bad guys, love interests, poor Mexican village, a padre and little ranches and we giddiyup! I will say that the story could have been more developed but the point is that they got together and knocked this out. It entertains and I recommend a sandwich with a tasty drink while watching with a snack on standby. Mount-up and let's ride!

Western with Greer Garson is very uneven. She almost has a love-hate relationship with fellow doctor, Dana Andrews. He is miscast here. She plays the western doctor who left Massachusetts because of the hatred there of men of women becoming doctors. She comes to Sante Fe, New Mexico since her brother Cameron Mitchell is in the army there. He is quite a rogue. The unevenness of the film can be shown that after a blow-up between the Garson and Andrews' character, in the next scene he has arranged a surprise birthday party for her. There are so many sub-stories in the film that would have played better-the blind boy whose sight is restored by Garson and the battered young woman; instead, they are merely skirted over.

While not a classic, a truly enjoyable film with a favorite star of mine, Greer Garson. Dana Andrews is also a fine actor and plays his part with convincing sincerity. Mitchell is also a fine actor but does seem to be acting, more so than Greer Garson or Dana Andrews. The Billy the Kid segment is a bit over the top, but OK. The young lady is GREAT!Wish I had been able to see more of her. The theme song is a fine one. Frankie Lane never acquired the acclaim he should have had, either. However, it was evidently a forgettable tune, but one I know by heart. Dana Andrews is a doctor, soured on life since the death of his wife. He is raising a daughter, while being the only M.D. in a small village, in the old west. Into town drives Greer Garson. A brilliant woman who has studied medicine in Europe and has several new techniques to try to update the staid, older doctor. Sparks fly and so do the tempers.