The Furies

Rambling Over-Acting and Psychologically Over-Wrought. That Smothers the Bleak Cinematography and Adult Sensibilities. Barbara Stanwyck Tries to Anchor Walter Huston's Bellowing and Gyrations. But Huston Plays the Patriarch so Over-the-Top and Belligerent that You would Think its His Last Movie...It is. Wendell Corey is Miscast as a Hard-as-Nails Gambler. Gilbert Roland Plays Better and His Scenes with Stanwyck come off the Best. Alliances Shift and Deep-Rooted Affections and Respect are Unsteady. Judith Anderson has a Small Part and Makes the Most of it and is Part of the "New" Violence that Mann is Known for. Familiar Faces Abound and the High Production Value is Everywhere. But the Story is one of Low-Intrigue and Boils Down to Family Foundations and Strong Payback and Back Again. Frustratingly Fraught to Freudian Formulas and Essentially a "Woman's Western". The Movie Does have an Edge to it that Foreshadows the 1950's Maturation of the Genre. But Overall there is something Flat and Forced about the Whole Thing. Anthony Mann would Make 2 Other Westerns in 1950. "Devil's Doorway" and "Winchester 73. Both are Far Superior to this Disappointment. Still it's Packed with a Production Quality that Can't Be Ignored...And is... Worth a Watch.

Airless, baroque 'noir/western/woman's picture' full of grandiloquent posturing and petty nastiness, entirely lacking the sober, tragic sense of the classical Oresteia, which the heavy symbolism of the name given to the ranch, and to the film, contrives only to parody. A car-crash vehicle for Stanwyck's self-indulgent hamming. And about as bonkers and boring as that other woman-dominated Western, Nicholas Ray's insane Joan Crawford vehicle 'Johnny Guitar.' I'll give it 4 because the monochrome lighting camerawork is so good.

Vance Jeffords plans to inherit the ranch, but when her father brings home a new wife she finds herself being pushed out. She takes drastic action which gets her banished from the furies. Now she plans on getting her revenge and the Furies from her father. Starts off slow, but gains momentum as you go along.

This film is about a nasty old rancher and his amazingly macho and unstable daughter. They go from the best of friends to the worst of enemies through the course of the film and the viewer is probably left wondering why all this really occurred. I have seen most of Barbara Stanwyck's films, so my reaction to "The Furies" may be different from that of other viewers. Seeing Stanwyck playing yet another butch female was a bit tough for me. First, because this sort of role was way too common for her--it had become a cliché. Second, because this sort of lady, though present in 1940s and 50s movies was awfully anachronistic--you just didn't find women like this in the Old West. And so, as a retired history teacher, I blanched at such a character. I WISH there had been tough as nails like her but frankly women were not given this opportunity in those days. The closest you might find like her might have been a tough old prostitute--but the idea of a lady bossing EVERYONE around like a mini-tyrant just seemed silly. And, coming from petite Stanwyck who made a bazillion films about tough old broads, it just felt too familiar. At the same time, I loved part of the film's plot. Seeing Stanwyck's character have a WAY too close relationship with her father (it looked like it was bordering on the incestuous--with their kissing each other on the lips and overly familiar manners) was exciting. This embodiment of the old Electra Complex (like an Oedipal Complex with with the genders reversed) was very interesting and fresh. And, what I really LOVED was how this eventually played out--when another woman (Judith Anderson) wanted the father (Walter Huston) sparks really, really flew. To me THIS is what makes the film worth seeing--and which makes it possible to overlook the silliness of Stanwyck's ultra-macho demeanor. It also helped to explain, in part, the twisted sort of relationship between father and daughter and the bizarre things they do through the course of the film. They fight because it is not permissible for them to act out their dark impulses--at least this is how the Freudians would interpret all this. What's to like other than the incestuous aspects? The cinematography was great (not surprisingly it received an Oscar nomination) and the direction by Anthony Mann was very nice. What's no to like? Well, some of the acting (not just Stanwyck's) was very far from subtle--especially the crazy old lady who played Gilbert Roland's mother (Blanche Yurka)! And, overall, I think the film, despite its faults, is still worth watching. However, considering what great westerns Mann directed, I cannot agree with one reviewer who felt this was his best film. What about "Winchester '73" or "The Naked Spur" or "The Tin Star"? By the way, the aging Walter Huston does some amazingly macho things for a guy who died before the film debuted. However, in at least one of these scenes you can see the wires that were used to provide the illusion of a tough and virile Huston. Towards the beginning of the film, Huston climbs in a mud hole to extricate a calf. As he's tossing it, look carefully for the wire that helps him with this arduous task.

The Furies is directed by Anthony Mann and adapted to screenplay by Charles Schnee from the Niven Busch novel. It stars Barbara Stanwyck, Walter Huston, Wendell Corey, Judith Anderson and Gilbert Roland. Music is by Franz Waxman and cinematography by Victor Milner. "This is a story of the 1870's. . .in the New Mexico territory. . .when men created kingdoms out of land and cattle. . .and ruled their empires like feudal lords. Such a man was T.C. Jeffords. . .who wrote this flaming page in the history of the great Southwest." Anthony Mann was a fascinating and talented director, his career in direction of films can be broken into three sections. The 40s where he progressed from "B" movies to film noir, the 50s where he can be credited as a main player in taking the Western to a new and more adult level, and finally the 60s where he would helm two enormous historical epics. In short he was versatile and one of the most significant American directors during that 30 year period. 1950 was a prolific year for him, a year that saw him direct four movies, three westerns and Side Street, a crime procedural with noirish leanings. Of the three Westerns, it's Winchester '73 that has the big reputation and the distinction of being the first of the five westerns made with James Stewart that are rightly held in high regard in Western movie circles. Yet the other two, seemingly under seen or forgotten about, are at least worthy of the same praise. With Devil's Doorway, in this writers' opinion, actually a better movie than Winchester '73. The Furies serves as the perfect bridging movie between Mann's film noirs and his Westerns because it blends the two courtesy of the Western setting and the story, taking both and cloaking it neatly with noirish atmospherics. To which it is underpinned by two very strong and passionate father and daughter characters played by Huston and Stanwyck. She is wealth obsessed and single mindedly driven, yet still having shades of vulnerability, whilst he is a crude land and cattle baron who has a kink for Napoleon! It's their relationship, as murky and stand offish as it is, that is at the core of The Furies. However, there are a number of plot off shoots also dwelling in the narrative, making this a complex story, one that pulses with psychological smarts and psycho-sexual undercurrents, with part of the latter appearing to be an incestuous arc between father and daughter. While it's not a Western for those after the more "traditional" gun play trappings of the genre, it does have some smart set pieces and moments of adrenaline raising. Including a shocking scene that wouldn't be out of place in a Hitchcock thriller. But ultimately this above all else is about the story and the flawed characters within. This was to be Huston's last film appearance, he would sadly pass away shortly after filming of The Furies had wrapped. Nice to report that he signed off from the mortal coil with a top performance, attacking the role of T. C. Jeffords with gusto and relish - with the ending of the film proving to be rather poignant. Stanwyck is excellent as Vance Jeffords, an actress capable of putting many layers to any character she was asked to play, here she two folds it by being utterly unlikable with ease, yet in a blink of an eye garnering our sympathy by way of child like vulnerability. In support Corey is fine as card sharp Rip Darrow, the man who Vance deeply courts, and someone who has a serious agenda with T. C. Jeffords. Yet it's Judith Anderson who takes the acting honours in the support ranks. Charged with the task of playing a character who threatens to take Vance's place in her fathers world, Anderson nicely combines subtle underplaying with emotive driven thesping. With Mann going for heavy atmosphere, Milner's photography is deep in focus and suitably evocative, and Waxman provides a robust - storm-a-brewing, musical score. Prime Mann offering that's deserving of more exposure and more appreciative praise. 8.5/10

This Antony Mann Western is little-known compared to his collaborations with James Stewart or Man of the West or a good number of other Mann films, but it's an equal to his best work. Barbara Stanwyck and Walter Huston (in his final performance) star as a daughter and her father, powerful ranchers who own the titular land. Their relationship, much as the title suggests, has a psycho-sexual tinge. When men call on Stanwyck, her father balks. And when hoochies cling to Huston, well, then things get real ugly! The Furies shows Mann bringing a lot of his noir skills to the Western genre. One can easily see how that genre influenced Mann's characterizations, but, in terms of film-making, he had largely moved on. The Furies is just dark and often nasty. I have to wonder why the film is so little known. My thought is that almost all Westerns feature male protagonists, with the most notably exception being Johnny Guitar. I'm not going to rag too much on that film, because I do like it, but The Furies is far superior. Stanwyck was rarely better. I might actually rate this as her best. Huston went out on one of his best performances. It's hard to believe he died before the film was even released with as much energy as he shows. My only real complaint with the movie is that it peaks too early. The standoff at the Herrera's fort is one of the greatest sequences in the history of the genre, and it's so good that the remainder of the film drags a bit. Still, a masterpiece. Thanks again, Criterion!

This is a good film to watch as autumn turns to winter. It's filled with old hatreds, revenge both old and new, explosive emotions and a subtle intelligence. Walter Huston and Barbara Stanwyck go on a powerful tear as T.C. and Vance Jeffords. There are hints of incest in the complex presentation of the lives of this father and daughter.There, most of all, is a escalating chill that sweeps down into the furies, that freezes hearts and cools ardor.Films like "The Furies", swirl around the omnipotent lives of stern and demanding patriarchs. We await their comeuppance, their downfall. We await it and we regret that these larger then life men fail to hold on to their wealth, their loves, and sometimes their lives. It is a shame that Walter Huston was dead a year before this, his final film was released. His performance is mesmerizing.

Barbara Stanwyck here... Barbara Stanwyck there... Barbara Stanwyck, Barbara Stanwyck everywhere. (Sheesh!) I honestly can't say that I've ever been very impressed with Barbara Stanwyck as an actress. But, after having to put up with her here (as the Vance Jeffords character) as she completely dominated this Western (and dragged it down to the level of being a snivelling, petty Chick Flick), I now loathe her with an undying passion like no other. Personally, I think that director Anthony Mann made a monumental error by allowing Stanwyck's spoilt, vain, rich-girl character to completely take control of The Furies' story. With its excellent location shooting and A-1 camera-work, this Western certainly had a lot of potential to be a really first-rate tale, focusing in on T.C. Jeffords (Vance's father), an arrogant, demanding cattle baron. Set in New Mexico (in the 1870s) - Instead of The Furies being a rough and tough Western yarn, it was all frills and lace with the two-faced, treacherous, spiteful Vance Jeffords forever appearing in one ridiculously expensive gown after another. (Talk about being a total clothes-horse!) I'm certainly pleased and relieved to know that with all of the subsequent Westerns that Mann directed throughout the 1950s, he thankfully kept the tone of his pictures totally masculine and rugged, sans Barbara Stanwyck.

Very few westerns have the psychological impacts that this "Mourning Becomes Electra" like saga dramatizes. Barbara Stanwyck, in the role that must have influenced her "Big Valley" character for TV, is both tough and tender as Vance Jeffords, the western princess of TC Jefford's (Walter Huston) empire. Dare step on her toes, and you won't be able to rest, as love interest Wendell Corey finds out. And dare come between her and her beloved father, and you'll end up with a surprising bit of vengeance as Judith Anderson as a gold-digging San Francisco socialite finds out. John Bromfield appears briefly as Stanwyck's brother who knows that he will never have the affections of his father that Stanwyck has and pretty much resigns himself to the fact that she will be daddy's heir, not him. Barbara Stanwyck was the Queen of the west, and in almost a dozen Westerns, it was Barbara Stanwyck who gave many a western hero a run for their money. Walter Huston, as her patriarchal father, is a force to be reckoned with who has trained his daughter to be tough. When he betrays her one wish, he also becomes a victim of her vengeance. There are also Gilbert Roland as a Mexican squatter, her life-long friend who becomes a tool in her father's revenge against her; Blanche Yurka, the great Hungarian stage actress, plays the bit role of his vengeful mama; Even in the small role, we are reminded of her excellent performance as Madame DeFarge in the Ronald Colman version of "A Tale of Two Cities" years before. Just watch her intense eyes as she cackles and curses in Spanish as she pushes huge boulders off the mountain in her effort to prevent Huston and Stanwyck from gaining access to the family's mountain hideaway. Beaulah Bondi also shows up briefly as a society matron who aids Stanwyck in her efforts to take over the Furies. With all this talent, it is amazing that the scenery wasn't eaten up along the way. The great Judith Anderson, who played many of the types of roles on Broadway that Stanwyck did on screen, is subtle as she tries to worms her way into the role of Queen of the Furies, but it is Stanwyck's ultimate revenge which prevents this from happening. Later, when we get our last glimpse of the beaten Anderson, she gives herself a great exit line. This, ironically, was the second film in which one of Stanwyck's characters had an impact on Anderson's character; In the 1946 film noir, "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers", it is young Martha (who as an adult is played by Stanwyck) who pushes matriarch Anderson down some stairs to her death, giving that film its motivations. The one problem with this casting is the performance of Wendell Corey, perhaps one of the dullest leading men in Hollywood history. Stiff and unappealing, there is no doubt in the viewer's mind that Stanwyck would never feel any passion for the tree trunk like character. He was perfect as the sap husband of Joan Crawford's in the same years "Harriet Craig" but didn't have the fire that Gilbert Roland did. The previous year's "The File of Thelma Jordan" paired them together and proved that Stanwyck's passion required her to have a man on her side (and in her bed) that was her equal. Fortunately, Walter Huston is given more screen time, and is absolutely outstanding. He truly deserved an Oscar Nomination for his lively performance. When T.C. faces his final moments on-screen, he does it with such acceptance of his fate that it is truly heartfelt. It was his last film, as he died before the film was released. Stanwyck praised Huston publicly, and at her AFI tribute, Walter's son, director John Huston, praised Stanwyck (whom he had never met) for her professionalism and kindness to his father. The same year's "September Affair" took Huston's old recording of "September Song" and utilized it to great effect. Even by only being heard in that film, he truly made a huge impact, and ranks as perhaps my favorite actor of old Hollywood.

In his final film, Huston plays a larger than life character who owns a big ranch that he is struggling to maintain financially. Stanwyck is the head-strong daughter that he clashes with, particularly when Anderson enters the picture as his fiancé. One can imagine her character later became Victoria Barkley in "The Big Valley." Mann specialized in Westerns and he does well enough here, but the problem is that the script is not very interesting. Huston and Stanwyck are always worth watching, but Corey seems to be miscast as the romantic lead. Waxman, who won the Oscar for "Sunset Blvd." the same year, provides a lively score. Interestingly, both Mann and Waxman lived from 1906 to 1967.