The Way West

Trailer—The Way West

The Way West

Hard-driving Kirk Douglas organizes a wagon train to Oregon, hiring mountain man Robert Mitchum to lead the way and squaring off with Indians, the elements, and hostility among the settlers, particularly hard-headed farmer Richard Widmark. Almost universally panned and patronized as director Andrew V. McLaglen's attempt to ape the style of his mentor John Ford, it's actually an innocuous, inoffensive adventure saga in the mold of How The West Was Won or Raoul Walsh's The Big Trail, though not as good as those films. It's still fairly watchable, except for the endless, obnoxious subplots featuring teenage Sally Field and her deflowering by a married, frustrated loser! Douglas and especially Mitchum are excellent, as usual. However, Widmark falls a little short, thanks to a less than interesting character, though he's always a welcome presence in anything he's involved in.

What could possibly go wrong with a movie starring Kirk Douglas, Robert Mitchum, and Richard Widmark that is also based on a Pulitzer Prize winning novel? Quite a bit. For instance, there's routine direction by Andrew V. McGlaglen, who also directed some of John Wayne's most routine westerns in the 60s. Then there's a cliche-ridden script filled with plots and subplots leftover from a dozen daytime soaps. Still, I rather liked it when it was first released, and still find it entertaining because of its three stars. And, back in 1967, who would have ever believed that Sally Field, who was still best known as TV's "Gidget" when this film was released, had two Oscars in her future while the three legends heading the cast wouldn't even win one?

THE WAY WEST is a Hollywood western that might well be described as 'Oregon Trail, the movie'. Kirk Douglas leads a bunch of settlers from the Eastern seaboard to Oregon, and their wagon train must deal with numerous problems along the way. There are deep rivers to cross, valleys that need descending, arid salt pans to get through, as well as hostile Sioux tribes with murder in mind. Of course, the greatest conflict comes from within the group. I liked this character-based drama which moves along as nicely as the wagon train itself and has plenty of sub-plots to get involved with. The dream team of Douglas, Richard Widmark and Robert Mitchum were all seasoned western stars and do very well with the material they're given, while Sally Field has a memorable early role as a man-hungry teen. The ending is particularly strong here.

The three leading roles Kirk Douglas, Robert Mitchum and Richard Widmark pay the picture itself, added with a fine supporting casting as still beauty Lola Albright, the funny Harry Carey Jr., the younger fiery Sally Field and Stefan Arngrim who after this picture was casting for Irwin's Allen's Land of the Giants series, a supposed story about a caravan between Missouri to Oregon, almost shot along the long journey, across great lowlands, deserts, forest and deepest canyon, in the meantime followed by angry Indians, disagreement over the route, betrayal, hanging and love, Mitchum maybe was the most interesting character, draught, wise, alone and friendy, Kirk Douglas is quite a opposite guy unyielding and dreamer, Widmark a brute force, summarizing the picture let it see easily, apart the final scenes at canyon!!! Resume: First watch: 2019 / How many: 1 / Source: DVD / Rating: 7.5

An attempt at an epic old-style Western from a journeyman director - he made a better stab at it later with Chisum. Perhaps its the lack of John Wayne and the rest of the John Ford rep but this is a film of striking set-pieces separated by far too much time! Douglas and Widmark both do some stirring scenery-chewing but this is a melodrama so that is allowed. Mitchum is laid-back and laconic as only Mitchum could be - and looks wonderful as ever. Not sure why others were surprised to see him in a Western - Mitchum made his share and some very good ones too (El Dorado, Five Card Stud and Bandido are all favourites of mine). The Fort Hall sequence is fun - just as a reminder that the Sioux and the French weren't the only folks that got there before the Americans! ;-)

Kirk Douglas plays former U.S. Senator William Tadlock who ramrods a wagon train of Missouri pioneers to a new start in Oregon. Dick Summeres(Robert Mitchum)is goaded into scouting for the trek. He seemed to be the best choice. He did find mountains, water and the Grand Canyon; but then Indians did find the wagon train. A little bit of firewater helps the travelers gain free passage from the Indians. Drought and death does not deter the westward caravan. The heavy hitting lineup of stars include: Richard Widmark, Jack Elam, Lola Albright, Stubby Kaye, Harry Carey Jr. and "introduces" Sally Field as a sagebrush tart. Beautiful scenery throughout. Andrew V. McLaglen directs this movie that just seems to plod along and falls far from the status of a genuine classic. A great way to spend a long afternoon.