Vengeance Valley (1951)

Owen Daybright is the adopted son of cattleman Arch Strobie; his loyalty extends to trying to protect Arch's son Lee. Lee has fathered a child and has Owen give the mother, Lily, five hundred dollars; her brother is determined to find the identity of the father and have his vengeance against the man who brought dishonour on his family; neither Lily nor Owen is going to name the father. It soon becomes apparent that Lee has no intention of repaying this loyalty; he sees Owen as a rival for his father's affections and his future inheritance. It would suit him nicely if Lily's brothers were to think Owen was the baby's father and kill him.This is a solid western; it might not be full of action but it has a good story. Having a story which features an unmarried mother who isn't a 'terrible person who must suffer' is rather surprising for a film of this era… of course ultimately the man responsible will have to pay but even this is because he betrayed his adopted brother rather than fathering the child. There are a few action scenes but only one of them is a traditional shootout. I liked how this showed a fair amount of the cowboy's work; we see them breaking horses and rounding up the cattle after they are allowed to roam during the winter… I might have learnt something about nineteenth century cattle farming in the United States! The cast does a fine job; Burt Lancaster is most notable as protagonist Owen; Robert Walker is also solid as the cowardly antagonist Lee Strobie. Overall this isn't a must see but it is still worth watching if you are a fan of Westerns.

A 1951 MGM color western, lapsed into public domain. Several copies available at YouTube: all with frequent washed out colors and slightly fuzzy image. Nonetheless, they are good enough for the determined viewer. Also available in "The Great American Western" DVD pack.The screenplay focuses on an unwed mother(Sally Forrest as Lily),and the question of who is the father. Lily won't tell and neither will the father, who doesn't want to suffer retribution at the hands of her 2 big brothers Hub(John Ireland) and Dick(Hugh O'Brien), or his wife or father. Although neighbor Hewie, a young ranch hand, has long had a crush on Lily, suspicion falls on Owen(Burt Lancaster): one of two brothers who run a neighboring ranch for their ailing father(Arch). Owen's guilt is assumed by some after he visits Lily, staying at a neighbor's house, and leaves her $500. Later, it's discovered that Owen's brother Lee(Robert Walker) withdrew $500. from their account, making his wife, Jen(Joanne Dru) assume that he is the likely father. She tells Owen she wants to leave, but Owen talks her into staying, although she locks Lee out of the bedroom. Owen has also figured out that Lee is the father but, like Jen, won't tell anyone. Lily's brothers still believe Owen is the father, and stick him up when he again visits Lily. Owen has a fist fight with one, until Lily appears with a rifle to end it, and send her brothers to jail for a week. I should explain that Owen was adopted as an orphan, while Lee is Arch's(father) natural son. Amazingly, the narrator in the introduction gets this backwards! Owen appears to be a little older and definitely taller and bigger. He's the foreman, and certainly more responsible than Lee. One wonders why Jen married Lee rather than Owen. Owen suggests to Lee that if he values his life, he best leave for other parts before Lily's brothers get out of jail. Lee sends mixed messages as to whether he is leaving. He asks for and receives a half ownership share of the father's ranch. Yet, he sells 3000 head of cattle, supposedly to get him started in parts unknown. Arch says that Owen will inherent the other half interest in the ranch when he(Arch)dies. Lee arranges for Lily's brothers to join the cattle herding, arranging with them to ambush Owen when Lee leads him to the place. Well, you can more or less guess what actually happens. Unfortunately, there is no hint whether Owen and Jen are likely to marry, or whether Owen or Hewie will likely marry Lily. Lily seems a pretty independent person, but my guess is she will eventually marry Hewie, as someone who will not try to be too dominating over her.

In this western, Lily Fasken has just had a baby with no father. When a nice guy (Burt Lancaster) helps her, her two no-good brothers think it's because the baby is his...but it actually belongs to one of Lancaster's friends (the no-goodnick played by Robert Walker). Yet, despite the brothers trying to kill Lancaster, Walker still says the child isn't his--mostly because he's a coward and doesn't want his new wife to know about his formerly wild ways. And, he even goes so far as to go behind Lancaster's back--trying to get him killed! Why?! See this film and see what becomes of this horrible man and our hero.While Burt Lancaster worked out well in this film because of his great physique, casting Walker was just plain strange. While I liked Walker in such films as "Strangers on a Train" and "The Clock", I just felt that he was completely out of place in a western--as was his motivations. I am sure that audiences of the day felt much the same way. In addition, you really wondered why Lancaster as well as the two female leads in the film all kept Walker's secret for so long--he certainly didn't seem to deserve or inspire such loyalty. In addition, the added narration seemed out of place and unnecessary--like it was added later to try to tied the film together...unsuccessfully. Despite these serious problems, the film is entertaining and watchable...but certainly NOT especially memorable.

Lavish MGM was not a studio for Westerns. That king of studios excelled at big-budget, star-studded drawing-room dramas. On the other hand, Westerns tend to do better with small casts, tight stories, and good outdoor locations. Nonetheless, this MGM Western is generally underrated. On the plus side, is a fine male cast among the supporting players (Collins, Wright, Ireland, de Corsia, Carpenter {surprisingly},and Jim Hayward as the sheriff), some striking Colorado locations, and good attention to detail (note how injured persons do not quickly recover, and how the trail drive is treated in realistic detail). My guess is that the producers were following up on the success of Red River (1948), with another trail-drive Western, but without the latter's notable dramatic tensions.Several factors work against Vengeance Valley. One is that critical lack of tension. The scenes don't really build to a dramatic conclusion, but simply follow one another in rather slack style. That results in a final showdown between Lancaster and Walker lacking the impact it should have given their family history together. Crucially, Director Thorpe adds nothing to the screenplay, and most importantly, adds nothing to Lancaster's performance which lacks the kind of shading that would normally build tension. I don't know whether to fault Thorpe or Lancaster for that one-note performance. But, unlike Wayne's character in Red River, Lancaster's Owen Daybright comes across as a rather dull and uninvolving character. He doesn't even seem angry or anguished during the showdown. Then there's Joanne Dru who appears unengaged with her part as Walker's wife. Many ambitious Hollywood actresses viewed the male-dominated Western as a come down, but whatever the reason, her scenes come across as emotionally flat, at best.On the other hand, the screenplay is both well developed and unusual for its day. Wedlock babies simply didn't turn up in movies during that Production Code era. Here, Forrest's fatherless baby sets off the chain of events leading to the climax, and also provides unusual motivation for the bad guys. There's also the terrific Colorado locations and trail herds big enough to be believed. Clearly the studio put real money into the project. Too bad they didn't hire a more inspired director. With better guidance, Vengeance Valley had the potential to be a memorably epic Western. Even as things stand, the movie remains highly watchable and generally underrated.