Westward the Women (1951)

This has been my favorite movie from the first time I saw it as a kid. When Videos first came about, I sought this on lists of new releases as often as I came across such lists. When It finally did come out, I had one VHS in color and one in B&W. I can't tell how many times I've seen this gem, but I do believe I have the lines all memorized, and I "know" the ladies. It has become a perfect back- ground movie for me.In fact, when my sister and I first saw this in the early 60's, we loved the "I can't pay the rent" joke so much that we've shared it all of our lives. When my children finally saw the movie (in VHS), they were excited to see Ito tell this joke that they'd heard their whole lives.Even having read everyone else's reviews, I still don't see any failings in the movie. It's great escapism! I can tell you of some "flaws" (crossing tire tracks in the desert scenes, for example), but to me, they're just charming fingerprints left by the director. My only problems are that I want more! I wanted to stay with the women as they developed the town...to see Patience and her husband be leading citizens, to watch Fifi throw pans at Buck, and to watch Rose Meyers dear husband help her raise her son.I'd love to see someone remake this great movie--but only if they are true to the intentions--and allow us to continue to share their western lives. It would be terrible, however, if they spoiled it with 21st Century trashiness. Time to go watch it, again. :)

An unvarnished look at the hard road that a group of women settlers have to face on a wagon train journey to California. Nothing is glamorized and the cost of the trip is honestly depicted as heavy with human lives. As with real life even in tough times there are humorous incidents that happen and they enrich the story and the film. Robert Taylor not usually the most facile of actors is well suited to this role, his weathered appearance and hard manner make the rough but fair wagon master relatable. Hope Emerson stands out as a no nonsense, plain spoken traveler but all the performances are very good. Written by Frank Capra who was too busy to direct fortunately, his style wasn't suitable for the story, he handed this over to Wild Bill Wellman who turned out to be a perfect fit. An involving, unusual picture.

Growing up in the age of having to wait perhaps a year or more before a movie would be shown again on television, my sister and I were always very happy and excited to see "Westward the Women" on the TV schedule. This movie has it all: lots of stock characters, but those characters feel like real people and not one-dimensional figures. Robert Taylor's character does NOT want to lead a women-only wagon train across the west (after all, who will dig the wagon out of the mud?) and does so very grudgingly. Comedy and tragedy ensue, of course, with the women facing all sorts of obstacles. As little girls, we loved and were amazed by this film: as another reviewer rightly points out, it's a great movie about strong capable women.

If only this movie would come out on DVD . . . As a woman, this is one of my favorite westerns because it shows women who were courageous, brave, and faced the same danger as all men who went west. The movie has times when you will roll with laughter and even though there may be no tears from cowboys, there are some tearjerker moments. The women in this film are not the 2 dimensional beauties who wait patiently in the wagon for the menfolk to save the day. Regardless of how many times I've seen this movie, I enjoy every single time. Unlike most westerns, any and all gunfights move the plot along and show the women evolving on their journey west. To me, this western is along side Fort Apache for the most well written script.