Harrison's Reports (1954)

34 HARRISON’S REPORTS February 27, 1954 “Saskatchewan” with Alan Ladd, Shelley Winters auid J. Carol Nsush (Univ.dnt'l, March; time, 86 min.) A good outdoor melodrama, photographed in Technicolor. The story, which pits the Canadian Northwest Mounted Police against hostile Sioux Indians, is loaded with action and excitement, and the fights between the whites and the Indians furnish more than a fair share of thrills. Alan Ladd, as a courageous Mountie who shows better judgment than his commanding officer, is well suited to the derring-do requirements of the role. The heroics consist of his disregarding orders, despite the threat of court-martial, so as to save the territory from attacks by both friendly and hostile Indians. The picture was shot at Banff, in the Canadian Rockies, and the outdoor scenery, enhanced by the excellent color photography, is nothing short of breathtaking: — While returning from outpost duty, Ladd, an Inspector in the Northwest Mounted Pohce, rescues Shelley Winters, a tempestuous American girl, from an Indian attack. He escorts her back to Fort Saskatchewan and learns that she is a fugitive from justice in the States when Hugh O’Brien, a U.S. Marshal, arrives to take her into custody. A sudden uprising of hostile Sioux Indians, who had crossed into Canada, delays Shelley’s return. Robert Douglas, Ladd’s superior, orders him to disarm the friendly Cree Indians to prevent them from joining the Sioux. He also orders the Mounties, along with Shelley and O’Brien, to abandon Fort Saskatchewan and to begin a trek to Fort Walsh. During the journey Ladd rebels against Douglas’ leadership and the Mounties side with him, despite Douglas’ threat of courtmartial. As the dangerous mission moves ahead, O’Brien attempts to make love to Shelley and is repulsed. He and Ladd fight it out, after which O’Brien confesses that he had trumped up the charges against Shelley in a blackmailing attempt to force her to marry him. O’Brien then grabs a gun and attempts to shoot the unarmed Ladd, but he is killed by a well-aimed bullet fired by Douglas. Ladd and J. Carrol Naish, his guide, lead a raid in which the Crees, at Ladd’s insistence, are once again armed. In the battle that follows, the Sioux succeed in pinning down the Mounties, but the Canadian Crees come to the rescue, rout the Sioux and push them back across the U.S. border. When all return to Fort Walsh, Douglas realizing that he had been wrong, dismisses his own charges against Ladd and assigns him indefinite leave to escort Shelley back to the United States to help clear her of the trumped-up charges and to return with her only after her innocence is established. It was produced by Aaron Rosenberg, and directed by Raoul Walsh, from a story and screenplay by Gil Doud. Suitable for the family. “Loophole” with Barry Sullivan, Dorothy Malone and Charles McGraw (Allied Artists, March 28; time, 80 min.) “Loophole” is a first rate program picture, with fine direction and acting, as well as story values. The characterizations are real, and the motivations logical. The story, a suspense melodrama, deals with a bank teller who finds himself short of $50,000 and cannot account for it. Although he is not sent to jail for theft, he sets out to find the person who had taken the money and suceeds in proving his own innocence. Barry Sulhvan fits the part of the bank teller extremely well, and his acting makes the character believable. There is no comedy relief, and none was required, for the story of the bank teller’s troubles is too serious for comedy. The photography is tops: — Leading a happy life with Dorothy Malone, his wife, Barry Sulhvan, a bank teller, finds his happiness shattered when he discovers that he is nearly $50,000 short in his cash at the close of business on a day when the bank examiners had been going over the bank’s books. He is so shocked that he fails to report the loss to his superiors at once. Unknown to Sullivan, Don Beddoe, posing as one of the examiners, had stuffed the money into his briefcase after examining Sullivan’s accounts and telling him that he had found everything in order. On the following Monday, Sulli van reports the loss to the bank's manager, who immediately informs the police as well as the bonding company that had bonded Sullivan. The police lack evidence to indict SuUivan for theft, but he loses his job just the same. From that moment on, Charles McGraw, a detective employed by the bonding company, trails Sullivan day and night and makes life miserable for him and his wife. Meanwhile SuUivan recalls the incidents that led to his discovery of the loss and, after examining many photos in the bonding company’s files, he becomes convinced that Beddoe had committed the crime. He devotes himself to finding Beddoe and one day catches up with him and tracks him to his apartment, which he shared with Mary Beth Hughes, his sweetie. Beddoe, frightened, offers to spht the loot with Sullivan. McGraw, who had been trailing Sullivan, sees him with Beddoe and takes it for granted that he was Sullivan’s confederate in the theft. But he changes his mind when Sullivan is found knocked unconscious in the apartment, from which Beddoe and Miss Hughes had fled with the loot through a back door. Eventually, however, Sullivan, aided by the pohce, traps Beddoe and his sweetie. His innocence established, Sulhvan returns to his teller’s window in the bank. Lindley Parsons produced it, and Harold Schuster directed it, from a screenplay by 'Warren Douglas, based on an original story by George Bricker and Dwight V. Babcock. Not for children because of Beddoe’s relationship with Miss Hughes. “Battle of Rogue River” with George Montgomery, Richard Denning and Martha Hyer (Columbia, March; time, 7l min.) A passable Indians^versus-U.S. Cavalry program melodrama, photographed in Technicolor. Set in 1850 and revolving around a courageous young Major who succeeds in bringing an end to the Indian Wars that blocked statehood for the Territory of Oregon, the story foUows a familiar formula and offers httle that has not been done in similar pictures many times. It has sufficient suspense, excitement and romantic interest, however, to satisfy the undiscriminating action fans. The direction and acting are competent, in spite of the fact that the characterizations are stereotyped. On the credit side are the beautiful outdoor scenery and the good color photography: — Heading a troop of fresh cavalrymen, George Montgomery, a Major, arrives at the Rogue River settlement and fort with orders to settle peacefully the savage Indian wars of Oregon, which were blocking statehood for the territory. Montgomery, a strict disciplinarian, finds the fort in slipshod condition, and when he starts running the fort by the “book” he arouses the resentment of a number of the men, including Emory Parnell, a veteran sergeant. He also ruffles Martha Hyer, Parnell’s daughter and the settlement’s social leader, when he refuses to let the soldiers attend one of her dances. But he welcomes the assistance and cooperation of Richard Denning, who headed a group of civilian volunteers helping the army to fight the Indians. Montgomery arranges a peace meeting with Michael Granger, the Chief of the Indians, and both agree to a 30-day truce, during which time efforts would be made to estabhsh a permanent peace. The meeting is disrupted by the arrival of several Indian braves with the bodies of three of their companions. They accuse Montgomery’s whites of being the murderers and, despite Montgomery’s protests of his lack of knowledge of the murders, the chief tries to stab him. Montgomery gains the upper hand and, using the chief as hostage, makes his way back to the fort, after which he releases the Chief as he had promised. The fact that Montgomery kept his word impresses the Chief, and he promises to keep the truce bargain. Unknown to Montgomery, however, Denning was actually one of a ring of schemers who sought to keep the Indian Wars alive for personal profit. Sensing that the truce would endanger his own plans, Denning transmits a false order to Parnell, who was in charge of a patrol, telling him to launch an attack on the Indians. All except Parnell die in the attack, but by the time that he can get back to the