Western Union (1941)

Wonderfully offbeat film!

This is ultimately a movie about the very bad things that can happen when we don't address our unease, when we just try to brush it off, whether that's to fit in or to preserve our self-image.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

Randolph Scott (Vance Shaw), Robert Young (Richard Blake), Dean Jagger (Edward Creighton), Virginia Gilmore (Sue Creighton), John Carradine (Doc Murdoch), Slim Summerville (Herman), Chill Wills (Homer), Barton MacLane (Jack Slade), Russell Hicks (governor), Victor Kilian (Charlie), Minor Watson (Pat Grogan), George Chandler (Herb), Chief Big Tree (Chief Spotted Horse), Chief Thundercloud (Indian leader), Dick Rich (Porky), Harry Strang (henchman), Charles Middleton (stagecoach rider), Addison Richards (Captain Harlow), Irving Bacon (barber), Francis Ford, Eddy Waller (stagecoach drivers), James Flavin, Frank Mills, Ralph Dunn (men), Paul E. Burns (Bert), Cliff Clark, Hank Bell.Director: FRITZ LANG. 2nd unit director: Otto Brower. Screenplay: Robert Carson. Based on the 1939 novel by Zane Grey. Photographed in Technicolor by Edward Cronjager and Allen M. Davey. Film editor: Robert Bischoff. Art directors: Richard Day, Wiard B. Ihnen. Set decorator: Thomas Little. Costumes: Travis Banton. Music director: David Buttolph. Technicolor color consultants: Natalie Kalmus, Morgan Padelford. Associate film editor: Gene Fowler Jr. Sound recording: Bernard Freericks, Roger Heman. Western Electric Sound System. Associate producer: Harry Joe Brown. Executive producer: Darryl F. Zanuck.Copyright 21 February 1941 by 20th Century-Fox Film Corp. New York opening at the Roxy: 6 February 1941. U.S. release: 21 February 1941. Australian release: 29 January 1942. 8,602 feet. 95 minutes.SYNOPSIS: Despite Indians and outlaws, Western Union constructs a telegraph line from Omaha, Nebraska, to Salt Lake City, Utah.NOTES: Although Irving Bacon is credited as Joe, the barber, in the credits of the print under review, the part — in this version at least — was played not by Bacon but by Olin Howland. These credits also state that the art directors were Richard Day and Albert Hogsett. Both Wiard B. Ihnen and 20th Century-Fox dispute this credit. Both maintain that Mr. Hogsett had nothing to do with the sets for Western Union and that they were in fact designed by Ihnen, under Day's general supervision. COMMENT: A really memorable western which fully justifies its high reputation. Spectacularly produced, with action a-plenty, agreeably acted, superlatively photographed, with lots of forceful Lang touches in direction. From the opening credits, underlined by Buttolph's stirring score, through the opening shot of the buffalo with Scott (or at least his double) hard riding into their midst, the pace hardly ever lets up until the final unexpected fade-out. Aided by marvelous color photography, the clever script (which actually owes little but its title to the Zane Grey novel) introduces at least six or seven rousing action episodes. All built around some particularly daring stunt-work. Good to see Robert Young doing a fair bit of his own riding, but most impressive of all is Dean Jagger, caught making his own leap from an overturning wagon. Of course, Jagger, aside from this action spot, is much his usual limp blanket, but at least he isn't in the movie all that much. Also slightly on the negative side of the cast roster is Virginia Gilmore, a little too postcard pretty, in my opinion, to be wholly believable. Lack of credibility is certainly not a charge that can be leveled against Randolph Scott who is every inch your typically laconic, torn-twixt-love-and-duty western hero. Unlike Gilmore, Scott really looks the part. Young is effective too. Slim Summerville is along for comic relief. Whilst some of his antics are a trifle forced, we like Slim anyway. A bearded (and unrecognizable were it not for his distinctively rich voice) Victor Kilian makes a surprisingly effective stooge.Led by John Carradine (made up to look like the Henry Hull character in "Return of Frank James"), many of our favorite character actors can be spotted along the way, including the here ill-fated Chill Wills (in a straighter part than usual); Francis Ford as the stage driver with whom Summerville tries to escape; James Flavin as a member of the bank hold-up posse; Russell Hicks as a governor reduced to horse holder; George Chandler as the victim of an "Indian" attack. Best of all is Barton MacLane as the notorious Jack Slade whose humor is strained by his kinship with our hero. In an interview with Peter Bogdanovich, Lang remarked that audiences tend to remember the visual aspects of a film rather than the dialogue. I'm inclined to agree with this observation, yet there's a scene in Western Union which amply demonstrates Lang's mastery of both. Kilian bets Carradine a week's wages that Chandler won't last the night, despite the doc's best efforts to save him. Later, Carradine silently exits his tent, peels off a wad of notes into Kilian's waiting hand, and without a word slowly walks off. Kilian cheerfully calls after him: "Better luck next time, Doc!" Lang tops all the spectacular action with a suspenseful double climax which ends the movie on a totally unpredictable note. OTHER VIEWS: The best of Fox's traditional western epics. — William K. Everson.The most beautiful and epic of Lang's westerns (it was the director's personal favorite), "Western Union" is an outstanding entry in the genre. — Motion Picture Guide.

This is a sort of hidden gem. It has little to no promotion, no fanfare, no classic status, and it deserves all of the above! One of the great directors of cinema, Fritz Lang, has created a real gem in this excellent western. A fine cast led by Randolph Scott (in probably one of his greatest performances), the always sturdy Dean Jagger, Robert Young as a surprisingly accomplished dude plus many veteran character actors: Chill Wills, Slim Summerville, John Carradine, Barton MacLane and others in an exciting Zane Grey story of the laying of the Western Union cable across country. It has tense drama, sprinklings of humor and great effects. It's reminiscent of DeMille in ways and yet Fritz Lang leaves his own stamp on it. At very least this is a damned good western!

Western Union (1941) *** (out of 4) Fritz Lang's film about the Western Union telegraph company trying to get its wires through Indian territory. Robert Young plays the man in charge of the mission and he hires an outlaw (Randolph Scott) to keep enemies off. You'd think someone like Lang wouldn't be too good at making a film about the Old West but with this, Jesse James and its sequel, he makes for some rather entertaining films, which certainly stand out in his career. The entire film pretty much works due to the performances with Young and Scott doing great work together. Scott steals the film whenever he's on the screen but Dean Jagger, John Carradine and Virginia Gilmore are also very good. You could complain about how the Indians are portrayed but I won't do that because the film is entertaining for these reasons. There's one scene where a drunken Indian looks for whiskey, which is so incredibly bad that it's hilarious. The big fire scene is excellent as is the big battle with the Indians.

If Western Union isn't exactly the real story of the construction of the Transcontinental Telegraph, it certainly does capture the spirit and dedication of the people involved with the project.Dean Jagger is the man in charge and one fine day he's thrown from a horse and sustains some fractured ribs. An outlaw on the run, Randolph Scott, finds Jagger and is ready to steal his horse, but changes his mind and brings Jagger to help. Later on he's hired by Western Union and works for Jagger.Jagger also hires a young easterner played by Robert Young who's an engineer. Young is doing one of his few loan out films away from MGM for 20th Century Fox. Both Young and Scott become friends, but rivals for Jagger's sister Virginia Gilmore.Western Union has plenty of action, enough to satisfy any western fans. The telegraph crew has to deal with outlaws, Indians, and your garden variety labor troubles.Slim Summerville as the timid cook and Victor Killian as the frontier character assigned to guard him have some of the funniest scenes. They both provide some good comic relief. Fritz Lang got good performances from his cast and kept the film moving briskly along. Western Union is solid western entertainment.