The Romance of Rosy Ridge (1947)

Overrated and overhyped

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Former MGM queen Norma Shearer was vacationing in the Sierras in California and at a ski lodge took notice of the owner's beautiful daughter. She thought that she ought to be in pictures and got her old friends at MGM to give her a look over. They did and signed the girl to a contract and Janet Leigh made her debut in The Romance of Rosy Ridge.During the Civil War both Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis spent a lot of time worrying about the fate of those border states like Missouri where this story takes place. There was considerable public opinion for both sides and a lot of neighbors fought each other. Into one Missouri town comes stranger Van Johnson and helps out a Confederate family which lost a son, Marshall Thompson, during the Civil War. Father Thomas Mitchell is suspicious, but his wife Selena Royle and children Dean Stockwell and Janet Leigh take to Johnson right off.Of course Johnson takes to Leigh right off as well. The people of the area can't seem to reconcile because a whole lot of bad things keep happening and only to Confederate families. Someone has a vested interest in keeping the Civil War going long after Appomattox. I won't say any more about the plot, but film fans will take one look at the cast and know who's responsible for all the bad things. But also a secret about son Marshall Thompson is revealed before all are reconciled.The Romance of Rosy Ridge was an auspicious debut for Janet Leigh. You could easily tell what Norma Shearer saw when she served as talent scout for her former studio. Van Johnson gives Janet a lot of support here, very generously allowing her to gain maximum exposure, he seems to have made an effort not to steal any scenes. Van and Janet have a good cast of supporting players as well.The film has a kind of nostalgic quality like some of John Ford's work. It might have really been a classic had Ford been the director. It's still pretty good as is.

The above line is from "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" but a few more like it would have considerably enlivened this sometimes slow but in fact worthy post Civil War drama. However,there are at least two other real winners in the genuine mean style,and even more of the same could have raised this movie to an eight rather than a faltering seven. For example:Exultant Wife:You'll always remember this day!Husband:As long as you live I will.And:Idealist Jonson:I joined this war because no man should be hated for the color of his skin.Confederate:It isn't about the color of anyone's skin, I hate the color of the pants you wore when you came down here against us.Jonson:This thing was really about the color of my pants?Unfortunately,the overall mood of the film is continuously uncertain.At times it is genuinely reflective and well timed ,at others it verges on the maudlin.Eleanor Parker or young Katherine Hepburn would have made a lot more of a hullabaloo with the same unchallenging script;Janet Leigh is simply too sweet and wholesome for words.Still despite a couple of ridiculous brief musical spurts,there are a whole troop of fine character actors,including Thomas Mitchel,Marshal Thompson(particularly good in the climatic scene) and my old acquaintance the inimitable O.Z. Whitehead. Moreover,Van Jonson,for once,is not studio typecast and does a fine job throughout,particularly with his barn musicale and in the final scene.All told, not the gem that it could have been but deserving of a lot better than it has ever yet been credited with.Definitely worth a look for any post Civil war buff or a family looking for a good clean afternoon's entertainment that has something to say.The director here is man of all work Roy Rowlands.And the reason that I am doing this review is that Rowlands previously directed "Our Vines Have Tender Grapes",one of the high points of American family drama. He apparently never remotely reached such heights again.The script derives from a story by Pulitzer Prize winner McKinley Kantor,a writer who more than once received less than he deserved by Hollywood.

This film is set right after the civil war and somebody is going around burning barns. The people are still loyal and hate the other side. Thomas Mitchell is the father who fought for the south and so did his son but the son hasn't come home yet. Janet Leigh is the daughter and Dean Stockwell is their youngest son. Van Johnson is passing by one day and he winds up staying with them. Johnson and Leigh are attracted to each other but the father wants to know what side Johnson fought on. Johnson used to be a schoolteacher before the war and he wants to open a schoolhouse. It turns out that Johnson knows something about their son and when the father finds out Johnson fought for the north, he wants to kill him. This was Janet Leigh's first film and she's only OK but i have never liked Van Johnson but he's OK here.

IMDB reader, please note: The genre is wrong -- this is a romantic musical comedy -- definitely NOT a drama.Janet Leigh's first lead role, opposite Van Johnson, is a nice showcase for her beauty and musical talents. The Romance of Rosy Ridge is sweetly old-fashioned with some strong small-town type veterans on hand. These are adorable people to spend time with and enjoy their bumpkin mannerism, especially O. Z. Whitehead. Van is resplendent as ever in the male lead.