Union Pacific (B or 3/4 stars)
Coming at the tail end of the Great Depression, 1939 has long been recognized as the pinnacle year for Hollywood's Golden Age. Movies from '39 were bigger in scope than ever and, Cecil B. DeMille's grand contribution that year would be 'Union Pacific', his sprawling, action-packed epic about building the 1st transcontinental railroad in the 1860s that stretched from Omaha, Nebraska to California's west coast. Joel McCrea, Barbara Stanwyck & a who's who of stars make-up the players in this lavish western. McCrea plays Jeff Butler, the supervisor of the construction of the Union Pacific Railroad. While on the job, he meets Irish import Mollie Monahan (Stanwyck), an attractive - but don't mess with her - postmistress for said railroad.
Jeff falls for her {shocker}; meanwhile, Asa Barrows (Henry Kolker), a seedy politician with a monetary interest in the rival Central Pacific line, hires crooked gambler Sid Campeau (Brian Donlevy) to delay construction of the line. Helped by Dick Allen (Robert Preston), a comrade of Jeff's from the recent Civil War, Sid Campeau sets up a gambling den & begins distracting the Union Pacific workers with the prospect of gambling, booze & women. That allure causes mayhem on the railroad; as does a robbery of the payroll, executed by Dick. When Mollie - who had been dating Dick - finds out that he is responsible for the theft, she talks him into returning the $$. After that, their train is attacked by Indians. Mollie stands her ground alongside Jeff & Dick ... but it looks as though they will all be massacred. If only the cavalry could arrive to help in time. Action & melodrama ensues.
'Union Pacific' is a BIG motion picture & produced with the usual extravagance that one would expect of Cecil B. DeMille (as anyone can see from his Cleopatra, Reap the Wild Wind, Samson & Delilah, The Greatest Show on Earth, The Ten Commandments, and many more). This movie features 100s of extras & plenty of rip-roaring action (bar brawls, Indian attacks & several locomotive derailments) to accompany the light romance & railroad melodrama.
Joel McCrea offers his typically amiable film presence to the proceedings. Barbara Stanwyck's Irish accent goes in & out, but she's as magnetic as ever. You just can't take your eyes off of her in any scene she's in. Robert Preston leaves a big impression as Dick. Brian Donlevy is as loathsome as ever as leader of the bad guys. A young Anthony Quinn shows up as one of Donlevy's henchman. Akim Tamiroff offers his thespian skills; as does Evelyn Keyes {who we also see in 1939's Gone with the Wind}. This primary cast is large & fits into the Cecil B. DeMille mold quite well.
The black-&-white cinematography is fantastic. That said, one can only imagine how stunning Union Pacific's location shots & big action sequences would've looked in Technicolor. The sets & costumes are authentic. The special effects enthrall. The sound & musical score rocked my ears in a good way. So, acting-wise & visually/technically, 'Union Pacific' impresses greatly. Now, based on a novel, a lot of the content in this film is fictionalized or not historically accurate. And the script can get tepid during its 135 min. run time. But Cecil B. DeMille aimed to entertain audiences more than anything else, and his grand sweep fit-in as beautifully for this Western as it had for many of his other historical epics. Rollicking fun movie, overall.
Jeff falls for her {shocker}; meanwhile, Asa Barrows (Henry Kolker), a seedy politician with a monetary interest in the rival Central Pacific line, hires crooked gambler Sid Campeau (Brian Donlevy) to delay construction of the line. Helped by Dick Allen (Robert Preston), a comrade of Jeff's from the recent Civil War, Sid Campeau sets up a gambling den & begins distracting the Union Pacific workers with the prospect of gambling, booze & women. That allure causes mayhem on the railroad; as does a robbery of the payroll, executed by Dick. When Mollie - who had been dating Dick - finds out that he is responsible for the theft, she talks him into returning the $$. After that, their train is attacked by Indians. Mollie stands her ground alongside Jeff & Dick ... but it looks as though they will all be massacred. If only the cavalry could arrive to help in time. Action & melodrama ensues.
'Union Pacific' is a BIG motion picture & produced with the usual extravagance that one would expect of Cecil B. DeMille (as anyone can see from his Cleopatra, Reap the Wild Wind, Samson & Delilah, The Greatest Show on Earth, The Ten Commandments, and many more). This movie features 100s of extras & plenty of rip-roaring action (bar brawls, Indian attacks & several locomotive derailments) to accompany the light romance & railroad melodrama.
Joel McCrea offers his typically amiable film presence to the proceedings. Barbara Stanwyck's Irish accent goes in & out, but she's as magnetic as ever. You just can't take your eyes off of her in any scene she's in. Robert Preston leaves a big impression as Dick. Brian Donlevy is as loathsome as ever as leader of the bad guys. A young Anthony Quinn shows up as one of Donlevy's henchman. Akim Tamiroff offers his thespian skills; as does Evelyn Keyes {who we also see in 1939's Gone with the Wind}. This primary cast is large & fits into the Cecil B. DeMille mold quite well.
The black-&-white cinematography is fantastic. That said, one can only imagine how stunning Union Pacific's location shots & big action sequences would've looked in Technicolor. The sets & costumes are authentic. The special effects enthrall. The sound & musical score rocked my ears in a good way. So, acting-wise & visually/technically, 'Union Pacific' impresses greatly. Now, based on a novel, a lot of the content in this film is fictionalized or not historically accurate. And the script can get tepid during its 135 min. run time. But Cecil B. DeMille aimed to entertain audiences more than anything else, and his grand sweep fit-in as beautifully for this Western as it had for many of his other historical epics. Rollicking fun movie, overall.