I’ve stated several times that I love black and white CinemaScope. So going into Escort West (1959), I was excited. An anamorphic DVD of a ‘Scope 50s Western I’d never seen — with a supporting cast that includes Faith Domergue, Noah Beery, Harry Carey, Jr., Leo Gordon (who co-wrote it), Slim Pickens, Roy Barcroft and Ken Curtis. And to top it all off, it was shot at Iverson and Corriganville.
What’s not to like?
The picture opens in Nevada, a few months after the end of the Civil War. Victor Mature is Ben Lassiter, an ex-Confederate officer heading to Oregon Territory with his young daughter (Reba Waters). Along the way, they become involved with Elaine Stewart and Faith Domergue, two sisters who’ve survived an Indian attack. Mature’s trek to deliver these women safely to a cavalry unit is the rest of the film, as they battle Indians and renegade cavalrymen (Leo Gordon and Ken Curtis) who had been protecting the sisters’ wagon train — and now want the Army payroll it was transporting.
It’s immediately obvious that not a lot of money was spent on Escort West. But you get the feeling every dollar wound up on the screen. It’s solid and exciting, and it moves fast enough to keep you from dwelling on how times you’ve come across this same basic premise. There are hundreds of Westerns from the period that fit that same description — and we’re all better off for it.
The success of Escort West as a film can be largely attributed to the talent found on both sides of the camera. These people knew what they were doing — pros through and through. Mature handles himself well — I really like him in Westerns. Elaine Stewart is likable in a part designed to be just that; likewise, Domergue is appropriately abrasive in her role. Rex Ingram, typically wonderful as a wounded cavalryman, has some of the best scenes in the picture. Remember him as De Lawd in Green Pastures (1936)?
Francis D. Lyon, an editor turned director (he won an Oscar for cutting 1947′s Body And Soul), proved himself quite adept at low-budget filmmaking — Cult Of The Cobra (1955), The Great Locomotive Chase (1956) and The Oklahoman (1957) — before turning to episodic television for the latter part of his carer. He seemed to have a real knack for CinemaScope.
The film is largely action (all 75 minutes of it), so the stunt people really deserve plenty of credit. One of those stunts is this horse fall (left) by Fred Carson, doubling Victor Mature. Carson and Mature became good friends and worked together quite often.
Escort West was produced by Victor Mature’s Romina Productions and John Wayne’s Batjac. (Wayne’s brother Robert Morrison is listed as one of the producers.) It was shot by William H. Clothier, who did a number of films for Wayne/Batjac (Seven Men From Now, The Alamo, etc.) and most of John Ford’s later pictures, including The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962). The cast (Carey, Curtis, Chuck Hayward) also reflects the Wayne connection.
Faith Domergue: “We shot it mostly at a studio — even the campfire scenes were done inside, but there was an occasional location somewhere in the upper part of Malibu.”*
Those locations were The Iverson Ranch in Chatsworth and Corriganville (along with maybe Bell Ranch). Dennis of the Iverson Movie Ranch blog makes note of Iverson’s Saddlehorn Village seen in the early scenes. (These sets weren’t up for long, and Escort West gives us a good look at them.) Ms. Domergue is right — there’s a lot of soundstage stuff, but it’s incorporated pretty well.
Escort West has been available from MGM/UA for some time as a stand-alone DVD. It’s since cropped up as part of a triple-feature set from TGG Direct that also includes The Way West (1967) and Chato’s Land (1972). It can be found for as little as five bucks — and is well worth it.
* Westerns Women: Interviews With 50 Leading Ladies Of Movies And Television Westerns From The 1930s To The 1960s by Boyd Magers and Michael G. Fitzgerald.
I’ve had this on my shelves for absolutely ages and still haven’t watched it. This is the encouragement I need, and the Christmas holidays are a good excuse to make inroads into my unwatched pile.
If you’re still working on a string of smaller films, this is perfect.
If you wanted to show someone what a 50s Western was, this might be a good candidate.
As you know, there are a lot more like this than there are like The Searchers!
Count me as a big fan of this movie — its simplicity works very well in its favor. And that bit with the snake at the end still makes me cringe!
I’m another who really enjoyed this one. Nice story and who wouldn’t want to spend time with that cast? As I recall the only thing which I found a little off was Elaine Stewart’s large eyebrows which I swore changed size at times. (grin) But she’s someone I otherwise like.
Enjoyed your thoughts on it!
Best wishes,
Laura
I started to watch this once, but had to leave the house. I knew I wouldn’t be able to stay for whole movie and would only end up torturing myself, but I had to have that peek that is tiding me over for the next time.
As cheap as it is on DVD, there’s no reason not to see it.
Get it soon. There might be a quiz.
Back in the days when I was still willing to watch pan and scan I saw it one time and had a very good impression of it. Will definitely get back to the anamorphic version sometime now that it’s out there.
I think you’re rating it right. It’s a very good and satisfying Western–if I wouldn’t put it among the dozen most outstanding Westerns of 1959, that only shows how great the genre was then. Truly, it had found itself–even the more minor films (might include GOOD DAY FOR A HANGING, GUNFIGHT AT DODGE CITY and WESTBOUND along with this one) are solid and mature works.
As it happens, I revisited WESTBOUND for the first time in years earlier this week, which I’ve been meaning to do since it came on Warner Archive. Budd Boetticher did not consider this part of the “Ranown cycle” which includes all his other Randolph Scott Westerns–he simply didn’t want anyone else directing Scott at this late point in the cycle so took this script as an assignment. And he’s right about this–it’s not as personal and not on the same level on those other six films. It’s more conventional. But that’s probably about the worst thing that can be said about it. It’s still a coherent narrative, has some interesting relationships (if perhaps imperfectly explored in the case of Scott/Mayo), looks really good and Boetticher’s direction is fine if not inspired. Considered on its own, apart from the Ranowns, it’s not negligible.
A note on the two leading ladies of ESCORT WEST, both of whom I like. Elaine Stewart is long forgotten by most but she had some very good roles (especially in her two Minnelli roles–small but memorable–and in TAKE THE HIGH GROUND) and was a real beauty; she died in the past year and I appreciated that TCM did not leave her out of its beautiful TCM REMBEMERS
for 2011.
Faith Domergue must have been someone director Francis D. Lyon liked a lot–she is the star of his excellent 1955 horror film CULT OF THE COBRA (mentioned above by Toby), good enough, however modest, that it may deserve a cult itself of some kind. Also, for those interested, she was at one time married to Hugo Fregonese, a director for whom some of us here have recently expressed great admiration. Another good actress and I agree they were both fine in ESCORT WEST. And must add that Victor Mature is almost always good to me–at least if the film is reasonably good, he’s always fine. For me, his best role was in a Western–I’m sure I don’t need to say which one.
As you and I have discussed endlessly (and which I’m eager to get back to), these minor pictures are where the real riches are to be found. Quantez, Silver Lode, No Name On The Bullet and on and on and on.
Your mention of Domergue and Fregonese reminds me — I’m gonna watch Saddle Tramp over the holidays for sure. All that talk of it the last week or so has me pulling out my bootleg copy.