Night Passage (1957) is a film I’ve taken my time getting around to. It’s been years since I sat down and watched it, though I’ve looked at bits and pieces of the gorgeous transfer Universal cooked up for the DVD. (The Technirama would be incredible on Blu-ray.) William H. Daniels’ cinematography is some of the best widescreen outdoor stuff I’ve ever seen, but it doesn’t take much to make Durango, Colorado look good.
One of the problems with Night Passage is that we don’t look at it as 50s Westerns fans. We come at it as Anthony Mann snobs, putting it (and its eventual director, James Neilson) down and speculating about what it could’ve been if he’d hung around long enough to direct it.
But the truth is, anything with Jimmy Stewart going up against Dan Duryea is gonna be worthwhile. Add in Audie Murphy, not to mention Jack Elam, Dianne Foster, Elaine Stewart, Hugh Beaumont, Jay C. Flippen, Brandon de Wilde, Olive Carey and Paul Fix — how could it miss?
I’ve been reading up on it — from it being the first use of Technirama to the various versions of why Mann left to Stewart being excited about the chance to play accordion in a film — and I’m eager to revisit it. Watch for a post on it soon.
You’re right about how it is approached, but I want to say that I am one who finally freed myself from that, motivated because I saw and enjoyed it so much when it first came out when I knew little about directors.
I know that Neilson was chosen by Stewart after Mann left the production because Neilson had directed Stewart in a G.E. THEATRE episode on TV which was, in fact, a Western–title of this eluding me now but I sure wish it would turn up sometime–and so plainly Stewart liked the way it turned out. This was Neilson’s first theatrical film. No question he hasn’t the intensity of Mann, but what about what he does have?–does anyone here really think he didn’t have a nice sense of the story and relationships and in his way made it all play pretty well? Audie Murphy is especially good in it–one of his best roles, I believe. And the film is beautiful–what Neilson didn’t know or needed help with I believe he got from Rosenberg and especially Daniels, who had both worked so well and so often with Mann.
So I’m here to say I like it–and in truth, for me, between this and the Western Mann did end up making in 1957, THE TIN STAR, it’s pretty close. Formal considerations would make me give the edge to the Mann, but I do like them both and am perfectly willing to say so. And I’m one whose admiration for Anthony Mann kind of knows no bounds when it comes to his 50s Westerns.
Love the pictures. Toby, could you confirm the first one is left to right Rosenberg, Stewart and Neilson, which I believe is the case?
First, I THINK you’re right on the personnel in that top photo. Wasn’t able to verify it 100%, which is why I didn’t caption any of the photos. (Tried again over lunch, still no luck.)
Really excited about the response to this post, which I don’t consider a true post at all. Hope to see as much discussion when the real thing is done. Of course, all this has me stoked to actually watch it again over the weekend!
Glad to get your take on The Tin Star, which feels like watered-down Mann to me — as much as some might say Night Passage is. There’s something kinda cockeyed about The Tin Star that I can’t put my finger on — but give me Mann and black-and-white VistaVision any day!
Neilson did two of the GE shows s with Stewart — one might’ve aired AFTER Night Passage. Both were Westerns, I believe. Don’t have my notes handy, so I’m not 100% on any of that. Neilson did a couple of Disney things that I really like — The Adventures Of Bullwhip Griffin (based on one of my favorite novels as a kid, By The Great Horn Spoon) and the fabulous Dr. Syn, Alias The Scarecrow. Then there’s a slew of Adam-12’s.
Murphy was my cowboy hero and still is, adding stewart is ingrediant for a great western, I realise for some, not mentioning critics, that this is a so, so, western.
I enjoyed night passage, I cant help but wonder how different mann would have made if he took the job on.
Its a worthy western for blue ray transfer and added extras, still galleries, bios, and info on shooting.
Murphy, to mecan never be replaced, its only a pity universal does not recognise his fan base, to release more box sets,
Dave, coventry, england
The more I dig into Murphy’s films, the more impressed with him I become. He’s especially good in this one.
Toby, you make an excellent point there, and one that’s all too easy to forget. We do frequently come at certain movies weighed down by previous knowledge and perceptions, and thus there’s a tendency to be slightly unfair in our judgements. I haven’t seen Night Passage in a long time, and I have been guilty of being a bit dismissive of it for the reasons you mention. You’ve encouraged me to give it another go and I look forward to hearing what you have to say yourself in your review.
You’re right, we DO come at films with baggage sometimes. For me, a good example is Goldeneye. They had to do a lot to get me onboard with than one!
Wish there was some way to pull together a roundtable on this film after we all watch it. But I guess the comment box will have to do.
Actually, your post raised a good point that I feel relates to a piece I’m working on right now, and hope to have up tomorrow.
When I was a kid this movie was epic in my eyes and it’s still one I love to curl up on the couch with when I’m feeling low, the cast being filled with “old friends”. I have read that it was a difficult shoot with bad weather and rampant illness. The result still touches me. Looking forward to your revisit and might just have one myself.
I felt a little funny about putting up a post on what I was gonna watch on TV. That seemed a bit self-important (plus, that’s the kind of stuff that makes me hate Facebook).
BUT when I thought about how this film really needed to be looked at from a certain point of view — mainly, ignoring the whole Anthony Mann business — I hoped others would read my post and decide it was time to give it another go. That was my intent.
So far, it sounds like it worked. So, please, be prepared to chime in when the proper post turns up. Consider this the first blog with homework!
Great stills, great post, Toby! I quite enjoy NIGHT PASSAGE and don’t even mind all the accordion playing. The only thing I have a problem with is Dan Duryea, funnily enough. Generally, he was excellent value in almost anything he did, but I find his performance here over-the-top and tonally off. Audie Murphy is really good in this, though.
I agree about Duryea. His performance is a bit, uh, off. It’s one of the things I look forward to pondering when I rewatch it.
I don’t like to say anything bad about Dan Duryea so I didn’t mention this–he is a little off here and that’s so unusual and I just can’t explain it. He’s certainly the right guy for that role–wouldn’t say it hurts it much but this is one aspect of the film that can’t help but make me think of Mann because Duryea was never better than in his electrifying 10-15 minutes as Waco Johnny Dean in WINCHESTER ’73, flamboyant as ever but somehow not over the top at all and really a model of graceful, knowing playing.
Toby, will still appreciate if you will identify for the first still.
Duryea is also wonderful in Mann’s THUNDER BAY–not a villain in that one but Stewart’s partner. IMDb says audiences wouldn’t accept Duryea as a good guy but I always did, on those occasions he had a chance to play one.
It IS Neilson on the right — of that I’m sure.
Hi,
This has always puzzled me regarding Anthony Mann’s departure from the Movie. It was based on a Novel by Norman Fox, a popular Western writer not really known for anything other than formula pulp style stories and as the Film follows the Novel pretty closely Mann would have had to have had it re-written ( as was the case with “Bend Of The River” which is based on Bill Gulick’s novel “Bend of the Snake” but has little to suggest any connection!). to elaborate and deepen the plot. Maybe there was something more?
As for Dan Duryea, he is way over the top in this and probably Mann would have controlled him more ( but he is still always worth watching) and just as an aside – in the novel his character is “Curly” Harben not “Whitey”- as Dan used “Whitey” in “Ride Clear Of Diablo” as his characters name did he have an affection for this as his nickname ?
I’ve only seen “Night Passage” once and that was on television. What spoiled it for me was Dan Duryea shouting his lines at the top of his voice to other characters who were practically standing next to him. He never did that in any of his other pictures, so why in this one? I don’t think Anthony Mann would have stood for it if it had been his picture.
That shouting is my problem with his performance. Very strange.
I feel like a terrible traitor saying something negative about the great Dan Duryea.
No, none of us is a traitor. We all love Dan Duryea here and I don’t think there is any doubt of that.
I thought about this some more since writing earlier and the answer seems simple and obvious. For some reason this time out Duryea needed his performance moderated by the director and Neilson just didn’t do it. It may have been true other times and the director did do it. Duryea is certainly not less if he sometimes needed a few words from the director–that’s one of a director’s jobs and something they are supposed to do when it’s needed.
Duryea worked well with James Stewart in three pictures (they are only on screen very briefly in WINCHESTER ’73 but that scene between them is one of the peaks of the movie) including FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX in which Duryea was terrific in a non-villainous and non-flamboyant role very different from his usual ones. And he had great chemistry with Audie Murphy earlier in RIDE CLEAR OF DIABLO and later in SIX BLACK HORSES and is superb in both. So this can’t be put on anything being off with the co-stars. Neilson just needed to say “tone it down, Dan, especially your voice.”
By the way, Laura, you probably do already know this, but the consensus is pretty strong that Dan Duryea was a really nice guy, gentle, a family man, good guy in the community, the opposite in every way of what you usually see on screen. Some people just have great talent for actually seeming to be what they are not and it can make a career. And that’s fortunate for us.
I’ve never seen NIGHT PASSAGE so your post, Toby, and the ensuing discussion is inspiring me to make it a goal to catch it this month. It’s got a great cast and I especially enjoy Elaine Stewart who didn’t make enough movies.
I’m discovering there are so many Duryea movies I want to see, he was sure in a lot of good films. It’s too bad he’s maybe not so good in this one.
Toby has heard this story but my dad recently shared with me that when he was a teen at music camp at Lake Arrowhead circa 1956, a group of local boat owners volunteered to transport the kids across the lake to a concert. My dad rode on Dan Duryea’s boat. Said he was a very nice guy. How’s that for a cool anecdote?! Somehow I thought the folks who comment here would appreciate it. 🙂
Best wishes,
Laura
Thanks for telling your dad’s Duryea story, Laura. I was gonna ask you to do a guest post or something on it one of these days!
By all means pick up a copy of Night Passage. It’s so much better than its reputation — which I’m hoping we’ll all discuss here soon.
Happily I’m already an owner of NIGHT PASSAGE thanks to my dad having a surplus copy a while back. I think everyone in my family has watched it but me! I’ve pulled it off the shelf and put it next to the TV, hope to see it in the next few days.
Glad I could share that fun story. 🙂
Best wishes,
Laura
I just watched the movie again tonight, for the first time in around five years, but I’ll avoid saying too much until you post your full piece Toby.
I will say though that I think Blake is probably right that Neilson needed to have a word with Duryea and get him to rein it in. I’ve never seen him so loud and frankly unnatural in a movie before – there was almost always a showiness about him but in Night Passage it’s way out of control.
Great discussion here so far.
I quite enjoyed watching Night Passage some time ago. What puts me off was the James Stewart ‘s character playing the accordion which I felt was out of place( it did not fit in the story)..
Is it mythic rumor that mann walked because he did not think audie to be much of an actor ? After eight films in five years and very successful to boot,you would have thought jimmy would have sided with mann.Jimmy and audie both arrived at univeral international the same year.Two republican war heros.Audie had even rode jimmy’s pie in a few of his own westerns.They had both played destry.When push came to shove if the story is true,mr.smith filibustered for the little guy.Or little texas.He was right to do so.I am tired of reading about how good night passage would be if mann had directed it.Neilson directed the windmill with jimmy I know and jimmy would have picked him.It was jimmy who picked mann for winchester 73 also.The meanest slap to the face would be mann pulling out of passage and doing a western with jimmy’s best friend hank fonda.It didn’t work if he wanted to start a feud.This bothered jimmy no more than fonda working the same year with hitchcock or bother fonda that a few years later jimmy was with ford.I am more struck and unnerved by the inward,passive,restrained performance of duryea in flight of the phoenix than unnerved by his whitey in night passage.So without being checked dan liked to chew up the scenery.Jack elam who is in this later developed over the top performances and nobody says anything about old jack.I have seen night passage so many times that dan just makes me chuckle and I don’t regard it as too hammy.Stewart was their and they were friends.A few words from jim and you can bet dan would have toned it down.He never got those words.When an actor has hat and leading lady approval in his contract you listen to him if he says notch it down a peg.
Thank you, could not agree more. Just sit back and enjoy. These kind of actors only come along once. We are lucky that we have these westerns. Very few are made today .
Haven’t seen Night Passage in a long time. Good to be reminded of it.
What a shame that Dan Duryea seems to have got it wrong in this one. He’s so admired by most folk. A very talented actor who did a range of roles.
Mention of THUNDER BAY reminds me that I keep seeing in in our big record shop on the ” Westerns” shelf! I really should move it!
Hope to watch NIGHT PASSAGE soon, but in the meantime I started with the older Murphy-Duryea film RIDE CLEAR OF DIABLO, which was called to my attention in a Murphy birthday post here last summer and is mentioned briefly above. Thought it was an absolutely terrific movie! Loved the Duryea-Murphy teaming. Have seen two strong films now directed by Jesse Hibbs; I also thought RAILS INTO LARAMIE (Payne-Duryea) was very entertaining.
Looking forward to NIGHT PASSAGE!
Best wishes,
Laura
It’s amazing how just by reading everyones thoughts on this film I am suddenly filled with the desire to watch it today. I have an obsessive love for Stewart’s westerns and “Night Passage ” is unique for me because the relationship between Stewart and Murphy always seemed so genuine. I didn’t have a brother but always had hoped that if I had he would have been just like Stewart, riding in to save me from myself. I love this film and think although they had problems during filming, it turned out great in the end.
I’m right there with you. Once the comments started coming in, Night Passage moved to the top of my viewing pile.
This’ll tip my hat a bit about the post I’m working on, but films snobs (and I confess that I can be one) have given this film a hard time. Stewart and Murphy are both excellent — Audie really impresses me in this one.
Hi Toby! I finally caught up with NIGHT PASSAGE tonight! I thoroughly enjoyed it. Not a masterpiece but a nice solid Western with sort of a BEND OF THE RIVER feel to it — “Western comfort food.” About to work on a post about it.
Best wishes,
Laura
You’re gonna beat me to it — mine’s not finished.
Here’s my “homework”!
http://laurasmiscmusings.blogspot.com/2013/01/tonights-movie-night-passage-1957.html
Best wishes,
Laura
Looking forward to yours very much, I’ll add a link to my post when it’s done!
Incidentally your theme above about how people may approach NIGHT PASSAGE reminds me a bit of how WESTBOUND is sometimes looked down on, judging it for what it’s not (another SEVEN MEN FROM NOW or TALL T or RIDE LONESOME) rather than for what it is (a nice solid Western with an appealing cast). There’s a whole lot good about NIGHT PASSAGE. 🙂
Best wishes,
Laura
PS Do you ever sleep?! LOL.
Loved reading all these comments, these POSITIVE comments on Night Passage. No question but that this has been dealt with disappointingly by critics et al over the years, undoubtedly because of the Anthony Mann factor. It’s a film I watch semi-regularly when I need a western fix, because it is a most satisfying example of the genre. I enjoy the little touches like Hugh Beaumont offering James Stewart his coat, despite being antagonistic towards him:Elaine Stewart’s coolness under pressure:and the good, no-nonsense bits of dialogue like “He hit you hard, Lee”. As for the all-important shootout at the climax, I think it’s handled really well. (Murphy, after missing one of the bad guys with Stewart’s gun, uses his own to better effect, then gives his brother’s weapon a look of disgust).
I’m perfectly OK with Dan Duryea’s performance, just see it at the apotheosis of his ‘mad-dog’ outlaw character he played so well in “Ride Clear of Diablo” and “Winchester 73”.He is just such a unique actor, as everyone seems to agree.Everyone in the film does a fine job, and boy, doesn’t Audie Murphy look the part in that cool black outfit?
As others here have said, this is not a classic, but given that classics are so few and far between, this doesn’t diminish it’s standing in the slightest. It’s a teat to see so many fans of it out there.
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