Bend of the River

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Nick F Bend in the River was one of many Westerns made by Anthony Mann, a very accomplished director, especially of Westerns. His films included The Tin Star, Man Of The West and The Far Country, but he also turned in other great films including El Cid and The Heroes of Telemark. Bend In the River (1952) is another fine movie, with a formidable cast – James Stewart and Rock Hudson, Julie Adams and Lorie Nelson, plus Western stalwarts Arthur Kennedy, Harry Morgan, Chubby Johnson and Jay. C. Flippen. Stewart plays a former gunman now going straight and helping out a band of wagon-train settlers making a perilous journey across tough terrain. When their winter food supplies are hi-jacked by a band of outlaws, Stewart has to revert to his gun-fighting persona to try to retrieve the stolen wagons. Arthur Kennedy is his double-crossing companion, along with a 27-year-old Rock Hudson helping out before his career really hit the big-time, and Julie Adams and Lori Nelson are the love interest. Filmed in the wilds of Oregon, there is plenty of action from Indians and outlaws and as the wagon train battles through deserts, mountains and rivers, the film highlights the dire and dangerous conditions early settlers in the American West had to cope with. This is an entertaining film with a fast-moving storyline and many twists and turns, tightly directed by Anthony Mann and with a strong cast on top form. REVIEWED by Nick Fletcher. Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 06/09/25 Full Review Dallas H There are the Jimmy Stewart westerns and the John Wayne westerns. Do you belong to one fan camp or the other? I liked this Stewart western. It's a fun, riveting tale of the caravan traveling westbound. I will watch it again whenever I'm in the mood for a western film. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 04/29/25 Full Review Steve D One of Jimmy's best westerns. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/23/24 Full Review Matthew B I often think of Anthony Mann's westerns as morality westerns. They are tough and punctuated with violence, and the hero is flawed, and not a straightforwardly good figure. Nonetheless the stories usually end happily, and the hero achieves some form of redemption. Bend of the River is different from the other Anthony Mann/James Stewart westerns. Here there is redemption for the hero, but that redemption has begun before the story even starts. The tension lies in whether the hero will be allowed to continue to be a reformed man, or whether his past actions will return to drive him away from decent society. This hero is Glyn McLyntock, and he has thrown in his lot with a caravan of settlers hoping to move to Oregon to start their lives again. This is the life that McLyntock wants, and he hopes to join them as a farmer or rancher. Indeed he appears to be the ideal companion for the settlers. He acts as guardian to them, and is greatly trusted by their leader, Jeremy Baile (Jay C Flippen). He may even be a suitable husband for Baile's daughter, Laura (Julie Adams), but there is no spoken agreement between them. The test of the Bailes' faith in McLyntock comes when he rescues a man from being lynched. McLyntock does not even care about the guilt or innocence of the man who about to be hanged. He rescues him simply because he does not like hanging, and it only at the end of the movie that we fully appreciate why when we see rope burns on McLyntock's own neck. The man that McLyntock rescues is Emerson Cole (Arthur Kennedy), and it is soon clear that the two men are familiar with one another's names, and have a professional respect for one another. The difference between McLyntock and Cole is that McLyntock is now reformed and trying to lead an honest life, whereas Cole is still operating on the wrong side of the law. The question remains what will happen when Baile discovers that McLyntock's background is the same as the detested Cole. Can he accept that McLyntock has genuinely changed, or will the discovery be sufficient to drive McLyntock out of this newly-forming community? We have to wait until the end of the movie to find out the answer. Bend of the River is more of a work of entertainment than an arthouse movie. However the script allows for some intelligent ideas, it boasts an excellent cast, and Anthony Mann pulls it together with lean, taut directing that keeps the story interesting and exciting, even during the scenes between the action setpieces. I wrote a fuller appreciation of the film on my blog page if you're interested in reading more: https://themoviescreenscene.wordpress.com/2018/12/01/bend-of-the-river-a-ka-where-the-river-bends-1952/ Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/16/23 Full Review Audience Member Outstanding movie, good family entertainment highly recommended, James Welch, Henderson, Arkansas, July 23, 2023 Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 07/24/23 Full Review david f I expected more from the talent here, and with the great reputation the film has. It's got cowboys, Indians, and a man with a past, all the trappings of a Western, including great scenery. But the plot about a guide with a mysterious, impenetrable background just didn't do much for me. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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