The Golden West

Zane Grey's "To The Last Man" ("The Golden West" was supposedly based on his "The Last Trail") has been expanded to include all of the historic elements of the American westward expansion movement. Pictorially impressive mainly due the the inclusion of much stock footage from the earlier silent film collaborations of John Ford/ George O'Brien "The Iron Horse" and "Three Bad Men" (the Grand Tetons and the Nevada desert) and scenes from the 1930 "The Big Trail."

I have hunted for this movie as various sources indicated that it had scenes filmed in Sedona, AZ. Unfortunately, the copy I found was made from a poor print (missing 6 minutes of footage) and an absolutely horrible video transfer. I am unable to be sure if the Indian encampment was filmed in Sedona due to the murkiness and fuzziness of the background scenery. The same is true of the scene where Motano presents Betty's daughter with his only former life's possession-the music box. It may have been filmed on Oak Creek. Other new footage appears to have been filmed at the upper Iverson Ranch, and definitely at Vasquez Rock.

There is almost too much movie for its 74 minute running time. The silent footage is edited into the production in a nearly seamless fashion. The usual self deprecating O'Brien humor is evident throughout, as are the many Americana vignettes. The movie is interesting for early performances by Hattie McDaniel and Onslow Stevens. Bert Hanlon makes for an amusing itinerant Jewish Irishman Dennis Epstein.

It was hard to take this picture seriously since the plot was so contrived and beyond believability. I would say it has too much plot, and is actually a saga or an epic type film, but condensed here to 74 minutes. George O'Brien is the hero of the piece, and it begins as he graduates from an eastern college, on a stagecoach with his bride-to-be, played by Janet Chandler.

Fast forward twenty years, after O'Brien and Chandler move west and are slaughtered by marauding Indians, leaving their young son to be captured. He grows up and becomes their chief. One day he and a raiding party come upon settlers, including the daughter of the ex-girlfriend of his father. They capture the settlers, but soon after he becomes an ally of the U.S. Cavalry.

If it all sounds hard to swallow, it is. Too much plot contrivance squashed in to a picture which needed more run time. Ultimately, the film becomes less interesting as a good story peters out into confusion. The acting is sub-par, but O'Brien is stalwart and masculine and he gets some help from Bert Hanlon as an Irish/Jewish traveling salesman. "The Golden West" is a tough slog except maybe for George O'Brien fans. At Cinevent, Columbus O., 5/13.

David Howard directed this Western story based on a Zane Grey book. It's a good example of a Fox early "talkie" cowboys and indians tale. I especially appreciated the lack of rear projection shots. When Howard needs a half shot of someone on a horse, he grabs the person on a horse outdoors.

O'Brien, as always, shines larger than life when given a chance, and the supporting players are vivid and highly watchable character types. The production makes terrific use of outdoor atmosphere, wagons, and horses, and Howard manages to cut in the new footage with some more elaborate stock footage of a wagon train.

But despite everyone's best effort, they cannot overcome the screenplay, which needed two hours to flesh out the saga but only gets one. The end result has large gaps in the story timeline. It looks cut to death, but was probably made that way to try to force fit a decades-long story into such a short running time. I enjoyed it despite the treatment, especially O'Brien. It's no wonder he was a star for so long. Looks, personality, charm, and more.