Red Salute

Barbara Stanwyck portrays Drue van Allen, the spoiled college brat daughter of General van Allen. Drue dabbles in leftist politics, sponsoring the commie lecturer, Arner (played by Hardie Albright), chiefly for the agitation value it has for her father. Robert Young plays Jeff, a red-blooded young American soldier who can't seem to stay out of the guard house. General van Allen (Purnell Pratt) encourages Jeff's interest in Drue despite his less than perfect military record in an effort to steer her clear of the foreign leftists under whose sway she has fallen. In a series of misadventures, Jeff goes AWOL and he and Drue wind up in Mexico via a stolen travel trailer. Romance ensues and Drue and Jeff put aside their political differences. They return to the USA, Jeff returns to duty, the commies are routed, and everybody lives happily ever after, at least until WWII.

In several ways this simple little film seems to presage "The Way We Were." It won't make anybody's all-time favorites list, but Stanwyck and Young go well together and are pleasant to watch.