Raton Pass

When the story begins, Ann (Patricia Neal) arrives in town. The son of one of the two local land barons, Marc Challon (Dennis Morgan), falls for her and they are soon married. To celebrate the nuptials, Marc's father gives him and Ann the entire ranch. This sounds like a great idea...but it isn't. Soon Ann shows that she's got a heart of stone and she insists on taking her half! This will soon create all sorts of problems...and some unanticipated, as Ann's new foreman (Steve Cochran) is a complete sociopath and he's at least as awful as she is!

The biggest plus about this film is that is original. Sure, evil boss westerns where someone is trying to take over the range are a dime a dozen...but one with such a cut-throat woman is very unusual. Worth seeing.

Raton Pass is directed by Edwin L. Marin and written by Thomas W. Blackburn and James R. Webb. It stars Dennis Morgan, Patricia Neal, Steve Cochran, Scott Forbes and Dorothy Hart. Music is by Max Steiner and cinematography by Wilfred M. Cline.

Two families feuding over land either side of Raton Pass, New Mexico. Into their lives comes a beautiful seductress with manipulation and land dominance on her agenda...

Well well, what a treat. Something of a rare, little known or seen Oater, Raton Pass (AKA: Canyon Pass) really takes you by surprise. From the off we can see and hear this is a very nice production, with the twin greats of Steiner and Cline working their magic. Steiner's title music is Latino flavoured and then he introduces deft character motifs for the protagonists, while Cline's crisp black and white photography holds the eyes considerably.

For thirty minutes the picture simmers away like a standard "B" Western threatening to dull the senses with formulaic tedium, this is another reason why Steiner and Cline should be lauded as their work keeps you interested. But then the film completely turns, you notice that Cline's photography has suddenly shifted into film noir territory, and Neal has skillfully shifted from being the new loving wife on the block, to a complete femme fatale bitch! The plot dynamics now have a real edge, and as the smouldering Neal works her feminine whiles, this part of New Mexico territory boils away furiously until it inevitably explodes and spells doom and disappointment for some...

There's some crappy back projection work that undermines the quality elsewhere and the odd character is stereotypical of some Westerns of the period, but this has much to recommend. Marin (Johnny Angel/Nocturne/Colt.45/Sugarfoot) is fluid in his direction, while Neal and noir icon Cochran hold the screen as Max and Wilfred do their stuff. Currently licensed to TCM UK and available in HD format, I would urge any noir and Western fan in the UK to take the chance to see this rare picture the next time it shows. It doesn't deserve to stay rare. 7.5/10

It is late 19th century in the New Mexico territory. Ann (Patricia Neal) arrives in Raton Pass with flirtatious criminal gunslinger Cy Van Cleave (Steve Cochran). Instead, she pursues Marc Challon (Dennis Morgan), heir to the largest local ranch. They get married and his father gives them the estate. As the wife, she is entitled to half, but Marc doesn't take her seriously. The arrival of Chicago banker Prentice (Scott Forbes) gives her another opportunity.

I don't know if this shouldn't be all from Marc's point of view. This is a boy scout in a pit of vipers. Ann needs to be accentuated as the devil woman. This movie is trying to push the old theme of the dutiful wife. It takes a great woman to support her man. It takes a devil woman to tear him down. It takes awhile to get there, but the last act really hits the nail on the head. I wish that they had more cattle, but 10k may be too many. I really like that almost everybody is out for themselves.

This western is for me a pure Warner Studios movie, recognizable from the very start - no matter of course the logo WB - because of the cast, technical crew, music score, and then the pace, very very fast, tense, and the overall plot and directing. It was not a Paramount nor a Metro Goldwyn Mayer...Impossible to get wrong. Dennis Morgan was a second rate lead role for Warner movies, and I have never liked it that much. He was so bland, unlike of course the terrific Steve Cochran who literally steals the show here, with also Patricia Neal, whom I would have never guessed to find in this kind of film.

Having gotten rich by bullying all of the other ranchers in the area, a powerful and ruthless cattleman by the name "Pierre Challon" (Basil Ruysdael) is delighted when his son "Marc Challon" (Dennis Morgan) decides to marry an attractive woman named "Ann" (Patricial Neal) who has only recently arrived in town. At first, everything is going well and, to signify his approval, Pierre even hands over half of his estate to her as a sign of his affection. Big mistake as she soon maneuvers a rich businessman named "Prentice"(Scott Forbes) into becoming her lover and then uses his money to force her husband into turning over the rest of the ranch to her. Needless to say, this rather sudden turn-of-events infuriates Pierre, to the point that he refuses to have anything to do with Marc--despite the fact that Marc has a plan to get it all back. What Marc doesn't realize, however, is just how vicious his former wife can be once she feels threatened. Now, rather than reveal any more, let me just say that this movie started off rather slow but got much more interesting once the plot further developed. Admittedly, I thought that the ending was a bit unrealistic but, even so, I enjoyed this movie for the most part, and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.