Night Passage

Jimmy Stewart made some wonderful Westerns in the late 1940s and through the 50s. Compared the the average Western of the time, they had rather complex and featured non-traditional plots. As a rule, I actually hate the formulaic Western, as they have absolutely nothing new to offer and are just too derivative to be taken seriously. While this movie does have some new plot devices and the excellent acting of Stewart, this movie is the closest of these Westerns to approach the old formulaic themes. As a result, it is probably my least favorite of his films, but it is still pretty watchable.

Stewart, uncharacteristically, is a traveling accordion player (I am NOT kidding about this, really) and he has been doing this job for several years since being blamed for a train robbery (he was working for the railroad at the time). This film gives him a chance to prove himself and regain his old job with the railroad. But, along the way he encounters Brandon DeWilde (the cute kid from Shane who was killed at a very young age) and Audie Murphy (the war hero and actor who also died way too young). Aside from these two characters and Stewart, nothing about the plot is particularly outstanding. A decent and watchable film, but awfully predictable and forgettable.

By the way--a note to movie buffs--you DO get to hear Jimmy Stewart sing several songs in this film! While his singing was absolutely awful in BORN TO DANCE, in this film it isn't bad--the loud and cacophonous according did great things to hide his less than stellar voice! If only he'd used it in this previous musical!!

Hearing James Stewart play the accordion and sing is probably not the most pleasant part of this film. Great actor, bad singer. World War II Congressional Medal of Honor winner Audie Murphy, not usually recognized as a top acting talent, turns in the best performance in this film and he and Stewart are surrounded by a cast of great character actors. "Night Passage" was the first U.S. film produced in Technirama, a superior large format wide screen system developed by Technicolor, Inc., and the photography is extremely good. Worth a look.

Jimmy Stewart plays a former railroad worker who accepts a small job from his former employer; To carry a large sum of money aboard a train to make sure it reaches it's destination. He gets robbed, and by someone he has a past with.

Very predictable and by and large a very typical American western. The story is familiar and practically transparent, but it's got the irresistibly appealing Stewart to carry it. The film is also incredibly beautiful to look at. I read somewhere that this was the first film to be shot in 2.35:1 framing, a very wide screen format, and it works beautifully. With all these insanely vivid colors and the huge scenery depicted here, one could freeze many frames here and hang them on a wall. It's that beautiful at times.

Verdict; Solid, above average American western. Still like those Italian westerns more.

"Night Passage" is one of a series of westerns made by the venerable James Stewart for Universal in the 50's and 60's. This one is directed by James Neilson rather than Anthony Mann but is nonetheless an above average western.

Grant McLaine (Stewart) has been wondering from place to place over the past five years earning his living by singing songs and playing the accordion. McLaine had been fired by the railroad for appearing to have helped his outlaw brother, The Utica Kid (Audie Murphy) escape justice five years earlier. The railroad is being robbed of their payrolls by Whitey Harbin (Dan Duryea) and his gang. Railroad boss Kimball (Jay C. Flippen) rehires McLaine to guard the next payroll. Along the way McLaine learns that the Utica Kid is a part of Whitey's gang.

McLaine befriends a boy, Joey (Brandon DeWilde) as he is being chased by surly villain Concho (Robert Wilke). Later, the train on which they are traveling is held up by the gang and Kimball's wife Verna (Elaine Stewart) is taken captive. After being pistol whipped by Concho, McLaine recovers and trails the gang to their hideout. There he poses as the person bringing the ransom money while meeting up with his brother. Will blood be thicker than water? You'll have to wait until the final showdown.

The film is beautifully photographed and the railroad setting provides for many scenic moments. The Stewart character doesn't quite have the edge that he would have had in a Mann film, however ANY film with James Stewart is worth your time. Murphy playing in an rare "A" level movie does okay as the all in black gunfighter. Duryea is at his usual sneering slightly mad best as the chief villain.

Of the supporting players, Olive Carey (widow of Harry Carey) has a delightful bit as a muleskinner named Miss Vittles. Dianne Foster appears as Murphy's girl, "Charlie" and Paul Fix and Ellen Corby are hilarious as the Feeneys. In addition to Wilke, Duryea's gang includes Jack Elam and Chuck Roberson. For nostalgic TV fans Herbert Anderson (Dennis the Menace) and Hugh Beaumont (Leave It To Beaver) have small roles as well.

Worth your while.

The workers on the railroad are threatening to stop work and slow down the progress across the country because they haven't been getting paid. Every time the payroll is brought in it is stolen by Whitey Harbin and his gang. Thinking that nobody would suspect him, the bosses ask ex-employee Grant McLaine to carry the money on the next train. However when the train gets robbed anyway, Grant loses the money and is forced to set out after Whitey to rescue a boy, the boss' wife and the money – bringing him into a fight with the infamous Utica Kid.

I was drawn to this film by the names in the cast list, which was a good thing because it were these names that made the film better than they were by virtue of their performances. The actual plot is quite plodding in the first half but gets better in the second half. Even with this stronger half though it is still not a great western that could possibly compare to Stewart's better films. The musical numbers, dances and gentle set up of the first half almost had be losing interest and it is only the twists and gun fights of the final 30 minutes that make it memorable and worth seeing. Even then it is not without other flaws – characters are a problem. If you are able to understand the Utica Kid as a person then you are doing better than I did – in fact the film even lost it's first choice director because he was unable to understand the character's personality or motivation. The rest of the characters are pretty much as you'd expect – loyal girls, evil villains, cute kids etc, although they are made better by the delivery.

Stewart is always watchable and he carries the film well here. He is not a great singer but he does OK with the songs given him but his greater input is in delivering a tough character who is not all pure goodness but has a bit of a past to him. Murphy is cool and slick but he isn't a great actor and he isn't able to make the slightly irrational Utica Kid work as a person. Duryea overacts to good effect but gets forgotten by the film near the end, while support is OK from Stewart, Foster, De Wilde and Jack Elam.

Overall this is nothing special but it is still quite enjoyable. The number of well known names in the cast prevent me from calling it a B-movie but essentially that's what it could have been if not for the stars. The plot is deadly slow for the first half but has a good, fast-paced final 30 minutes that make up for it. The actors (in particular James Stewart) lift the film and make it feel better and it is fun if pretty unmemorable.