Badlands of Dakota

An interesting, fairly high-budget (at least by Universal standards) western, mixing historical characters like Will Bill Hickock and Calamity Jane in a fictional environment. The cast is uniformly excellent and fairly eclectic, including Broderick Crawford and Robert Stack as brothers (and there is quite a family resemblance--NOT), Lon Chaney Jr., comedy relief by Andy Devine and Hugh Herbert, a barbershop quartet (in fact, everything including the kitchen sink), but most importantly, a radiant Frances Farmer in an impressive characterization as Calamity Jane. More luminous than Jean Arthur, and more raucous and even vulnerable than Doris Day, this is easily Farmer's best performance from the last part of her career before her unfortunate arrest and institutionalization. The film seems to have been worked on by several writers, and veers back and forth between straight narrative and some obviously interpolated comedy bits and barbershop numbers. An enjoyable, if historically laughable, western from Hollywood's golden era. Farmer fans will be thrilled.

1941's "Badlands Of Dakota" is a higher budgeted 'B' Western from Universal, with a fascinating cast. Top billed Robert Stack gives the least interesting performance (not really his fault), as Jim Holliday, freewheeling brother of tough saloon owner Bob Holliday (Broderick Crawford); when Bob finds that his girl back east (Ann Rutherford) has decided to marry Jim, he falls in with Deadwood villain Jack McCall (Lon Chaney), whose gang commits raids disguised as native Indians. Of greater interest are the supporting players, Richard Dix as Wild Bill Hickok, and especially Frances Farmer as Jane (minus the 'Calamity'), who carries a torch for Bob, and must play a part in his downfall. With Hugh Herbert, Andy Devine, and Fuzzy Knight, we have an abundance of comic relief, and future Frankenstein Monster Glenn Strange is among Chaney's gang. Broderick Crawford and Hugh Herbert were coming off the comic Poe "The Black Cat"; Chaney and Crawford would work together again in "North to the Klondike," "Not as a Stranger," and "Big House, U. S. A."; Richard Dix soon reunited with Chaney in "Eyes of the Underworld." But in this film, no one can steal the thunder from Frances Farmer, whose commanding presence and captivating beauty prove to have been unique and unforgettable.

Except most of them were not stars yet. Lively but ordinary western from Universal which, in true Hollywood "respect" of history, throws a variety of famous historical names into the pot with mixed results. The film is perhaps most noteworthy for the cast of familiar film veterans.

The main story has two brothers (Robert Stack and Broderick Crawford) have a fall out over a girl (Ann Rutherford), Crawford turning bad and falling in with some outlaws, lead by Jack McCall (Lon Chaney Jr.). Custer's name is thrown into the mix, as well as that of Wild Bill Hickok, played by Richard Dix who is dressed to look like the lawman but has disappointingly little to do. The sudden recreation of the lawman's famous death is a surprisingly throwaway moment in the film.

Oh, there is also a gun slinging tom girl in buckskins just called "Jane" (played by a beautiful Frances Farmer in one of her final roles). Nobody calls her "Calamity" but the assumption is that's it's her anyway. Hugh Herbert and Andy Devine are also present for the usual comedy relief. The rest of the film, though, is hardly to be taken seriously.

The film moves quickly enough but what plot there is is trivial and uninvolving, not helped by the fact that it's difficult to take Stack seriously in the film's second half when he becomes the new law of Deadwood. Stanley Cortez photographed it all nicely, and you can recognize the same Universal stock music taken from Destry Rides Again, filmed two years before.

A minor quibble: watching Crawford and Chaney share a few scenes together, I was disappointed they didn't get drunk and start to break up the furniture. Maybe they saved that for when the cameras stopped rolling.

Strictly for western buffs,

Set in the Dakotas during the days of the Great Gold Boom, the story finds brothers Jim and Bob Holliday (Stack and Broderick Crawford) fighting it out over the affections of pretty Anne Grayson (Ann Rutherford). While all this is going on, Wild Bill Hickok (Richard Dix) does his best to help Jim Holliday neutralise the local criminal element.

"Badlands of Dakota" is an entertaining and engaging western, which mixes the presence of mythical figures from the Wild West, Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane and General Custer, with comico-dramatic situations. It's an atypical western, oscillating between humor, (burlesque comedy) and dramatization - there's a great cast, from Broderick Crawford and the excellent Richard Dix, and the set pieces and the depiction of Deadwood is great. There's a strong sense of colour and drama as well as some fine action with shootouts, chases ( the Stagecoach sequence with the horses gobe was impressive) and an energetic Sioux attack on Deadwood.

"Badlands of Dakota" is one of those compact little westerns, running about an hour and a quarter, that Universal churned out in the forties. As was the case with most of them, it is filled with lots of recognizable faces. Usually the leads were up and comers or second leads from the studio's bigger budgeted features.

The story briefly, starts out with rough and tough saloon owner (Broderick Crawford) sending his seemingly meek brother (a very young Robert Stack) back east to fetch his intended bride (Ann Rutherford). On the return journey they meet Wild Bill Hickock (Richard Dix) and fall in love and marry much to Crawford's chagrin. Crawford becomes bitter and joins up with Jack McCall (Lon Chaney Jr.) and his gang after arranging to have Stack appointed town marshal. You can probably figure out the inevitable ending.

The beautiful and troubled Frances Farmer appears as "Jane" (for some reason they dropped the rather obvious "Calamity"), and gives an excellent performance as the frontier gal Crawford tries to leave behind. Along for comic relief are Hugh Herbert as the Fire Chief/bartender, Andy Devine as the mayor and Fuzzy Knight as the stagecoach driver. Riding with Chaney are the likes of Glenn Strange, Carleton Young and Richard Alexander. Addison Richards appears as Colonel Custer. Poor old Charlie King is around just long enough to be gunned down by Dix. Also,look for Kermit Maynard as a card player.

Stack does OK as the hero and Ann Rutherford fresh from the Andy Hardy series, makes an appealing heroine. Dix does what he can with a limited role, Crawford growls as usual and Chaney is good as the chief bad guy, but it is Farmer who virtually steals the picture. One can only wonder how really great she could have been.

There is plenty of action including chases, stage holdups, fights, comedy and a slam bang Indian attack of the town at the film's climax. A really entertaining little western.