Movies that exist at the periphery regularly catch my attention. They may be movies that occupy a place on the margins of a particular genre, they may be transitional efforts that straddle different eras, or they may even be a bit of both. Such is the case with River Lady (1948) a film which is not entirely successful, partly as it’s difficult to pin down the genre – a hint of the western, a dash of riverboat melodrama, and a pinch of the frontier adventure – and partly due to the time it was made. While it might not be the kind of movie that broke new ground or made a strong enough impression to encourage frequent revisits, it is still engaging in the way so many of George Sherman’s titles are.
I’ve lost count of how many westerns have turned a spotlight on the encroachment of civilization on the frontier. Sometimes it’s a matter of the railroad hammering out an iron clad tattoo across the plains and relentlessly shoving the old world to one side. At other times it is the stringing of the telegraph line, or the gradual extension of the reach of the law itself. River Lady concerns itself with the expansion of organized business interests, in particular the conflict between small, independent logging outfits and the hungry syndicates. Nevertheless, corporate kerfuffles of any type have a limited appeal at best and it’s always advisable to bring the human drama and the human faces of the players and antagonists to the fore. So it is that attention is focused on a roughneck logger called Dan Corrigan (Rod Cameron) and Sequin (Yvonne De Carlo), the owner of the titular paddle boat and undisclosed boss of the syndicate which is buying up all the struggling outfits on the river. This allows for a double-edged conflict, both the tangled business affairs and the romantic tug-of-war between a hardheaded free spirit such as Corrigan and the ambitious and manipulative Sequin. And any time the mixture looks like drifting off the boil the silky and stealthy Beauvais (Dan Duryea) is on hand to stoke it up once again.
As has been stated, in terms of genre, there’s a fluidity to the movie that mirrors the flow of the timber down the river. I guess that could be seen as versatility in the script, or even as a determination to resist the imposition of boundaries on the part of the filmmakers. However, it makes it hard to get a handle on the movie, a situation I’ve found can crop up from time to time in mid to late 1940s westerns, where it’s possible to detect elements of breezier B pictures rubbing shoulders with themes that carried a bit more weight. One could even say something similar about George Sherman’s career trajectory itself at this point. The rights to the story drifted around Universal for many years before the movie was finally made and perhaps this fairly lengthy gestation period has something to do with the feeling that the finished product imparts.
Rod Cameron is third billed but has the leading role. He provides a strong physical presence, although he does end up on the receiving end of a terrific beating meted out by Duryea at one stage. His acting is adequate overall, but the way his character is written is problematic. I think it’s clear enough that the intention is for a redemptive arc to be traced, which is fine as far as it goes. The thing is though that, as written, Corrigan isn’t really a likeable figure for much of the film’s running time. He’s not just a man who is on a learning curve, he’s downright unpleasant to the women in his life and comes across as spoiled and petulant instead of grittily independent. Duryea, as the villain of the piece, actually brings more nuance and therefore more interest to his part. I suppose it comes down to the fact that Duryea, even when we was showboating shamelessly or backstabbing with the worst of them, had a soulful air about him. Top billing went to Yvonne De Carlo but she is off screen for far too long and her role ends up largely undeveloped. Helena Carter is her romantic rival for Cameron’s affections and actually gets the more rewarding part. In support, John McIntire, Florence Bates and Jack Lambert all have their moments.
As a Technicolor production, River Lady might be expected to look better than it does. I have a German DVD that is acceptable all told, but there is a certain muddiness to it too. Perhaps the fact the movie is part of a George Sherman box that has it packaged alongside solid Blu-ray versions of The Last of the Fast Guns and Red Canyon serves to draw attention to its weaknesses.
Riding the High Country 
Colin
Thanks for the heads up on this Cameron film. It is going on the list for a watch. Calgary product Cameron holds the record for the most lead film roles made by a local, with 50 plus leads in Hollywood productions to his credit. I really need to catch up with more Cameron work.
Gord
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It’s a pacy little picture, Gord. However, I felt the script did few favors for Cameron and De Carlo, particularly the latter who practically disappears for a longish stretch. Somewhat surprisingly, William Bowers was involved in the writing and his scripts are generally very good.
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I just watched TIGHT SPOT for the first time and quite enjoyed it (from a Bowers script). Will keep an eye out, thanks Colin.
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Bowers was pretty dependable for the most part, wasn’t he? I reckon this is one of his weaker efforts, but worth a look for all that.
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There is a whole subcategory of Golden Age Hollywood output that seems to fall in to a kind of lumpen zone where stories and characters just stubbornly refuse to mesh – won’t meet standard genre expectations but not unusual / original / eccentric enough to work as a sui generis effort either. Sherman must have known the whole time that it just wasn’t working properly. On the other hand, De Carlo was nearing her peak as a dangerous leading lady (CRISS CROSS as the summit for me) so am sure there is much of value here.
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Oh, it’s worth seeing for De Carlo and Duryea for sure. I just find it regrettable that we don’t get more of De Carlo.
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Hm. I may have to try this one again.
Duryea really committed to whatever role he did get!
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In my opinion, Duryea is one of the best things about the movie.
And I agree on your assessment of him overall. Of course he was capable of playing it a little too large on occasion, but he mostly judged it well throughout his career. I’m always happy to watch him, and I can’t think of a movie he didn’t make more interesting or watchable by appearing in it.
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This film and FRONTIER GIRL (1945) have Maria Montez’s fingerprints all over it from costumes, makeup and dialogue.
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Frontier Girl was initially down to be a Maria Montez vehicle, but I’d not heard of any potential involvement on her part n this one.
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FOR CONVERSATION ONLY. I have read when Universal purchased the film rights to River Lady in 1941 and due to the success of Arabian Nights (1942), it was then earmarked for another Montez-Hall vehicle. The idea was scrapped when Montez refused the role in Frontier Gal (1945), a precursor to River Lady. It has been said, Montez refused the role because she did not want to play opposite Rod Cameron nor Jon Hall. Hall was out when he was drafted into military service. That left Cameron and entered De Carlo. My opinion, both FG and RL, both Westerns, were a significant change in genre for Montez, not the epic grand scale adventure formula the then ‘Queen of Technicolor’ was looking for. For her refusal she was suspended by the Studio in 1945. The Studio re-activated Montez in 1946. What turned out to be her last Universal film, ironically she played opposite Rod Cameron in Pirates of Monterey (1947), a dramatic role more associated with her previous roles.
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It certainly seems plausible to me that Montez may not have wanted to be seen to be moving into another genre, perhaps one she felt was less in keeping with her established persona.
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Maria Montez appeared (star billing though it was not a big role) in THE EXILE (1947) for Universal, directed by Max Ophuls, produced by and starring Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. A black and white costume melodrama/swashbuckler/romance, suggested by history. A wonderful and beautiful movie and one that I highly recommend for those who haven’t seen it. This was made under Universal-International regime post-merger, while PIRATES OF MONTEREY was actually made earlier by Universal before the merger but belatedly released as a U-I film late in 1947. So THE EXILE was her last film there.
Writing as a fan of those Montez/Hall/Sabu/Bey films which have a place in my heart, as I guess they do for a lot of people. I had an occasion here to see that whole cycle on the big screen over one weekend some years back, in original prints.
Since there isn’t much love for it here, I’ll throw in a kind word for RIVER LADY, which I’ve just seen once though liked it very much. Westerns were kind of finding their way in that period–so it has that mix of elements, of which the melodrama works well for me, though as a Western it’s satisfying enough. The billing reflects that Yvonne De Carlo and Dan Duryea were being promoted by the studio (along with Howard Duff and Ann Blyth, they were the most conspicuous U-I contract stars pre-1950s, at least for dramatic films) while Cameron was on the way out, even though he’s the main character, and Helena Carter never really took hold (too bad–she is very good in this, as always). But most of all the film has the assurance of director George Sherman, his second films of many for U-I after he was brought to the studio by protean producer Leonard Goldstein as Goldstein was making his place there. Sherman was given the first U-I Technicolor movies, this one following BLACK BART, also with De Carlo and Duryea, and maybe a little fresher as a project. The following year Sherman directed Duff and Blyth in what is perhaps best of his four Westerns, more beautiful Technicolor (Irving Glassberg, if I’m remembering right, was cinematographer on all of them) and then Duff and De Carlo in CALAMITY JANE AND SAM BASS, among Sherman’s other movies in those years.
I’d like to say something more about RIVER LADY but just don’t remember it well enough right now. Colin’s piece seemed very fair but I guess I liked it more than most others here.
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That Duff/Blyth movie was RED CANYON of course, which Colin has reviewed earlier.
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I have never had the opportunity to see The Exile, but I have enjoyed what I’ve seen of Max Ophuls’ work in general. I’m always very happy to get these kinds of recommendations to set me off exploring something new and I’ll now be on the lookout for this movie.
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Sorry…….Frontier GAL.
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You’re right of course. I should have caught that too.
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David McCallum R.I.P.
David has passed at age 90. Though he appeared on UK film and television from the 1950s, my first memory of him here was on MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. 1964-68. He was so cool as agent Illya Kuryakin on the popular series. He is going to be missed.
Gordon
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I’d just noticed the other day that he had turned 90, somehow he always seemed younger than he actually was.
Inevitably he is going to be best remembered for his TV work in U.N.C.L.E., The Invisible Man, NCIS, but he had some good supporting roles in the movies at the beginning of his career.
RIP
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