The Proud Rebel (1958)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Writers:

James Edward Grant (story)
Lillie Hayward (writer)

Release Date:

2 November 1958 (UK)

Genre:

Western

Tagline:

Its Call Reaches Far and Wide As The Human Heart...

Plot:

Searching for a doctor who can help him get his son to speak again--the boy hadn't uttered a word since...

Plot Keywords:

Boy | Father Son Relationship | Mute | Dog | Based On Novel

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win

Cast

Alan Ladd	...	John Chandler
Olivia de Havilland	...	Linnett Moore
Dean Jagger	...	Harry Burleigh
David Ladd	...	David Chandler
Cecil Kellaway	...	Dr. Enos Davis (Quaker)
James Westerfield	...	Birm Bates (sheep buyer)
Henry Hull	...	Judge Morley
Harry Dean Stanton	...	Jeb Burleigh (as Dean Stanton)
Tom Pittman	...	Tom Burleigh (as Thomas Pittman)
Eli Mintz	...	Mr. Gorman (shopkeeper)
John Carradine	...	Traveling salesman
King	...	Lance, David's Dog

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Norway:7 | West Germany:6 (f) | Finland:K-12 | USA:Approved (PCA #18897) | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Cedar City, Utah, USA

Company:

Formosa

Quotes:

Jeb Burleigh: I'd like a little respect. I told you before I don't like people I'm talkin' to to walk away from me. Look at me! You look at me when I talk to you.
John Chandler: I'm lookin', but I don't see anything.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Breach (2007)

A REAL FAMILY CLASSIC

I grew up watching "Family Classics with Frazier Thomas", a program that featured a wide variety of family friendly movies. This was one of them(so was TOBOR THE GREAT but we won't get into that-I just finished reviewing that clunker a few minutes ago). Alan Ladd plays Civil War veteran John Chandler, who is seeking treatment for his mute son(played by real-life son David Ladd), and meets up with a town spinster (Olivia DeHavilland), who takes both of them in when Chandler is falsley accused of starting a brawl, facing thirty days in the town jail. In the meantime, a sheep herder (Dean Jagger) and his juvenile-delinquent sons attempt to force DeHavilland off her ranch. Chandler must also make the tough choice to sell young David's beloved dog to a breeder in order to pay for his treatment.

The performances are first-rate. Alan and David have one of the best father-son chemistries in movie history-(along with Jon Voight and Ricky Schroeder in THE CHAMP twenty or so years later). Also, Olivia DeHavilland, Dean Jagger, and veteran actor Harry Dean Stanton help make this one a must-see for all. Even horror veteran John Carradine makes a cameo appearance in the opening scene.

Sadly, this family classic makes the untimely death of Alan Ladd a few years later all the more tragic.

Rating: ****1/2 out of *****