''The Wonderful Country'' is a 1959

Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film based (with substantial changes) on Tom Lea's 1952 novel of the same name that was produced by

Robert Mitchum Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Joe'' (1945), followed by his starring in ...

's DRM Production company in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. Mitchum stars along with Julie London. Baseball pitcher

Satchel Paige Leroy Robert "Satchel" Paige (July 7, 1906 – June 8, 1982) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Negro league baseball and Major League Baseball (MLB). His career spanned five decades and culminated with his induction in ...

plays a soldier in the film, and Lea has a cameo as a barber.

Plot

In Mexico, expatriate American ''pistolero'' Martin Brady is employed by the Castro brothers, Marcos ( Víctor Manuel Mendoza), a general, and Don Cipriano (

Pedro Armendáriz Pedro Gregorio Armendáriz Hastings (May 9, 1912 – June 18, 1963) was a Mexican film actor who made films in both Mexico and the United States. With Dolores del Río and María Félix, he was one of the best-known Latin American movie stars ...

), the new governor. On a business trip to the United States to arrange the purchase of a wagonload of rifles and ammunition, he is delayed when he breaks his leg in an accident in the Texas border town of Puerto. Treated by Dr Stovall (

Charles McGraw Charles McGraw (born Charles Crisp Butters; May 10, 1914 – July 29, 1980) was an American stage, film and television actor whose career spanned more than three decades. Early life McGraw was born to Beatrice (née Crisp) and Francis P. B ...

), he stays with German immigrant Ben Sterner (

John Banner John Banner (born Johann Banner, January 28, 1910 – January 28, 1973) was an Austrian-born American actor, best known for his role as Sergeant Schultz in the situation comedy ''Hogan's Heroes'' (1965–1971). Schultz, constantly encou ...

), who is the seller of the rifles, and Ben's nephew Ludwig (Chico) (

Max Slaten Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (English Springer Spaniel), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...

). Brady's help is sought by the local U.S. Army commander, Major Colton (

Gary Merrill Gary Fred Merrill (August 2, 1915 – March 5, 1990) was an American film and television actor whose credits included more than 50 feature films, a half-dozen mostly short-lived TV series, and dozens of television guest appearances. He starr ...

), to persuade Cipriano Castro to cooperate with Colton's

Buffalo Soldiers Buffalo Soldiers originally were members of the 10th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army, formed on September 21, 1866, at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. This nickname was given to the Black Cavalry by Native American tribes who fought in t ...

in an expedition against hostile Apaches in Mexico. In the meantime the rifles Brady purchased for Castro have been stolen. Captain Rucker of the Texas Rangers knows Brady fled to Mexico as an adolescent after avenging the murder of his father, not knowing the man he killed was an outlaw. Rucker tries to enlist Brady as a Ranger. Brady is attracted to Colton's unhappy wife Ellen ( Julie London). Brady shoots a man (

Chuck Roberson Charles Hugh Roberson (May 10, 1919 – June 8, 1988) was an American actor and stuntman. Biography Roberson was born near Shannon, Texas, the son of farmer Ollie W. Roberson and Jannie Hamm Roberson. Raised on cattle ranches in Shannon, ...

) who murdered Ludwig and drew on him. He then returns to Mexico to inform Cipriano Castro of the missing rifles. Major Colton and Ellen arrive to meet with Cipriano, arranged by Travis Hight (

Jack Oakie Jack Oakie (born Lewis Delaney Offield; November 12, 1903 – January 23, 1978) was an American actor, starring mostly in films, but also working on stage, radio and television. He portrayed Napaloni in Chaplin's ''The Great Dictator'' (194 ...

), the representative of a railroad threatened by the Apaches. Ellen and Brady have a brief affair. Cipriano tells Brady that, by law, he must pay a debt for the rifles and orders him to assassinate his brother Marcos, who seeks to make himself governor. Brady refuses and finds himself an outlaw in Mexico as well. Weeks later on the run, he finds cavalry sergeant Tobe Sutton (

) and returns with him to Major Colton's camp. Colton has been seriously wounded in a skirmish with the Apaches but is determined to rendezvous with Captain Rucker and General Castro's troops. En route they recover the stolen rifles from a small band of Apaches, but Colton dies. The rifles are returned to General Marcos, who reveals that Cipriano is also dead and he is now governor. Calling Brady an assassin, he demands the Americans surrender him and leave Mexico immediately. Rucker offers to help Brady prove that the shooting in Puerto was a case of self-defense, if he will return to Texas. Brady decides to risk it and heads towards the Rio Grande to be with Helen. Near the river he is ambushed by a gunfighter frequently seen with Marcos. Brady kills him but his Andalusian stallion, a constant companion throughout the story, is killed. Brady leaves his gun, bullets and sombrero by the horse and walks towards the U.S.

Cast

as Martin Brady * Julie London as Helen Colton *

as Maj. Stark Colton *

as Don Cipriano *

Albert Dekker Thomas Albert Ecke Van Dekker (December 20, 1905 – May 5, 1968) was an American character actor and politician best known for his roles in ''Dr. Cyclops'', ''The Killers (1946 film), The Killers'' (1946), ''Kiss Me Deadly'', and ''The Wild Bun ...

as Texas Ranger Capt. Rucker *

as Dr. Herbert J. Stovall *

as Sgt. Tobe Sutton * Anthony Caruso as Santiago Santos *

Mike Kellin Mike Kellin (born Myron Kellin, April 26, 1922 – August 26, 1983) was an American actor. Early life Kellin was born in Hartford, Connecticut, the son of Sophia and Samuel Kellin, Russian-Jewish immigrants. His younger sister, Shirley Ann ...

as Pancho Gil * Víctor Manuel Mendoza as Gen. Marcos Castro *

Jay Novello Jay Novello (born Michael Romano, August 22, 1904 – September 2, 1982) was an American radio, film, and television character actor. Early life Novello was born in Chicago to Joseph Romano and Maria (Salemme) Romano. He had three siblin ...

as Diego Casas *

as Ben Sterner * Max Slaten as Ludwig 'Chico' Sterner

Production

Robert Parrish Robert R. Parrish (January 4, 1916December 4, 1995) was an American film director, screenwriter, editor and former child actor. He received an Academy Award for Best Film Editing for his contribution to '' Body and Soul'' (1947). Life and caree ...

went to Tom Lea and asked if he arrishcould direct it. The only money that Lea received from the picture was for his role as the barber. The motion picture was filmed in the state of Durango. Parrish and Lea first asked

Henry Fonda Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor. He had a career that spanned five decades on Broadway and in Hollywood. He cultivated an everyman screen image in several films considered to be classics. Born and ra ...

, then Gregory Peck to take the starring role. But, Mitchum really wanted to do the film, and after Fonda and Peck said no, Mitchum took over production. During filming in Durango, Mitchum and his stunt double Chuck Roberson decided to have a few drinks at a local cantina. They witnessed two Mexicans get into a violent confrontation in which one drew a pistol and fired a shot into the other's face. After running outside momentarily, the wounded man came back into the bar and dropped dead. The incident shook up Mitchum so badly it convinced him to keep his drinking to the hotel and its vicinity.

Reception

The film was not well received at the box office and by some critics, but other critics considered it beautifully filmed by cinematographers

Floyd Crosby Floyd Delafield Crosby, A.S.C. (December 12, 1899 – September 30, 1985) was an Academy Award-winning American cinematographer, descendant of the Van Rensselaer family, and father of musicians Ethan and David Crosby. Early life Crosby was b ...

and Alex Phillips. A rave review in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' appeared on November 5, 1959, with critic Howard Thompson referring to Mitchum as "ideally cast" and writing: "This is a superior, intelligent film on nearly every count ... beautifully paced by Robert Parrish's direction and magnificently evocative of the locale where it was made, this Chester Erskine production is consistently rewarding." Upon its release, ''TIME'' said about it: "But the result is just a crying Shane. All that is truly dramatic is the wonderful country itself" and about Mitchum's performance: "...he sounds like an Aztec exchange student after six terms at C.C.N.Y.". "The rest of the plot is as snarled as a ball of tumbleweed." and; "...a western that is more woolly than wild". Upon its 1961 release in Cuba, it set off an ideological fury due to "two Mexican bandits who were named the Castro brothers". As Roger Fristoe notes, recent critics regard the film more highly than critics writing more than fifty years ago. Dennis Schwartz wrote in 2009 that the film is "A wonderfully rich western that ambitiously covers many familiar themes and does a good job in developing the main character and his knotty personality." A relatively recent review by a critic who awarded the film an "A-" rating.

Notes

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wonderful Country 1959 films 1959 Western (genre) films Films scored by Alex North Films set in Mexico Films shot in Mexico Films set in Texas Films set in the 1880s Thomas C. Lea III Films based on American novels Films based on Western (genre) novels Films about mercenaries United Artists films Films with screenplays by Walter Bernstein Films with screenplays by Robert Ardrey 1950s English-language films American Western (genre) films 1950s American films