SYNOPSICS
These Thousand Hills (1959) is a English movie. Richard Fleischer has directed this movie. Don Murray,Richard Egan,Lee Remick,Patricia Owens are the starring of this movie. It was released in 1959. These Thousand Hills (1959) is considered one of the best Drama,Western movie in India and around the world.
Cowpokes Lat Evans and Tom Ping join a cattle drive to Wyoming. There, they win good money in a horse race and they decide to remain in town. In the local saloon, Evans befriends saloon girl Callie. Jehu, an unscrupulous rancher who uses Callie's services, resents Evans. Later, Evans and Tom Ping go into the hills to hunt wolves for their hides. During the harsh winter, the two friends encounter hard times and argue. They agree to split. Evans is attacked by a small group of Indians bent on stealing his horse. The Indians shoot Evans but the shot is heard by Ping who returns to save Evans from sure death. He takes the wounded Evans to the nearby town where Evans recuperates during the following months at Callie's home. In the spring, Evans is restless to become successful and asks the local banker, Marshal Conrad, for a loan to start his own cattle ranch. Callie gives Evans her life savings to help him secure a loan. He makes Tom Ping his partner. Evans' fortunes improve when his ...
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These Thousand Hills (1959) Reviews
Modest Western Drama.
"All the beasts in the forest are mine and the cattle on these thousand hills". THESE THOUSAND HILLS was a Fox western made in 1959! But calling it a western in the true sense is something of a misnomer! For although it is set in the west in the 1880's it contains little or no familier "western" action to speak of. In fact you could count on one hand the number of shots fired in the entire picture! That said, and despite all of its western trappings, it is still a reasonably good drama well played by a good cast. Based on the best selling novel by A.B.Guthrie Jr. a decent screenplay was fashioned from it by Alfred Hayes and it also had some beautiful Cinemascope location Cinematography by Charles G. Clarke. The solid direction was by the gifted Richard Fleischer for Davis Weisbert's glossy Eastmancolor production. An ambitious cowboy (Don Murray) longs to make something of himself and his dream is to have his very own ranch. A dance hall girl Callie (Lee Remick giving the film its best performance) who falls for him gives him the money to get started. This together with some help from the bank sees him becoming one of the biggest cattle ranchers in the territory. But he wants to become more. He begins to avoid Callie. He is elected to the school board and woos and marries the banker's niece (Patricia Owens) and now he is well on his way to becoming a senator. But when his good friend (Sturt Whitman) is lynched and Callie is beaten up by her boyfriend Jehu (Richard Egan) he realises his ambitions now mean little. In the picture's climactic set piece near the end he confronts Jehu for a well executed fist fight. Don Murray is fine in the lead! Although he didn't make a lot of them Murray was an acceptable western hero! His best one was "From Hell To Texas" (1958)! His shy reticent persona could be likened to a young Glenn Ford but the actor never really distinguished himself in film. His senator Brigham Anderson in Otto Preminger's brilliant political drama "Advise & Consent" (1962) is probably the best thing he did! Hard to believe he celebrated his eightieth birthday in 2009. Despite a couple of appalling indoor exteriors for night camp scenes and stock footage of cattle drive sequences from the studio's earlier "The Tall Men" (1955) THESE THOUSAND HILLS is an absorbing enough tale well told and well played. The film is also well buoyed by a marvellous score by the underrated Leigh Harline. A haunting title song by Harry Warren and Ned Washington is sung over the opening and end credits by Randy Sparks. Harline interpolated the song into his score which orchestrally is quite beautiful............... THE MOON WHEN IT'S PALE LIGHTING THE TRAIL TUGS AT HIS HEARTSTRINGS HE LEARNED TO LIVE AND LEARNED TO LOVE THESE THOUSAND HILLS.
A hard worker and a fast worker
These Thousand Hills casts Don Murray as a young cowboy who arrives in Montana broke but with an idea. Rather than have cattle feed on the open range in winter left to the elements, he wants to grow and store hay for winter feed. In order to do this he romances two women, banker's niece Patricia Owens and saloon girl Lee Remick. Murray's both a hard worker and a fast worker. This film highlights a growing trend in the Fifties toward adult westerns. They wouldn't yet show it on television, but that Lee Remick is a prostitute is not left to any imagination. In fact even though Remick gave Murray the seed money for his ranch, Murray then objects to pal Stuart Whitman marrying one in Remick's friend Jean Willes. And Murray's attentions to Remick among other things have made him a bad enemy in saloon owner Richard Egan. Basically you have all the ingredients of the story of These Thousand Hills. The film really belongs to both Murray and Lee Remick who gives quite a portrayal of a battered woman, again most unusual for any picture in the Fifties let alone a western. As entertainment the film still holds up well today, but I'd keep it from the littlest ones.
Passable but slow-moving Western with good cast and well directed by the prolific filmmaker Richard Fleischer
This well characterized Western from Pulitzer award winner A.B Guthrie monumental bestseller deals with an ambitious cowboy (Don Murray) will stop at nothing to achieve his aims , and paying a heavy price to get a wealthy ranch full of cattle . As he arrives in Montana , to get what he wishes , fame and fortune by creating a powerful ranch , including using the affections of two attractive girls . Helped by a rich banker (Albert Dekker) and an old friend (Stuart Whitman) , both of them antagonise a flashy rancher/gambler (Richard Egan) . Meanwhile , the stubborn cowboy falls for two beautiful damsels (Lee Remick and Patricia Owens). A simple and excessively romantic Western drama with little action and not much shooting . It is more a loving drama than the typical Western . Don Murray gives a lively acting as an upright but extremely ambitious young who to get his objectives falls for two women , the prostitute Lee Remick and the niece of a wealthy banker , Patricia Owens. Murray grapples rather unsteadly with his role once it has progressed to become an US senator. A young and gorgeous Lee Remick is pretty good as a whore who attempts to take a honest way on her thunderous life . Richad Egan also takes advantage from a rare villain character , as he often plays good guys . Satisfying support cast plenty of prestigious secondaries such as : Stuart Whitman , Harold J Stone , Royal Dano , Robert Adler , Jean Willes , and the veteran Albert Dekker . Interesting and well structured screenplay by Alfred Hayes and Guthrie , based on a successful bestseller by A.B. Guthrie . It contains a colorful cinematography by Charles Clarke , including wonderful landscapes . And a sensitive and rousing musical score by Leigh Harline , adding marvelous songs performed by Ned Washington . This modest drama/romance/Western picture was professionally and firmly directed by Richard Fleischer , though slowly filmed, as I miss more action and shots . Richard was a prolific craftsman who made a lot of films in all kinds of genres throughout a long career in which he was able to endow with a wealth of personal detail . As he directed adventures: Vikings , 20000 leagues under the sea , Red Sonja , Conan the destroyer , Mandingo , Ashanti , Doctor Dolittle , The prince and the pauper ; Thrillers: Mr Majestick , The Don is dead , The new Centurions , Million dollar mystery ; Historical : Barabbas ; Terror : Amityvile 3 the Demon ; Musical : The jazz singer ; Wartime : Tora tora tora ; Sci-Fi : Soilent Green ; Crime : 10 Rillington Place , The Boston strangler , Compulsion , See no evil ; Noir film : The narrow margin , The clay pigeon , Armored car robbery , Follow me quietly , Trapped . Rating : 6/10 acceptable and passable . Well worth watching .
Lee Remick stands out
Average western with advantage of good cast. Don Murray is okay in the lead, he never really had that elusive something to be a great movie star but is a fine actor but a more magnetic actor, Robert Mitchum or Burt Lancaster for example would have raised the film up a notch. The supporting cast is full of familiar faces that all provide excellent work, the real standout is Lee Remick who offers up a delicately shaded performance of a girl whose life has been full of bad breaks and hard luck. It a shame her part is relatively small since she's the most compelling character and actor in the film. The color and cinematography are also noteworthy. Not a bad movie just not great.
Great Cast
Terrific production values. Great cast. Lackluster script. Terrible soundtrack. Something missing. Too clean and tidy. Not realistic in a strange sense. A melodrama western? Not a bad film just not a really good one and certainly not as good as it should have been given the great cast. Lots and lots of clichés. Main character is not really likable. Many loose ends. Underdeveloped characters. Worth watching for Lee Remick and Patricia Owens. I can't put my finger quite on the reason why this film falls flat. There just isn't any sizzle or scenes that grab you. Perhaps it is because the role of Latt (the main character) is not sympathetic. He seems to change from a decent guy to a heel almost overnight, forgetting about his true friends. Then he redeems himself instantly at the end. People don't change back and forth and back again like that.