Union Pacific (1939)

Director:

Cecil B. DeMille

Writers:

Ernest Haycox (story)
Jack Cunningham (adaptation)

Release Date:

5 May 1939 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Western

Tagline:

"Union Pacific" is coming!

Plot:

One of the last bills signed by President Lincoln authorizes pushing the Union Pacific Railroad across the wilderness to California...

Plot Keywords:

Railroad | Troubleshooter | Union Pacific Railroad | Romantic Rivalry | Train Crash

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 wins

Cast

Barbara Stanwyck	...	Mollie Monahan
Joel McCrea	...	Capt. Jeff Butler
Akim Tamiroff	...	Fiesta
Robert Preston	...	Dick Allen
Lynne Overman	...	Leach Overmile
Brian Donlevy	...	Sid Campeau
Robert Barrat	...	Duke Ring (Campeau henchman)
Anthony Quinn	...	Jack Cordray (Campeau henchman)
Stanley Ridges	...	Gen. Casement
Henry Kolker	...	Asa M. Barrows (banker)
Francis McDonald	...	Gen. Grenville M. Dodge
Willard Robertson	...	Oakes Ames
Harold Goodwin	...	E.E. Calvin (telegrapher)
Evelyn Keyes	...	Mrs. Calvin
Richard Lane	...	Sam Reed

Runtime:

135 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

West Germany:12 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (PCA #4831)

Filming Locations:

Cache, Oklahoma, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

The world premiere in Omaha, Nebraska, was a three-day celebration that drew 250,000 people, doubling the population of the city and requiring the National Guard to help keep order. The special train en route from Hollywood to Omaha, carrying Cecil B. DeMille and stars Barbara Stanwyck and Joel McCrea, took three days and made stops along the way, drawing large crowds. The film was shown in three theaters simultaneously; President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was reported to have started the premiere proceedings by pressing a button in Washington, DC, which opened the civic auditorium. An ad stated that the premiere, which involved parades, radio broadcasts and a banquet, was the biggest in motion picture history. An antique train continued on a 15-day coast-to-coast promotional tour, stopping at 30 cities around the country.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: The chase sequence after the train robbery is shown in mountainous terrain. The robbery supposedly takes place between Cheyenne and Pine Bluffs Wyoming (from geographic references to the train's location in the telegrapher's office). There are no mountains in this area.

Quotes:

Monahan: There's nothing like hearing an engine whistle in the still night.

Movie Connections:

Featured in 1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year (2009) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Oh! Susanna

Impressive train wrecks seemed to be DeMille's specialty...

UNION PACIFIC is one Cecil B. DeMille film that could have used 1939's Technicolor to tell the sprawling story of the pioneers who built the railroads that united east and west. Nevertheless, DeMille does get across the enormous amount of work involved in building the rails while a lot of skullduggery was going on behind the scenes to prevent a team of workers to reach the midpoint first.

JOEL McCREA is the perfect western hero for DeMille's story and gives his usual easy performance as the enforcer who has to keep the villains from halting progress on the rails. BRIAN DONLEVY makes a perfect heel and ROBERT PRESTON shows genuine charm and gives a double-layered performance as McCrea's longtime pal caught under the influence of the bad guys who want to cause havoc. REGIS TOOMEY is underused in a very brief role as an ill-fated Irish rail worker.

BARBARA STANWYCK gives her Irish accent a good try and, while not always successful, delivers a very likable performance as the post office gal along for the ride. ANTHONY QUINN has a brief supporting role as a badman, but the most colorful support comes from AKIM TAMIROFF as Fiesta, the man with the whip, and LYNNE OVERMAN, both playing McCrea's scruffy bodyguards. And boy, does he need them! EVELYN KEYES has one line and disappears. But DeMille keeps track of all his extras, using them effectively in all the big mob scenes both indoor and out.

Again, Technicolor was still new in 1939 but GONE WITH THE WIND was using seven Technicolor cameras and DeMille probably had no choice but to film in B&W. Let's just say, this is the kind of story that cried for Technicolor which may have made some of the process shots less noticeable for backgrounds shot in a studio.

DeMille's tendency to let his films run over two hours is present here. At least twenty minutes or more could easily have been cut to keep the story in a tighter mode.

For DeMille fans, definitely worth seeing.