The Westerner (1940)

Director:

William Wyler

Writers:

Niven Busch (screenplay)
Stuart N. Lake (story)

Release Date:

20 September 1940 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance | Western

Tagline:

THE RAW UNTAMED ADVENTUROUS WEST...LIVES AGAIN! (original print media ad - all caps)

Plot:

Judge Roy Bean, a self-appointed hanging judge in Vinergaroon, Texas, befriends saddle tramp Cole Harden, who opposes Bean's policy against homesteaders.

Plot Keywords:

Judge | Hanging | Hanging Judge | Homesteader | Judge Roy Bean

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Gary Cooper	...	Cole Harden
Walter Brennan	...	Judge Roy Bean
Doris Davenport	...	Jane Ellen Mathews
Fred Stone	...	Caliphet Mathews
Forrest Tucker	...	Wade Harper
Paul Hurst	...	Chickenfoot
Chill Wills	...	Southeast
Lilian Bond	...	Lily Langtry
Dana Andrews	...	Hod Johnson
Charles Halton	...	Mort Borrow
Trevor Bardette	...	Shad Wilkins
Tom Tyler	...	King Evans
Lucien Littlefield	...	The Stranger

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

UK:U | Portugal:M/12 | West Germany:12 (f) | Norway:16 | USA:Approved (PCA #5959) | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

near, Tucson, Arizona, USA

Company:

Samuel Goldwyn Company, The

Trivia:

This film was the third Oscar win for Walter Brennan, who won three out of the five best Supporting Actor Academy Awards. Despite being nominated the subsequent year for "Sergeant York," also with Gary Cooper, he was never nominated again in a very long career.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The town was named for George Langtry, an engineer and foreman who had supervised a Chinese work crew building the railroad, and not for the actress Lillie Langtry.

Quotes:

The Stranger: Have you met Miss Langtry?
Judge Roy W. Bean: No, I never met her. I never met the sun, I never shook hands with the moon, and I've never been introduced to no clouds.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Golden Saddles, Silver Spurs (2000) (TV)

Cooper in a duel with scene-stealing Brennan

This western film features several top elements that help make it a classic in its genre. Director Wyler was regarded by many people as one of the all time greats. Cinematographer Toland was also a well-respected presence in his field. Producer Goldwyn was famed for his attention to quality. (This trio had, in fact, just made "Wuthering Heights together the year before.) Then, of course, there is the delightful (and Oscar-winning) presence of famed character actor Brennan as Judge Roy Bean. This is not in any way discounting the work of Cooper who is highly effective and appealing here as well. Cooper plays the title character, a drifter who has the unlucky prospect of having to appear before the notorious "hangin' judge" Brennan. Once his case is settled, he forms an uneasy alliance with Brennan, while also sticking around long enough to help damsel in distress Davenport. Before long, he's in the middle of a range war between cattle ranchers and farmers all being unfairly presided over by Brennan (who has an undue fascination with the actress Lily Langtry.) Cooper is gorgeous in this film and gives a strong performance (despite his documented disinterest in it due to the knowledge that Brennan had the best part.) Brennan predictably steals most every scene he's in in a part that is more co-starring than supporting. Still, his rapport with Cooper is what gives his role meaning. Although riddled with what are now cliches, the script is full of neat touches between the two men. It's not every day a viewer catches Gary Cooper waking up drunk in a twin bed with Walter Brennan's arm around him! This sequence (as well as one earlier when the two men square off over "a drink") is priceless. There's also a memorable showdown in an opera house. Davenport makes a lovely, if unusual heroine (earthier and less slender than many leading ladies of her day.) She would retire shortly after this film. Tucker will be almost unrecognizable to his fans from "F Troop" and other later works of his. Andrews is given very little to do. The film might have been better off with a more apt title as it's less the story of "The Westerner" than it is an observation of the relationship between these two men.