The True Story of Jesse James (1957)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Nicholas Ray

Writers:

Nunnally Johnson (earlier screenplay)
Walter Newman (screenplay)

Release Date:

February 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Western

Plot:

The last eighteen years in the life of Jesse James, showing his home life in Missouri, his experiences with Quantrill's raiders...

Plot Keywords:

Shirtless Male Bondage | Remake | Whipped | Character Name In Title

Cast

Robert Wagner	...	Jesse James
Jeffrey Hunter	...	Frank James
Hope Lange	...	Zee
Agnes Moorehead	...	Mrs. Samuel
Alan Hale Jr.	...	Cole Younger (as Alan Hale)
Alan Baxter	...	Remington
John Carradine	...	Reverend Jethro Bailey
Rachel Stephens	...	Anne James
Barney Phillips	...	Dr. Samuel
Biff Elliot	...	Jim Younger
Frank Overton	...	Major Rufus Cobb
Barry Atwater	...	Attorney Walker
Marian Seldes	...	Rowena Cobb
Chubby Johnson	...	Askew
Frank Gorshin	...	Charley Ford

Also Known As:

Jesse James (USA) (working title)
The James Brothers (UK)

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (MPAA rating: #18321) | UK:U | West Germany:18 (nf) | Norway:16 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Behind scenes, 20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Footage from the original 1939 production was used when Frank and Jesse go over a cliff on horseback into a river and when they crashed, on horseback, through a store window during the "Northfield Minnesota Raid."

Movie Connections:

Remake of Jesse James (1939)

Missed opportunities all round

Although the ending of this Nicholas Ray movie is very similar to Andrew Dominik's much, much finer version, (or should that be vice-versa?), there is no comparison between the two films. This is mostly a dull affair with very little of the psychological insights into troubled personalities that have distinguished Ray's best films; all the more mystifying considering the complexity of the central character.

Perhaps it was the weak casting. Robert Wagner is pretty as in pretty vacant and is totally out of his depth. (Contrast his performance with that of another 'pretty boy', Brad Pitt, in the most recent version). As his brother Frank, Jeffrey Hunter has little to do but growl on the sidelines while Hope Lange is hardly even a pretty presence as Jesse's wife. Ray also misses the opportunity to use the widescreen for dramatic effect so the movie is handsome without engaging us in any way. No one's finest hour.