Pursued (1947)

A boy haunted by nightmares about the night his entire family was murdered is brought up by a neighboring family in the 1880s. He falls for his lovely adoptive sister but his nasty adoptive brother and mysterious uncle want him dead.

Director:

Raoul Walsh

Writer:

Niven Busch (screenplay)

Stars:

Teresa Wright, Robert Mitchum, Judith Anderson

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Teresa Wright	...	Thor Callum
Robert Mitchum	...	Jeb Rand
Judith Anderson	...	Mrs. Callum
Dean Jagger	...	Grant Callum
Alan Hale	...	Jake Dingle
John Rodney	...	Adam Callum
Harry Carey Jr.	...	Prentice
Clifton Young	...	The Sergeant
Ernest Severn	...	Jeb, age 11
Charles Bates	...	Adam, age 11
Peggy Miller	...	Thor, age 10
Norman Jolley	...	A Callum
Lane Chandler	...	A Callum
Elmer Ellingwood	...	A Callum
Jack Montgomery	...	A Callum

Storyline

After his family is murdered in the 1880s, orphan Jeb Rand (Robert Mitchum) is raised by the Callum family on their nearby horse ranch. He remains haunted by this childhood trauma in a recurring nightmare of flashing spurs and confinement inside a trap door as his family is slaughtered. Widow Callum (Dame Judith Anderson) does her best to make Jeb feel loved as he is growing up, but the young man stubbornly maintains a sense of his own identity. While he has great affection for his foster-sister Thor (Teresa Wright), his relationship with her brother Adam (John Rodney) is tenuous at best, especially when Jeb blames him for shooting a colt that he was riding. Although Mrs. Callum blames the incident on deer hunters, she is aware that the it was actually the attempted murder of the youngster by her brother-in-law Grant (Dean Jagger), a shadowy figure who, for vague reasons, is determined to harm Jeb. Jeb loses a coin flip with Adam, and becomes the designated family volunteer to fight ...

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Plot Keywords:

pretty woman | step brother step sister relationship | vengeance | kiss | wound | 

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Taglines:

PREY OF GUNMEN! VICTIM OF A WOMAN'S FALSE LOVE! (print ad - Lubbock Morning Avalanche - State Theatre - Lubbock, Texas - July 18, 1947 - all caps)

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Romance | Thriller | War | Western

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

This movie was screened on May 31, 2013 at the Rubin Museum of Art in Manhattan, especially to showcase the acting of Robert Mitchum and the way Director Raoul Walsh displayed the influence of Orson Welles with the movie's "crushing angles and looming close-ups." Made after World War II, this movie dramatizes a veteran's return home - after the Spanish-American War - almost fifty years earlier.

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Goofs

When Jeb escapes from his homestead in the dead of night, and is pursued by the Callums in a horse race, the scene suddenly shifts from night to day as Jeb attempts to shake off those chasing him.

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Quotes

Mrs. Callum: [to Jeb] A person's gotta find his own answers. We're alone... each of us. Each in a different way.

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Connections

Referenced in 'El Chicko' - der Verdacht (1996)

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Soundtracks

Streets of Laredo
(uncredited)
Traditional ballad
Sung by Robert Mitchum

User Reviews

Haunted by the Past

In the turn of the Nineteenth century, the orphan Jeb Rand is raised by Mrs. Callum (Judith Anderson) with her daughter Thorley and her son Adam. Jeb has a trauma with recollections of boots and flashes of light and Adam envies him. When Jeb is shot by the one-armed Grant Callum (Dean Jagger), Ms. Callum goes to the hotel and tells his relative to stop the family feud and forget Jeb. Years later, Grant is a prosecutor and presses Jeb (Robert Mitchum) to fight in the war against the Spanish. When Jeb returns a decorated hero, he courts Thor (Teresa Wright) and proposes her. But Jeb has an argument with Adam that was poisoned by Grant and Adam snipes his step-brother while he is riding trying to kill him. However, Jeb shots him in self-defense and is declared non-guilty by the court. But Grant has not given-up to kill the last Rand.

"Pursued" is a great western by Raoul Walsh that blends western and film-noir creating an unforgettable film about a family feud with a revengeful man. The locations and the camera work are astonishing and top-notch. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Sua Única Saída" ("His Only Exit")

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1947 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Forfulgt

Filming Locations:

Red Rock State Park, Church Rock, New Mexico, USA

Box Office

Budget:

GBP610,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

United States Pictures, Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1