Station West (1948)

When two US cavalrymen transporting a gold shipment get killed, US Army Intelligence investigator John Haven goes undercover to a mining and logging town to find the killers.

Director:

Sidney Lanfield

Writers:

Frank Fenton (screenplay), Winston Miller (screenplay)

Stars:

Dick Powell, Jane Greer, Agnes Moorehead

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dick Powell	...	Haven
Jane Greer	...	Charlie
Agnes Moorehead	...	Mrs. Caslon
Burl Ives	...	Hotel Clerk
Tom Powers	...	Captain Iles
Gordon Oliver	...	Prince
Steve Brodie	...	Stellman
Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams	...	Mick
Raymond Burr	...	Mark Bristow
Regis Toomey	...	James Goddard
Michael Steele	...	Jerry
Olin Howland	...	Cook (as Olin Howlin)
John Berkes	...	Pianist
Dan White	...	Pete
John Kellogg	...	Ben

Storyline

Dick Powell stars as Haven, an army undercover investigator assigned to investigate the murders of two cavalrymen. Travelling incognito, Haven arrives in a small frontier outpost, where saloon singer Charlie controls all illegal activities. After making short work of Charlie's burly henchman, Haven gets a job in her organization biding his time and gathering evidence against the gorgeous crime boss. Cast as a philosophical hotel keeper, Burl Ives is afforded the opportunity to sing a a ballad.

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Plot Keywords:

arizona | woman with a gun | arizona territory | man with no name | station | 

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Taglines:

DICK POWELL,SECRET AGENT; JANE GREER, MENACE;THEIR HOSTILE URGES MAKE FOR DYNAMIC DRAMA! (original print ad-all caps)

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Genres:

Action | Mystery | Romance | Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

The novel by Luke Short, upon which this film is based, was serialized in the Saturday Evening Post from October 19 to November 30, 1946. RKO purchased the film rights for $20,000.

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Goofs

When the lawyer Mark Bristow is attacked by gunmen outside his office (1 hr, 8 min mark) , bullets shatter the upper window on the office door and the glass shatters and falls, destroying most of the "Mark Bristow" decal on the glass. A minute later when the sheriff arrives, the door's window is intact.

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Quotes

Bartender: You couldn't be looking for trouble, could you?
John Haven: I could, but I'm not.
Bartender: Well that's fine. Because this is one of the best places west of the Atlantic Ocean to find it.
John Haven: That was my first impression.
Bartender: That lieutenant's a nice young boy.
John Haven: I don't doubt it. But his mouth is too big... like your ears.

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Alternate Versions

Exists in a computer-colorized version.

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Soundtracks

The Sun Shining Warm
Lyrics by Mort Greene
Music by Leigh Harline
Sung by Burl Ives (uncredited)

User Reviews

A man can't grow old, where there's women and gold

Station West (1948) directed by Sidney Lanfield, is definitely a cut above your standard Grade-B western. The plot is complex, the camera angles are skillful, and the acting is outstanding.

However, this is not a film you see because you like guns, fists, and horses. It's the acting that makes this movie so interesting. RKO put real effort into casting the film. Besides Dick Powell and Jane Greer, the cast includes Agnes Moorehead and Raymond Burr.

Powell is typecast as the tough-as-nails stranger in a very tough town. Jane Greer is "Charlie," who owns the gambling saloon, the gold mine, and the sheriff. She wears gowns that no 19th-Century saloon owner ever wore, and, being Jane Greer, she looks great in them. (Greer was, of course, very beautiful, but her beauty came from her intelligence as well as from her features. She was known as "The Woman with the Mona Lisa smile.")

Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams plays the bouncer Mick Marion. About Marion the hotel clerk says, "Me, I'd rather fight a forest fire." Powell answers, "So would I."

Burl Ives is perfect as the hotel clerk who acts like a Greek chorus as he composes and sings a ballad about the plot as it unfolds. (The chorus ends, "And a man can't grow old, where there's women and gold.")

I was able to find a used VCR copy of this film. I don't think it's available in DVD, and you'd be lucky to find it being screened in a theater. It would probably work better on a large screen, but the chemistry between Greer and Powell will work in any format. It's a movie that's definitely worth finding and seeing.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 September 1948 (USA)

Also Known As:

Station West

Filming Locations:

Red Rock Crossing, Sedona, Arizona, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

RKO Radio Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1