Drums in the Deep South (1951)

Two old friends find themselves on opposite sides during the Civil War in a desperate battle atop an impregnable mountain.

Director:

William Cameron Menzies

Writers:

Philip Yordan (screenplay), Sidney Harmon (screenplay)

Stars:

James Craig, Barbara Payton, Guy Madison

Cast

Complete credited cast:
James Craig	...	Maj. Clay Clayburn
Barbara Payton	...	Kathy Summers
Guy Madison	...	Maj. Will Denning
Barton MacLane	...	Sgt. Mac McCardle
Robert Osterloh	...	Sgt. Harper
Tom Fadden	...	Purdy
Robert Easton	...	Jerry
Louis Jean Heydt	...	Col. House
Craig Stevens	...	Col. Braxton Summers
Taylor Holmes	...	Albert Monroe
Lewis Martin	...	Gen. Johnston
Peter Brocco	...	Union Corporal
Dan White	...	Cpl. Jennings

Storyline

Best friends Clay Clayburn and Will Denning graduate from West Point only to soon find themselves fighting on opposite sides of the Civil War. When the two men meet each other in combat, neither knows it as each is in an artillery position hundreds of yards from the other. However, the love of Clay's life, Kathy Summers, does know and tries desperately to save her two good friends from killing each other.

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Plot Keywords:

1860s | damsel in distress | deception | infidelity | song | 

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Taglines:

A handful of heroes on a powder-keg mountain !

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Genres:

Drama | History | Romance | War | Western

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

The failure of the original copyright holder to renew the film's copyright resulted in it falling into public domain, meaning that virtually anyone could duplicate and sell a VHS/DVD copy of the film. Therefore, many of the versions of this film available on the market are either severely (and usually badly) edited and/or of extremely poor quality, having been duped from second- or third-generation (or more) copies of the film.

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Goofs

When the Union artillery begins firing on the mountain the officer orders the guns double shotted to increase the range. Double shotting (putting in two cannonballs) would notably decrease the range. Actually, the order the officer gives is for the cannon to be double-charged -- i.e., using twice the usual amount of gunpowder to propel a single ball or shell -- which would increase the range but would also increase the stress on the barrel, which is why they have to reinforce it by wrapping it with piano wire.

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Quotes

Gen. Johnston: A good soldier dies only once, and death is someone he knows.

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Soundtracks

Dixie
(uncredited)
Music by Daniel Decatur Emmett
Quoted often in the score

User Reviews

Spectacular drama with intrigue during American Civil War

The film deals with an old rivalry between two former West Point Academy roommates , under the present circumstances are on opposite sides in Georgia 1861 during the American Civil War (1861-1865) . War breaks outs , both of whom are Officers from Union (Guy Madison) and Confederation (James Craig) , besides they compete for the same woman (a gorgeous and blue-eyes Barbara Payton) and wind up in a military showdown . The film is a historical drama based on true facts which narrate the Sherman campaign over Georgia . The general established his reputation as a successful and relentless ruler , an advocate of total war he believed in bringing hostilities to a quick end inflicting the hell of war on the civil population , destroying goods , crops , public buildings and factories . On his 'March to the Sea' through Georgia , Sherman burned and destroyed on a sixty-mile-wide front . In the movie , Confederates put cannons in the Mountain of the Devil for attack supplies trains lead towards Atlanta and the Union soldiers use a big naval cannon .

This historic drama takes parts from ¨Gone with the wind¨ , it packs a loving triangle with action , shootouts and suspense . The film is starred by Guy Madison , an usual Western actor as American as Spaghetti Western . Principal protagonist is Barbara Payton (she formerly acted in important films as ¨Dallas¨, ¨Only the valiant¨) as one of the saddest stories from dark chronicle Hollywood . Attractive blonde sexpot and her life eventually disintegrated , mostly for her own doings . She was the subject of a spread in Confidential Magazine in the early 1950s when then fiancé Franchot Tone allegedly caught in bed with Guy Madison . Tone later married her , despite of the indiscretion , in addition she had a tempestuous relationship with Tom Neal . But happened the downfall , her once enticing countenance now blotchy and once sensational figure now bloated , Barbara sank deeper into the bottle and had several brushes with law , among them public boozy , bad checks and ultimate prostitution . The 39 years former star was found on the bathroom floor . The picture is rightly directed by William Cameron Menzies , rather known as production designer such as ¨The thief of Bagdad¨ and ¨Gone with the wind¨ , and realized two Sci-fi classics as ¨Invasors of Mars¨ and ¨Things to come¨ .

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 October 1951 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Confederate Story

Filming Locations:

Sonora, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$300,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

King Brothers Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Supercinecolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1