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IMDbPro

River of No Return

  • 19541954
  • ApprovedApproved
  • 1h 31m
IMDb RATING
6.6/10
12K
YOUR RATING
Robert Mitchum and Marilyn Monroe in River of No Return (1954)
Trailer for this classic directed by Otto Preminger
Play trailer2:55
1 Video
99+ Photos
ActionAdventureDrama
The titular river unites a farmer recently released from prison, his young son, and an ambitious saloon singer. In order to survive, each must be purged of anger, and each must learn to unde... Read allThe titular river unites a farmer recently released from prison, his young son, and an ambitious saloon singer. In order to survive, each must be purged of anger, and each must learn to understand and care for the others.The titular river unites a farmer recently released from prison, his young son, and an ambitious saloon singer. In order to survive, each must be purged of anger, and each must learn to understand and care for the others.
IMDb RATING
6.6/10
12K
YOUR RATING
    • Otto Preminger
    • Jean Negulesco(uncredited)
    • Frank Fenton(screenplay)
    • Louis Lantz(story)
  • Stars
    • Robert Mitchum
    • Marilyn Monroe
    • Rory Calhoun
    • Otto Preminger
    • Jean Negulesco(uncredited)
    • Frank Fenton(screenplay)
    • Louis Lantz(story)
  • Stars
    • Robert Mitchum
    • Marilyn Monroe
    • Rory Calhoun
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 91User reviews
    • 64Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    River of No Return
    Trailer 2:55
    Watch River of No Return

    Photos126

    Marilyn Monroe and Rory Calhoun in River of No Return (1954)
    Robert Mitchum and Marilyn Monroe in River of No Return (1954)
    Rory Calhoun in River of No Return (1954)
    Marilyn Monroe in River of No Return (1954)
    Marilyn Monroe in River of No Return (1954)
    Marilyn Monroe in River of No Return (1954)
    Robert Mitchum and Marilyn Monroe in River of No Return (1954)
    Marilyn Monroe in River of No Return (1954)
    Marilyn Monroe in River of No Return (1954)
    Robert Mitchum and Marilyn Monroe in River of No Return (1954)
    "River Of No Return" M. Monroe & Robert Mitchum 1954 20th
    "River Of No Return" 1954

    Top cast

    Edit
    Robert Mitchum
    Robert Mitchum
    • Matt Calder
    Marilyn Monroe
    Marilyn Monroe
    • Kay Weston
    Rory Calhoun
    Rory Calhoun
    • Harry Weston
    Tommy Rettig
    Tommy Rettig
    • Mark Calder
    Murvyn Vye
    Murvyn Vye
    • Dave Colby
    Douglas Spencer
    Douglas Spencer
    • Sam Benson
    Fred Aldrich
    Fred Aldrich
    • Prospector
    • (uncredited)
    Claire Andre
    • Surrey Driver
    • (uncredited)
    Hal Baylor
    Hal Baylor
    • Young Punk
    • (uncredited)
    Don Beddoe
    Don Beddoe
    • Ben
    • (uncredited)
    Phil Bloom
    Phil Bloom
    • Prospector
    • (uncredited)
    Buck Bucko
    • Council City Barfly
    • (uncredited)
    Roy Bucko
    Roy Bucko
    • Prospector
    • (uncredited)
    Larry Chance
    Larry Chance
    • Young Punk
    • (uncredited)
    John Cliff
    John Cliff
    • Leering Man
    • (uncredited)
    Edmund Cobb
    Edmund Cobb
    • Barber
    • (uncredited)
    Cecil Combs
    • Prospector
    • (uncredited)
    John Doucette
    John Doucette
    • Man in Saloon
    • (uncredited)
      • Otto Preminger
      • Jean Negulesco(uncredited)
      • Frank Fenton(screenplay)
      • Louis Lantz(story)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Photos

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      While most of the cast and crew went to lunch, Marilyn Monroe preferred to go underneath the set, between all the pillars and dust, to find Bandit the raccoon. She would put him in her lap, pet him, and talk to his owner Ralph Helfer about animals and horses.
    • Goofs
      After making it down the rapids, where previously we have seen Ms Monroe's clothes clinging soaking wet, the very first shot on still water she is all clean and dry and ironed. The same is true for Mitchum.
    • Quotes

      Kay Weston: This country is crawling with Indians, and you're going fishing.

      Matt Calder: There are lots of ways to die. Starving to death isn't my favorite.

    • Alternate versions
      When originally released theatrically in the UK, the BBFC made cuts to secure a 'U' rating. All cuts were waived in 1987 when the film was granted a 'PG' certificate for home video.
    • Connections
      Edited into Catalogue of Ships (2008)
    • Soundtracks
      River of No Return
      (uncredited)

      Performed by Robert Mitchum

      Lyrics by Ken Darby

      Music by Lionel Newman

    User reviews91

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    7/10
    Love is a trav'ler on the river of no return
    "River Of No Return" spotlights one of Marilyn Monroe's best early performances, once more showing the world that she was more than just another sex kitten, that there was real talent behind her beautiful figure. Most contemporary critics failed to recognize Marilyn's extraordinary gifts other than the obvious ones. Too bad she was short changed in the song department. Had Marilyn been allowed to strut her stuff with a composition comparable to Marlene Dietrich's ribald "See What The Boys In The Backroom Will Have" from "Destry Rides Again," she would have brought down the house. Instead Marilyn is stuck with three ditties that don't deserve their big movie status, "I'm Gonna File My Claim," "One Silver Dollar," and "Down In The Meadow." The exception is the bewitching title ballad hauntingly sung by Tennessee Ernie Ford over the opening credits and later with verve and longing by Marilyn.

    Not only does Marilyn exhibit a marvelous acting style, but she is paired with one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood history, Robert Mitchum. Why critics have often failed to notice his abilities as a performer is amazing, with so many inventive portrayals to his credit. Rory Calhoun has his moments as a low-life scoundrel loved by Marilyn. And little Tommy Rettig is ideally cast as Mitchum's abandoned son. His role in "River Of Not Return" is perhaps the reason he was later chosen to play a similar part in TV's "Lassie."

    Joseph LaShelle's cinematography is breathtaking, except for the obvious rear projection used in the treacherous raft scenes depicting Mitchum, Monroe, and Rettig fighting the rapids on the River Of No Return. The beauty of Alberta, Canada's Jasper National Park is spellbinding and definitely an asset. The footage shot along the Toutle river in Washington State supplements the Canadian grandeur.

    A major weakness of the movie is the lackluster script and threadbare story. Since the plot is a simple one, director Otto Preminger must emphasize the interplay of the leading characters with as much analysis as possible. Here the writer Frank Fenton, who based his screenplay on a story by Louis Lantz, is unable to rise to the task. Though many of the lines between Mitchum and Monroe and good ones, there are not enough of them to sustain an entire film.

    Matt Calder (Mitchum) seeks his son entrusted to a friend when Calder went to jail for killing a man (possibly in self-defense). His son, Mark (Mark follows Matthew in the Bible), is left to wonder around a boom town until taken in by the local dance hall queen, Kay Weston (Monroe). Once Matt finds Mark, the two journey to Matt's farm on the banks of the River Of No Return. Floating down the river come Kay and her husband, Harry Weston. Both are in danger of drowning. Matt saves them only to have Harry steal his horse and take off. Kay has a distorted image of Harry in her mind, bent out of shape by the pliers of love. Matt perceives Kay as nothing more than trash, but his son knows a different side of her, a kind and loving woman. The three take off down the River Of No Return: She to get back her man; he to kill her man; and the boy to try to work it all out in a peaceable manner, with an ironic twist to the story at the end.

    The River Of No Return, as the name implies, is symbolic, but of what? The metaphor is not easy to reconcile with the story, except in places. See what you can do with it.
    helpful•14
    1
    • krorie
    • Sep 26, 2006

    Details

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    • Release date
      • August 9, 1954 (Sweden)
      • United States
      • English
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada
    • Production company
      • Twentieth Century Fox
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • 1 hour 31 minutes
      • Color

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