Ann McCrea Movies

Long before he scored with the epic Ragtime, novelist E.L. Doctorow wrote a minor novel upon which this stark 1967 film is based. It was adapted for the screen by veteran western director Burt Kennedy. In a forlorn town called Hard Times in the Old West, a cowardly mayor, Will Blue (Henry Fonda), does little to protect the citizens from the rampages of a ruthless criminal known as The Man from Bodie (Aldo Ray). The cold-blooded killer gets away with murder -- and then he burns down the town as he leaves. The citizens rebuild, and a newcomer named Zar (Keenan Wynn) injects some life into the desolate place by opening a saloon that attracts a bevy of interesting women, including Molly Riordan (Janice Rule) and Adah (Janice Paige). However, things again look bleak when The Man from Bodie returns to town. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide

John Wayne and Kirk Douglas spend half of The War Wagon trying to knock one another off and the other half working shoulder to shoulder. Settling an old score with avaricious mine owner Bruce Cabot, Wayne plans to steal a $500,000 gold shipment from his enemy. Douglas, at first hired by Cabot to kill Wayne, goes along with the robbery scheme. Also in on the plan is Howard Keel, superbly cast as a world-weary, wisecracking Native American (it's the sort of part that nowadays would go to Graham Greene). The titular war wagon is the armor-plated, Gatling-gun fortified stagecoach wherein Cabot's gold is transported. Thus the stage is set for a slam-bang finale, and director Burt Kennedy isn't about to disappoint the viewers. Best bit: after Kirk and The Duke gun down Cabot's henchmen Bruce Dern and Chuck Roberson, Douglas quips "Mine hit the ground first"--whereupon Wayne replies "Mine was taller." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Comedian Jerry Lewis began directing movies in 1960, and this often unkind satire on the nature of American womanhood is one of his early efforts in that regard. The rubber-legged, rubber-faced Lewis plays Herbert, a man who is despondent over the break-up of his romance. While looking for a job, he comes across an impressive mansion (built as a set at the cost of $350,000) filled with women of all types -- and lo and behold -- they need a handyman. So Herbert gets to reside with a bevy of women of various types, all under the supervision of Mrs. Wellenmelon (Helen Traubel). In the end, the set itself outtrumps them all. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Cliff Brandon (Victor Mature) is a US pilot serving in China in 1943, flying supplies to Allied soldiers in Burma. He's the best at what he does in the air, but he's also emotionally cut off from everyone around him, disillusioned by the loss of men in his command during nearly two years of war. When he's not in the air on a mission, or riding his new men (including Stuart Whitman, Tige Andrews and Johnny Desmond) to learn their jobs as fast as they can so they can survive, he's usually either passed out drunk or getting there on the ground. One night, while staggering out of his usual watering hole, he chances to meet an elderly Chinese man and, after a barely understood conversation, hands him a pile of money. When Cliff awakens the next day, he discovers that he's bought three months of housekeeping service from the man's daughter, Shu-Jen (Li Li Hua). At first he's at a loss over what to do about her -- he would gladly send her back to her father, until he learns from local missionary Father Cairns (Ward Bond) that Shu-Jen (whose name means "precious jewel") is the sole supporter of her family; and that if he sends her back, they'll return his money as a matter of honor, and have to sell her services as a housekeeper again; and that the next time that may be to someone who is a lot less honorable than Cliff, and could destroy the rest of the girl's life. So they're stuck with each other, and in the course of three months together Cliff discovers through Shu-Jen a joyous side to life that he'd forgotten -- his men even notice that he smiles occasionally, and he actually seems like a human being, enough so that Cliff soon wants more out of life than just day-to-day survival; he wants a life with Shu-Jen. And despite her initial misgivings, they decide to marry. But duty constantly beckons to Cliff, especially when he's moved to a forward base to support a new Allied offensive -- he isn't there for the birth of their child, but he is able to bring them both to him, only to find that the war is now on both their doorsteps. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide

Luther Davis' racy wartime comedy Kiss Them for Me was expurgated a bit for the 1957 film version. Cary Grant, Ray Walston and Larry Blyden portray three navy war heroes who've been booked on a morale-building "vacation" in San Francisco. Eluding their ulcerated public relations officer (Werner Klemperer), the trio arranges a wild party with plenty of pretty girls. Cary Grant is paired with knockout Suzy Parker, an icy socialite who eventually thaws under his charms. Also on hand is Jayne Mansfield, playing a "good time girl" whose profession was a bit more explicit in the original play; the role was originated by Judy Holliday, who brought a wistfulness to the character that Ms. Mansfield couldn't quite manage. TV sitcom fans will get a kick out of the supporting cast of Kiss Them For Me: Ray Walston, later star of My Favorite Martian plays a libertine navy officer; Werner Klemperer, shorn of the accent he'd use as Colonel Klink in Hogan's Heroes, is hilarious as the flustered p.r. man; and Richard Deacon (Leave It to Beaver, The Dick Van Dyke Show) pops up unbilled as a dour businessman who can't understand the war-hero mystique. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This Dean Martin-Jerry Lewis romp is liberally based on the 1936 Bing Crosby film Rhythm on the Range. Set around 1910, the film stars Lewis as the pampered son of female tycoon Agnes Moorehead. Yearning to return to the Wild West where his father was a famed peacekeeper, Lewis purchases a prize bull, destined for the ranch inherited by rodeo star Dean Martin. It so happens that Martin and Lewis' late fathers were "pardners", so Martin takes it upon himself to protect Lewis from the various and sundry tough hombres in the region. Through a series of bizarre plot convolutions, Lewis gains a reputation as a rootin' tootin' gunslinger, and in his hubris he decides to round up a gang of outlaws headed by Jeff Morrow. As a result, he nearly gets himself blown to smitherines, but Martin shows up in the nick of time to rescue Lewis and help him capture the bad guys. Lori Nelson and Jackie Loughery supply the film's peripheral romantic angle. Pardners ends with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis turning to the camera and promising that they'll keep on making pictures for their faithful fans; ironically, the team was breaking up even while the cameras were turning. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Director Otto Preminger's only western, River of No Return is set in Canada during the 19th century Gold Rush. Farmer Matt Calder (Robert Mitchum) is released from prison after serving a sentence for shooting a man in the back to protect a friend. He arrives in a small town to retrieve his young son, Mark (Tommy Rettig), who has befriended a sultry saloon singer, Kay (Marilyn Monroe). Matt is also friendly with Kay, and thanks her profusely for looking after Mark, but distrusts her paramour, Harry Weston (Rory Calhoun)- a gambler with the morals of an alley cat. Matt and Mark return to their rural homestead, but soon glimpse Kay and Harry on a sinking raft, apparently en route to make good on a gold claim; Matt rescues the two of them, but doesn't count on Harry doing an about face, beating him up, and stealing his horse and gun; Kay stays behind to look after Matt. Meanwhile, the Indians go on the warpath, and the defenseless trio decides to seek refuge by fleeing the farm and sailing down the river on a raft. En route, the son - thanks to Kay's doing - is unexpectedly disillusioned about the father's original crime. Moreover, as Matt approaches town, he begins to plot a decisive revenge against Harry. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An abundance of subplots are expertly woven together by screenwriter/director Richard Brooks in Deadline - USA. Humphrey Bogart stars as crusading editor Ed Hutcheson, whose newspaper is on the verge of closing thanks to the machinations of the mercenary daughter (Audrey Christie) of Mrs. Garrison (Ethel Barrymore), the paper's owner. Though he and his staff will all be out of work within a few days, Hutcheson intends to go out with a bang, exposing the criminal activities of "untouchable" gang boss Rienzi (Martin Gabel). Despite numerous disappointments and setbacks, Hutcheson achieves a pyrrhic victory as the film draws to a close. Throughout the story, the many pressures brought to bear upon a big-city newspaper--political, commercial, etc.--are realistically detailed, as is the relationship between Hutcheson and his ex-wife Nora (Kim Hunter). The cast of Deadline USA is uniformly excellent, from featured players Warren Stevens, Jim Backus, Paul Stewart Fay Baker and Ed Begley to such unbilled performers as Tom Browne Henry, Raymond Greenleaf, Tom Powers, and Kasia Orzazewski (essentially reprising her unforgettable characterization in Call Northside 777). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide