John Miljan Movies

Keith Larsen stars as the Apache Kid, an Indian scout. He is willing to cooperate with the US cavalry until his brother is killed by another Native American. The Apache Kid is permitted to seek revenge under tribal law, but white law does not recognize this ruling; as a result the Kid is branded a renegade. A fellow cavalry scout (Jim Davis) is ordered to stop the Kid, but decides instead to let him go and seek out justice in his own way. Supposedly based on fact, Apache Warrior was directed by Elmo Williams, who in 1952 was film editor for the landmark western High Noon. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Based on the Holy Scriptures, with additional dialogue by several other hands, The Ten Commandments was the last film directed by Cecil B. DeMille. The story relates the life of Moses, from the time he was discovered in the bullrushes as an infant by the pharoah's daughter, to his long, hard struggle to free the Hebrews from their slavery at the hands of the Egyptians. Moses (Charlton Heston) starts out "in solid" as Pharoah's adopted son (and a whiz at designing pyramids, dispensing such construction-site advice as "Blood makes poor mortar"), but when he discovers his true Hebrew heritage, he attempts to make life easier for his people. Banished by his jealous half-brother Rameses (Yul Brynner), Moses returns fully bearded to Pharoah's court, warning that he's had a message from God and that the Egyptians had better free the Hebrews post-haste if they know what's good for them. Only after the Deadly Plagues have decimated Egypt does Rameses give in. As the Hebrews reach the Red Sea, they discover that Rameses has gone back on his word and plans to have them all killed. But Moses rescues his people with a little Divine legerdemain by parting the Seas. Later, Moses is again confronted by God on Mt. Sinai, who delivers unto him the Ten Commandments. Meanwhile, the Hebrews, led by the duplicitous Dathan (Edward G. Robinson), are forgetting their religion and behaving like libertines. "Where's your Moses now?" brays Dathan in the manner of a Lower East Side gangster. He soon finds out. DeMille's The Ten Commandments may not be the most subtle and sophisticated entertainment ever concocted, but it tells its story with a clarity and vitality that few Biblical scholars have ever been able to duplicate. It is very likely the most eventful 219 minutes ever recorded to film--and who's to say that Nefertiri (Anne Baxter) didn't make speeches like, "Oh, Moses, Moses, you splendid, stubborn, adorable fool"? ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In his first western since 1939's The Oklahoma Kid, James Cagney is a pillar of integrity in the Pine-Thomas production Run for Cover. Cagney plays Matt Dow, who at the beginning of the film has been released from prison after serving six years for a crime he didn't commit. Heading westward, Matt befriends young Davey Bishop (John Derek), whom he begins to regard as the son (or brother) he never had. When Davey is injured during a train holdup, Matt brings him to the farm of Mr. Swenson (Jean Hersholt) to convalesce. Here Matt falls in love with Swenson's daughter Helga (Viveca Lindfors). When word of Matt's prowess with a gun reaches the local townsfolk, he is offered the job of sheriff. Matt accepts, but on one condition: that the crippled Davey be appointed deputy. Matt's faith in Davey proves to be misplaced when the embittered boy throws in with the dreaded Gentry gang, but an 11th hour regeneration caps this "psychological western." The curiously Freudian relationship between Matt and Davey was par for the course for Nicholas Ray, who directed Run for Cover betwixt and between his more famous endeavors Johnny Guitar and Rebel without a Cause. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Bonzo Goes to College is the one that Ronald Reagan isn't in. The focus, of course, is on brainy chimpanzee Bonzo, who escapes a seedy sideshow and hides out on a college campus. Here he is adopted by Betsy Drew (Gigi Perreau), the daughter of nonplused professor Malcolm Drew (Charles Drake). Eventually, Bonzo joins the football team, and becomes the star player. A pair of bad guys kidnap Bonzo on the eve of the Big Game, but it isn't difficult to guess how things will turn out. More gimmicky than its predecessor Bedtime for Bonzo, Bonzo Goes to College is constructed more along the lines of Universal's "Francis" pictures (except that Bonzo doesn't talk). Outside of the chimp, there are a few good supporting performances by Maureen O'Sullivan as Drew's wife, Gene Lockhart and Edmund Gwenn as Betsy's feuding grandfathers, and young Jerry Paris as one of the crooks. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Though the hit song "Mule Train" is most closely associated with Frankie Laine, it was Gene Autry who first sang the tune on film, in a picture titled ... what else? .... Mule Train. This time, Autry plays a federal marshal who comes to the aid of a grizzled old prospector who has been framed for murder. The villain, Sam Brady (Robert Livingston), wants to appropriate the prospector's land, and he isn't particular as to how he achieves that goal. Leading lady Sheila Ryan plays a female sheriff who is on Brady's side at first, but who later realigns herself with Autry. Ryan later became the wife of Pat Buttram, who also appears in Mule Train in his usual role as Gene Autry's comical sidekick. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Set in the early 1900s, Adventure in Baltimore is a romantic comedy about the woman's suffrage movement. Shirley Temple plays a student at an exclusive girl's school who "sees the light" and begins campaigning for women's rights. This doesn't sit well with her minister father (Robert Young) nor with Temple's boyfriend (John Agar, then married to Temple). Eventually, Temple's dad is won over to his daughter's point of view, and delivers an impassioned sermon on tolerance and individual rights for the edification of the hidebound townspeople. Like most of Shirley Temple's "grown up" films, Adventure in Baltimore was a disappointment at the box office. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Dick Powell stars as Canadian Mountie Sgt. Mike Flannagan. When Boston-bred Kathy O'Fallon (Evelyn Keyes) marries Mike, she is immediately nicknamed "Mrs. Mike" by her new friends and neighbors. Unprepared for the hardships of life in the Great White North, Mrs. Mike nonetheless perseveres through minor inconveniences and major tragedies, including the death of her child during an epidemic. The film lays on the sentiment rather heavily, but stars Dick Powell and Evelyn Keyes manage to cut through the treacle with their first-rate thesping. Based on a true story, Mrs. Mike was adapted from the best-selling novel by Benedict & Nancy Freedman. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this adventure, a devoted fiancee journeys to the jungle to take on the terrifying Amazon women who have been holding her lover hostage. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Cecil B. DeMille's first postwar production, the $5 million Technicolor historical spectacular Unconquered lacks only the kitchen sink. The story begins in England in the 1760s, as Abigail Martha Hale (Paulette Goddard), unjustly accused of a crime against the Crown, is sentenced by the Lord Chief Justice (C. Aubrey Smith) to 14 years' forced servitude in North America. Carted off to the auction block, Abigail is highly coveted by slavemaster Martin Garth (Howard da Silva), but the highest bidder turns out to be Virginia militiaman Captain Christopher Holden (Gary Cooper). Having been jilted by his aristocratic fiancee Diana (Virginia Grey), Holden harbors no romantic feelings for Abigail, but he's determined not to let her fall into Garth's grimy clutches. The patriotic Holden also knows that Garth, who is married to the daughter (Katherine de Mille) of Indian chief Pontiac (Robert Warwick), has been trading firearms to the Ottawas. The treacherous Garth later participates in the "Pontiac Conspiracy," an allegiance of 18 Indian nations forsworn to wipe out every colonist on the East Coast. To put Holden out of the way, Garth arranges for him to be court-martialed and sentenced to death on a trumped-up desertion charge. But Abigail, partly in repayment for her rescue from Seneca chief Guyasuta (Boris Karloff) and partly because she's fallen in love with Holden, helps him escape, just in time to save a nearby military fort from an Indian massacre -- a feat accomplished by a subterfuge straight out of Beau Geste, which also starred Gary Cooper! As historically suspect as any Cecil B. DeMille epic, Unconquered is still marvelous escapist entertainment, especially during the time-honored bathtub scene involving a bare-shouldered Paulette Goddard (who spends most of the film in either a state of dishabille or bondage, or both!) Once again, however, Mr. "Spare No Expense" DeMille cuts corners by filming most of his major exterior scenes within the artificial confines of the Paramount sound stages. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Future TV writer/producer Don Castle heads the cast of Monogram's Perilous Waters. Most of the action takes place aboard the yacht owned by millionaire newspaper publisher Dana Ferris (Samuel Hinds Jr.) Because of his virulent crusade against gambling, Ferris has been targeted for extermination by the Mob, and Willie Hunter (Don Castle) is the hit man who's been hired to do the job. As it turns out, Hunter has more decency and scruples than Ferris' far-from-loyal wife (Gloria Holden) and chief aide (John Miljan). Taking a liking to Ferris, Hunter vows to protect the old man from the other predators in his midst. Perilous Waters is based on a short story by Leon Ware. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Killers uses Ernest Hemingway's short story as a springboard for a complex film noir. Two mysterious men (William Conrad and Charles McGraw) muscle their way into a small town and kill an aging boxer (Burt Lancaster, making his screen debut), who offers no resistance and seems to be welcoming his death. An insurance investigator (Edmond O'Brien) is hired to locate the beneficiary to Lancaster's policy, and in the course of his investigation reopens a long-dormant robbery case. In a series of flashbacks, O'Brien makes the connection between Lancaster and the robbery and tracks down the "brains" behind the operation. He also comes in contact with Lancaster's former girlfriend (Ava Gardner), whose duplicity played a big part in Lancaster's demise -- and his indifferent reaction to it. Siodmak's hard-edged, moody direction of the Oscar-nominated screenplay by Anthony Veiller, makes The Killers one of the definitive films noirs, including what is considered to be one of the greatest opening sequences in movie history. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

British character actor Lionel Atwill, in his final performance, appeared as a power-mad Englishman attempting to rule the world in this 13 chapter Universal serial. Sir Eric Hazarias (Atwill) is searching the mountains of Himalaya for Metorium 245, the only known antidote to the Bomb. Sir Eric is opposed by United Peace Foundation investigator Rod Stanton (Russell Hayden of Hopalong Cassidy fame); scientist daughter Marjorie Elmore (Jane Adams, who had been so memorable as the hunchbacked nurse in House of Dracula); and a local guide, Tal Shen (Keye Luke, Charlie Chan's number one son). Midway through the serial, the British megalomaniac steps in the background in favor of the even more nefarious Malborn (John Mylong), "the power in back of Sir Eric." The sad reason for this sudden change of direction was the fact that Atwill was dying of bronchial cancer (he died April 22, 1946). Bits of dialogue filmed earlier were inserted, and actor George Sorel doubled Atwill in several scenes, Sir Eric's trademark Panama hat pulled well down over his face. In an economy move, The Lost City of the Jungle used stock footage from Columbia's earlier Lost Horizon, the 1943 Maria Montez vehicle White Savage, and even Leni Riefenstahl's legendary White Hell of Pitz Palu. Leading lady Adams, who later professed to have had a great time filming this serial, was the only Universal contract actor in the cast. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi