Raetsonwe Redundant and unnecessary.

Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

Deanna There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

Bob This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

mainerose I was unfortunate enough to see this last week. The book has long been a favorite of mine; the movie is a disaster.Garnet, Florinda, and Oliver were completely miscast---poor Gwen Bristow must still be whirling in her grave after seeing what Hollywood had done to her wonderful saga. Some of the minor roles (John Ives, the Handsome Brute) were adequate as were the sets and costumes. However,the main characters completely failed to resemble their literary counterparts, and their acting was wooden and totally unconvincing. The book is a wonderful story brimming with action and should have made an exciting and colorful movie. Instead, it is incredibly boring and tedious. What a shame!

kaaih7 Vera Ralston is wonderful in all her films. She adds character and a radiance to all her parts. Her accent is delightful. Charles Reichenthal, who left a previous comment criticizing Vera Ralston should be ashamed of himself. I was always taught that, "if you have nothing good to say about a person, don't say anything at all." There is nothing better than the old movies. Today's actors don't know the meaning of the word. Vera Ralston and all the others were wonderful in the movie and it's a movie well worth your time. I suppose "Charles" would say the same about Oscar winner Norma Shearer since she had Irving Thalberg.

talitha99-1 This is a wonderful story which was the most poorly cast movie I've ever seen. I've read the book 20+ times in my life (obviously a favorite!) but the casting person obviously didn't waste their time doing the same even once. The book has rich characters which the movie didn't bring out. Overall, terribly disappointing. Florinda was the blonde, not Hispanic. Garnet had the black hair (I guess in the movies in those days, blondes were the good girls and dark hair was the bad...kind of like the white hat/black hat cowboys!A perfect cast (impossible because of age differences) would have Gary Cooper as John, William Shatner as Oliver, Kirk Douglas as Texas and James Cagney as Oliver's brother, to name a few! That's just part of my dream cast.My advice is to go get the book from the library!

Slim-4 I like this movie. The slow pace is an asset rather than a liability. Although the cast is not particularly well-known, there is a delightful mix of characters in this better-than-usual Western. The movie is rather faithfully based on Gwen Bristow's romantic novel about early California.The interior sets are the real stars of this film. From 1845 New Orleans to pre-Mexican War Santa Fe and Los Angeles the sets are very colorful and lavish. Joan Leslie, Vera Ralston and the rest of the cast work hard to brighten up the sets.There is an aura of pleasant reality about this film. The characters generally are dressed in period clothing and carry vintage weapons. There is a refreshing variety in the clothing worn by the male characters, particularly in the hats. The wardrobes of Leslie and Ralston are as lavish as the sets. The only disappointment is the standard backlot Western town set which pretends to be Los Angeles. This set has appeared in countless Westerns and it looks oddly inappropriate here.Much of this film occurs indoors. There is also little action. However, the great sets and script more than compensate. The acting is generally very good and the cast does a wonderful job with the characterizations. Vera Ralston does justice to her role as Florinda, a woman with an awful memory in her past. Joan Leslie's performance as a woman stranded in California by the untimely death of her husband is also far above standard. Forrest Tucker's role as John Ives is uneven. In some scenes he speaks his lines with a whisper. However, he more than compensates by handling himself well in the film's action scenes. Jack Elam has a bit part as a bad guy. Although he says only three words, he exudes evil in his brief appearance.Normally, a slow pace is the kiss of death for a Western, but in this case the glacial pace works in its favor. Rather than hoping that something will happen, the viewer may find himself or herself wishing it won't end. This is a film that seems longer than it really is, and I wish it had been a little longer. I'm always sorry to see the end credits.Victor Young's score is rich and vibrant. Although far from his best work, songs like "Jubilee Trail" are very enjoyable. The music for this film is not as overpowering as the music in Westerns like "The Big Country" and "The Magnificent Seven". In one scene the haunting melody of "Jubilee Trail" is played with strings and is almost inaudible as the mule train crosses the desert toward California. The brief cue which heralds the arrival of the pack train from California in Santa Fe effectively communicates the excitement of the moment. The only really loud song is Vera Ralston's song in the Los Angeles saloon. In this case the loud song is appropriate, because they are celebrating the expected birth of Garnet's (Joan Leslie) baby. As Western scores go this one stands out because it is different.This film is now available on video and is well worth watching. You might find yourself watching it over and over again as I do.