GManfred Clark Gable's career was not the same after WWII, and he was not really "The King" any longer. But in "Across The Wide Missouri", Gable still shows some of the old magic. Although approaching 50, he still appears trim and athletic and flashes the toothy grin which was so appealing to his female fans. Here he is a fur trapper in a glossy Technicolor MGM western directed by Veteran William Wellman, who here seemed to copy John Ford's style of adding a third dimension by adding depth to the characters. Several reviewers have noted that the film was hacked up by studio heads and several action scenes were cut, to the detriment of the final product.I guess nowadays a western has to have a gritty, realistic look but this one is old-fashioned in that respect and has a clean and fresh aspect in the appearance of the characters and sets. I also thought the film was unevenly paced and with protracted stretches of inaction (perhaps due to the aforementioned editing). I'm not a film critic of a historian, just a moviegoer, but I can rate the overall entertainment value. I would recommend it on that basis, but I can't help thinking it could have been so much better.

mark.waltz With one rugged MGM newcomer (Howard Keel) narrating the story of how his father, rugged MGM veteran Clark Gable, ventured to Missouri to hunt beaver and ended up married to an Indian maiden (María Elena Marqués) who proved to be as brave (possibly even braver) than any of the white men who accompanied him. In the process, Gable makes enemies of a native American tribe (lead by Ricardo Montalban in a virtual wordless part) out to kill the white man "invading" their territory. The MGM mountains are obvious, even with gorgeous Technicolor and a snow sequence where Marqués is the most daring of all, willing to ride her horse through it just so the others can see how deep it is. Dressed in cowboy duds and speaking with a French/Canadian accent, veteran "Dapper Dan" Adolph Menjou takes on a Walter Brennan role, but his elegance shines through.Films like this have to be taken with a grain of salt because as movie history has shown, the relationship between the settlers and the natives has been told through the settler's (white man's) point of view. Even though through his narration, half white/half Indian Keel reveals that his father began to see the native Americans as human beings with emotions, ambitions, humor and passions, it is obvious that because they appeared to look like savages, that's how the movies were still going to portray them, no matter what was indicated in the screenplay. Yes, one of the tribes Gable encounters (the one Marqués belongs to) is very welcoming to him (even though he makes a definite rival in the very white looking Indian played by John Hodiak), but the other (lead by Montalban) is portrayed as total savage and nothing flattering is revealed about them.A final battle sequence leads to a riveting chase where the baby (who grows up to become the unseen Keel) is carried away by a running horse while Gable chases Montalban who is on chase after the horse carrying his baby. Realistically, there is the definite feeling that in this wilderness, anything can happen at any time, and it does, often with tragic results. So while the premise of good white people vs. savage Indians (although one vengeful white man does make a stupid move against the good Indians in a key sequence) is a bit jarring, the way MGM put this together with colorful style and its usual class makes this stand above the usual westerns that lacked in quality and in understanding. The inclusion of the French standard "Alouette" and the children's standard "Skip to My Lou" add some light-heartedness to the darker themes, which really don't take over until the second half of the film.

bkoganbing When one watches western films of the latter half of the 19th century, the settlement of the west was on a course that was nothing but bad for the American Indian. As good as some westerns are, always lingering in the back of any viewer's mind is the thought that no matter what the predicament of a given hero/heroine in any film is the fact that the might and power of the United States Cavalry will ultimately tip the balance towards the white man.But the fur trappers of the early half of that century faced a far different situation. They were few and the Indians at that point outnumbered them. These people as typified by Clark Gable and the rest of the cast in Across the Wide Missouri were the really brave ones in our history. They wanted to trap their beaver and sell their pelts and the last thing they wanted was wholesale immigration of settlers. It took a lot of nerve to live in that lonely existence, days and weeks at a time where you couldn't count on a troop of soldiers to bail you out of trouble.I'm a big old sucker for films about the earlier west and two good ones came out at this time, this one and the following year from RKO, The Big Sky. I give the nod to this one thought because it was done in color and on location.Gable gets one of his best post World War II parts as the sturdy Flint Mitchell, mountain man who falls big time for Indian princess Maris Elena Marques. While grandfather Jack Holt approves of a white husband for his granddaughter, the match don't sit well at all with Ricardo Montalban his successor. The climatic duel between Gable and Montalban is staged very well indeed and quite thrilling.Playing various fur trapper roles are Alan Napier, James Whitmore, John Hodiak and most of all Adolphe Menjou. Though one normally expects the debonair Mr. Menjou in tuxedo, he's really quite good as the French Canadian trapper and sidekick to Gable.Maria Elena Marquess got her first of two chances in Hollywood and did well as the Indian princess. She was already a name in Mexican cinema and became an even bigger star down there due to this film with Clark Gable.This film marked the farewell performance of Jack Holt who died soon after it was completed. His career spanned all the way back to the earliest years of Hollywood. He makes a very impressive chief of the Blackfeet.Gable was a rugged outdoors-man in real life, he liked to fish and hunt and brought his fourth wife, Lady Sylvia Ashley on location. Unfortunately Lady Sylvia was not a big fan of the great outdoors and her experiences roughing it contributed to the Gables getting unhitched.Director William Wellman kept things going at a good clip and though Across the Wide Missouri is slightly over 75 minutes for an A film, it's still a great item and rates being an A film for its cast and its production values.

westerner357 At 79 minutes, this one had a short playing time, even by 1951 standards. Which works to it's advantage since it keeps the story moving along at a fast clip, but has production values that keep it from descending into a B western. It could also have something to do with the cuts MGM made before the film's release, but what you see today is what audiences saw when the movie premiered over 50 years ago.Clark Gable plays a 1830s trapper who 'buys' a Blackfoot maiden named Kamiah (Mexican actress, Maria Elena Marques), who was earlier captured by the Nez Perces indians, and uses her to gain entrance into Blackfoot territory in order to hunt beaver. Only problem is, he starts to fall in love with her and they eventually have a child.There's also the complication of Chief Ironshirt (Ricardo Montalban) who despises the white man and kills any of them who set foot on Blackfeet land. He makes for a pretty muscular, ruthless chief. It's pretty much a non-speaking part for Montalban except for a couple of lines spoken in Native Indian.There's little gunplay except at the end when Ironshirt's men ambush Gable and his trappers near the river, and Kamiah takes an arrow into her chest, killing her instantly. The horse carrying Gable's son races off into the woods with Ironshirt and Gable right behind and there is an excellent gunbattle in the woods as Gable is forced to shoot Ironshirt with his powder rod still stuck in his rifle barrel. It goes through Ironshirt like an arrow. Great scene.Howard Keel narrates as Gable's (now) grown up son. With excellent on location scenery somewhere in the Northwest ( I wish I knew where, I'd like to go up there) captured first-rate by cinematographer William Mellor and fast direction by William Wellman, I liked it. Wouldn't mind owning it on DVD, either.One of the best westerns Gable appeared in, even though he didn't make too many of 'em.7 out of 10