Westward the Women (1951)

Intro.

I've been putting off writing this review for awhile, not because it's difficult or that the film was bad, just that I'm not quite sure what to make of it.  I've written a lot about women in Westerns - both in my college film classes and on this site.  A few years ago I read an article called "Westward the Women: Feminising the Wilderness" by P. Evans.  In it, Evans discussed the role of women in traditional American Westerns: women were the "civilizers and tamers of male wildness and independence." So when I heard that the title film was on television, I decided to catch it.  

Overview

Westward the Women starts with a new settlement in California made up entirely of men.  Anxious to turn their now tamed land into homes, they recruit the settlement's leader, Roy (John McIntire) and a seasoned trail guide, Buck (Robert Taylor) to go to Chicago and recruit women to become their wives.  They sign on 150 women and begin the long, arduous journey back by covered wagon.  There's a wide variety of women too - two French women, an Italian mother and son, I think even a German woman (I swear I heard German somewhere).  The women bicker at times, but really have to pull together to overcome Indian attacks, attacks by the other men leading the group, extreme heat, dangerous roads, some deaths and one miraculous birth.  Once they finally make it to the settlement, the women refuse to go in unless they have some clean clothes, so the only two men who made it through all the way with them go to the town and get what they can.  A short while later, the women ride in, their heads held high.  A dance is held to get everyone acquainted and one by one the couples are married. 

Highlights

There are some unforgettable characters in the film, most notably the oldest of the women, Prudence.  She acts as a mother and caregiver, but not without a lot of sass.  But I have to say, the women as a group really become one entity.  It makes it all that much more chilling after the big attack when they call out all the names of the dead.  It's a chilling reminder that Buck was right - about a third of the women would die on the way. 

One part that I loved was how, before they set out West, the women get to go to a wall of photographs and pick out their future husbands.  It's really interesting because they got to choose!  Much of this movie reminded me a bit of the John Ford film Wagon Master (my favorite Western of all time).  In that film, there is a scene where the Mormon wagon train is invited to join an Apache tribe for an evening, and during that time there is a "squaw dance" - a tradition wherein the women have the right to choose their partners.  But I digress.  The main reason I noted the similarity is because of the outsider feeling - that this band of women are really the outsiders of normal, civilized society.  While the men wanted only "good women" recruited, they did not say "normal" or "well-respected" women.  True, they are virtuous to a fault, but they also want out of the traditions of city life in Chicago and this makes them unusual for women of their society.  There's quite an interesting collection of women just outside the norm on the train - a overly flirtatious French woman, a young woman who has gotten pregnant out of wedlock and is escaping from the shame she's faced, two women who are better shots than Buck, and even Prudence with her bull-headed, domineering presence that will leave any man afraid of her.

The three men left to lead the train after the other male guides take off (there's a rule not to talk to or bother the women, but that rule doesn't last long).  They're left with an old man (Roy), a man in his prime (Buck) with his doubts about the women, and a young boy who joined only because he wanted to go to California (Ito).  It reminds me of many other Westerns, this trio of men who seem inadequate for such a hard task - think Red River or Rio Bravo, for instance.  But what really stands out is how much Buck changes in his attitude during the film.  He comes to realize that not only are these women stronger, but as they are determined to prove themselves and push onward no matter what, they become the best and hardest working train he's ever led - of men or women.  These women have a tremendous sense of purpose and resiliency in the face of heartbreaking loss.  In the end, Rob  too settles into marriage, making Evans' point about women taming men's wildness.  But these women go beyond that - they can tame men, but they can also survive the brutal West without men.

Review and Recommendation
One of the best Westerns I've seen, this film walks a very fine line between very conservative gender types and very feminist types.  I had a friend in college who decided she hated Westerns because women were always portrayed in a horrible, weak manner (she had only seen one Western).  I wish I could tell her now to watch this film.  Even though the ending gives way to the social norms of the 50s, what happens in that cross country journey is amazing.  It would be interesting to see the film made today - I don't think it would have nearly the same impact.  I definitely recommend this film to any Western enthusiast, Western critic or really anyone who wants a good story.  Because when those women take up rifles and stand their ground with such temerity, all you can do is stand up and cheer.

Check out more info and some much better reviews at IMDb.com.