Customer Reviews

Border River

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Universal International Pictures presents "BORDER RIVER" (1954) (80 min/Color) -- Starring Joel McCrea, Yvonne De Carlo, Pedro Armendáriz, Howard Petrie, Ivan Triesault & Erika Nordin

Directed by George Sherman

With the South facing defeat, idealistic Confederate Major Clete Mattson (Joel McCrea) desperately tries to save his army by stealing $2,000,000 in Union gold. He then heads to a raucous border town of Zona Libre, a small enclave on the Rio Grande, hoping to make a munitions deal with Mexican general Calleja (Pedro Armendariz). But first, Mattson must contend with Calleja's double-crossing German military adviser Baron Von Holden (Ivan Triesault), not to mention Calleja's tempestuous sweetheart Carmelita (Yvonne De Carlo), who is also not to be trusted.

Special footnote: -- Another solid performance by Joel McCrea, plus Yvonne De Carlo and Pedro Armendáriz give strength in their performances in this rare film, portraying a turbulent time in our history and just how dedicated some members of the confederacy were in prolonging the war.

BIOS:
1. George Sherman [Director]
Date of Birth: 14 July 1908 - New York
Date of Death: 15 March 1991 - Los Angeles County, California

2. Joel McCrea
Date of Birth: 5 November 1905 - South Pasadena, California
Date of Death: 20 October 1990 - Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California

3. Yvonne De Carlo [aka: Margaret Yvonne Middleton]
Date of Birth: 1 September 1922 - Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Date of Death: 8 January 2007 - Woodland Hills, California

4. Pedro Armendáriz [aka: Pedro Gregorio Armendáriz Hastings]
Date of Birth: 9 May 1912 - Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico
Date of Death: 18 June 1963 - Los Angeles, California

Mr. Jim's Ratings:
Quality of Picture & Sound: 4 Stars
Performance: 5 Stars
Story & Screenplay: 4 Stars
Overall: 4 Stars [Original Music, Cinematography & Film Editing]

Total Time: 80 min on VHS/DVD ~ Universal International Pictures ~ (May 21, 2009)

A VERY GOOD WESTERN WITH FINE ACTING BY BOTH YVONNE DE CARLO AND JOEL MCCREA.

Joel McCrea still doesn't receive the credit he is due as an actor. BORDER RIVER is one of his better Westerns, with solid direction, good acting, and a good plot. The VHS copy is fine, and let's hope it will find its way onto DVD.