43 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Family Western, August 5, 2001
This is the story of a Southern father, played by Alan Ladd, who is heading North (just after the Civil War) to find medical treatment for his mute son, played by David Ladd. The boy underwent some trauma during the war that has left him unable to speak. When the elder Ladd gets into trouble, farmwoman Olivia de Havilland bails him out with the judge, leading to his working on her farm to pay off the debt. She's having trouble with her neighbour Dean Jagger, so she needs all the help she can get. The Proud Rebel is a well made family western, with a little more emphasis on the family than on the western. Since they were, of course, a real life father and son, the Ladds have an excellent, real chemistry together on screen as well, with much quiet emotion. The younger Ladd is especially good in his role, delivering a very natural, believable performance. As the independent farmwoman, Olivia de Havilland may not seem to be the likely choice, but she is terrific in her characterization, bringing a mixture of warmth and toughness to her, as well as some good chemistry with both the Ladds. Director Michael Curtiz balances the action with the family relationships and sentiment, and the result is a film well worth viewing.
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18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A fine, sensitive movie, February 12, 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: Proud Rebel (DVD)
Proud Rebel is a fine story. Alan Ladd and his son are perfect in their roles; the senior Ladd bringing to Rebel much of the same characterization he brought to "Shane." A good watch, and worth having in a home library.
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
a family drama, July 23, 2007
Alan Ladd is a veteran who has returned from the war to find his house destroyed, his wife dead and his son missing. He finally locates his son in an orphanage, but his son is so traumatized from watching his mother killed and his home destroyed that he cannot utter a single word.
Ladd packs up what is left of the family treasures (he was, before the war, a well-to-do man) and sets out, consulting one doctor after another, trying to find one who can cure his son.
His search leads him to a small town where a lone woman owns a farm. This strong-willed woman is played, oddly enough, by Olivia de Havilland, and she plays the part as convincingly as all the sweet-woman roles she has played. When he hears of a doctor in Rochester, Minnesota who might be able to cure his son, Olivia volunteers to take the boy there, while Ladd guards the farm from a neighbor who has been trying to force the woman out and grab her land.
There are surprises and a tense action sequence at the end. Unlike the Amazon spoiler, I won't tell you how it comes out. But it's a satisfying and convincing ending.
The son, by the way, is played by David Ladd, Alan's real-life son. David said in a documentary on Alan Ladd that playing that movie with his father was one of the high points of his life. See
Alan Ladd: True Quiet Man. It's a must for all fans of Alan Ladd and for those who wonder why this magnetic actor was so under-used and wasted by the studio system.
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