TWO FLAGS WEST: Blu-ray (2oth Century-Fox 1950) Koch Media
The
eclecticism of director, Robert Wise never fails to impress. Nor does it seem
to know any boundaries. Lest we forget, Wise comes from a rarified ilk of
Hollywood artisans – supreme craftsman in more than one field of hands-on
study; also from a gentlemanly ‘old
school’ philosophy where movies are meant to entertain - first and
foremost. In the years that followed his accomplishments, Wise’s critics were
often too quick – and frankly, much too unkind – to point to his workaday ethic
as kowtowing to external forces – namely, the edicts imposed upon him by the
studio system and the old-time mogul. They might have first reconsidered the
obvious: that during Hollywood’s golden era, directors – like all other
creative personnel – were subservient to the system; mere fodder for the
gristmill of churning out 52 pictures a year.
And yet Wise,
despite this system of rules and regulations, seemingly conspiring to rob him
of his own creative initiatives, managed a telescopic concentration and
meticulous attention to every last detail; also, to effortlessly migrate from
one genre to the next within a pantheon of huge financial hits. Conversely and
in retrospect, these movies became lasting works of cinema art. It is
nevertheless true Robert Wise is not a director whose personal imprint is
immediately identifiable on the movie screen. There is pliability to his style.
But it is still his style!
Wise worked
his way up from the lowly ranks as a film editor at RKO, cutting together Orson
Welles’ masterpiece, Citizen Kane
(1941) – an effort earning him an Academy Award nomination. Some have
criticized that he also helped to bastardize what ought to have been Welles’
other plat du jour; The Magnificent
Ambersons (1942); Wise, called upon not only to edit, but also reshoot some
scenes and shoot other new ones long after Welles had been unceremoniously
deposed by the powers that be. Ironically, it was this effort that directly led
to the beginning of Wise’s directorial career, although he would remain
indentured at RKO, pulling double duty as both a fledgling director and film editor.
A quick tour
of Wise’s back catalog reveals his-mindboggling diversity; in complete command
of the visual arts in everything from the darkly psychological child’s fantasy,
The Curse of The Cat People (1944)
to the unrelentingly gritty boxing noir, The
Set-Up (1949); also adept making intriguing murder/mysteries like The House on Telegraph Hill (1951). His
more introspective masterworks came later; The
Day The Earth Stood Still (1951), West
Side Story (1961) and The Sand
Pebbles (1966) – each exploring a facet of the depth of humanity’s capacity
for suffrage and forgiveness. For most, it is unlikely Wise’s legacy will go
beyond being known primarily for The
Sound of Music (1965); undeniably still (as 2oth Century-Fox’s publicity
astutely promoted it back then) ‘the
happiest sound in all the world’. It was also the movie that rescued Fox
from its fiscal black hole created by their disastrous blind faith in Cleopatra (1963).
There are too
many truly outstanding films in Wise’s repertoire to effectively appreciate at
a glance. So perhaps it isn’t surprising Two
Flags West (1950) – a superior western drama – should get misplaced among
this lot. Initially, screenwriter, Frank S. Nugent had conceived of the story
of ‘galvanized Yankees’ – Confederate soldiers given the option to serve in
Lincoln’s Union army rather than go to jail for treason during the Civil War.
It was an idea Nugent toiled on while writing John Ford’s She Wore A Yellow Ribbon (1948). The concept had merit, though
Nugent could find no takers – not even a proponent in Ford himself. So, the
idea languished at MGM before finally finding a home at 2oth Century-Fox, put
into development by Darryl F. Zanuck under the working title, Trumpet
to the Morn.
Originally, Zanuck
had hoped to cast in-house talents, Victor Mature or Richard Basehart as
Confederate Colonel Clay Tucker; a stoic southern gentleman who is bound by
personal honor and duty to see his mission through – even in the face of
spiteful resentment from his commanding officer, Maj. Henry Kenniston (Jeff Chandler) - an
impenetrable martinet. Fortunately, the part went to Joseph Cotten instead;
ironically, an alumni of Orson Welles’ Mercury Players, whose familiar face and
formidable charm had graced many a memorable and star-studded vehicle
throughout the 1940s; culminating in his superb performance in Carol Reed’s
exemplary post-war thriller, The Third
Man (1949).
And yet,
Cotten’s reputation in Hollywood would remain that of a competent second-string
player rather than an A-list leading man. Such was the system back then with
far too much stellar talent to pick and choose from, cultivating plug n’ play ‘types’ for virtually any role a
screenwriter might endeavor to create. The
lanky Virginian who segued from modeling to acting, Joseph Cotten is, in fact,
the lone voice of integrity in Two Flags
West; gallant and gentile – the embodiment of the noble Southerner who can
tolerate, though never accept, he is on the losing side of the Civil War. In
Cotten we are blessed by an inner luminosity of character-driven spirit and
strength.
The other
‘stars’ that surround him are all competently delineated in their motivations.
The aforementioned, Jeff Chandler (who I’ve never been able to take seriously
as the typecast he-man, ever since reading Esther Williams’ biography, and her
recollections about his prediction for wearing women’s underwear) appears in Two Flags West as the overtly butch,
but severely conflicted military man who would seemingly sacrifice his fort and
the lives of its inhabitants (but later martyrs himself to save the rest from
complete annihilation) merely to illustrate a point of honor. Zanuck ask cast
popular leading man, Cornel Wilde – doing a variation on the flashy lady’s man
that was, in fact, his only real métier, herein, as Capt. Mark Bradford. Linda Darnell, a Fox favorite, run through
many a disposable melodrama and romantic comedy – occasionally rising to prominence
in movies like the sadly underrated, Forever
Amber (1947) and Oscar-winning, A
Letter To Three Wives (1949), is Elena – the widowed mate of Kenniston’s
brother. Two Flags West is also notable for character actors, Jay C. Flippen
as soft-spoken, Sgt. Terrance Duffy and Arthur Hunnicutt, the embodiment of the
defeatist Confederate rebel, Sgt. Pickens.
At some point,
Frank Nugent’s story was appropriated by screenwriter, Casey Robinson, who also
produced Two Flags West. Robinson’s
shooting script is formidably accomplished; his adherence to history
commendable, while using his artistic license wisely to concoct a melodramatic
backstory with underpinnings of a romantic love triangle. This unexpectedly
blossoms between Darnell’s weary widow – initially mistaken as the Major’s wife
by Tucker; Kenniston – who makes every attempt to hold Elena against her will
under the guise he is protecting her from a perilous journey across Indian
country, but actually desires to take his brother’s place in both Elena’s heart
and her bed, and finally, Mark Bradford - who knew Elena a long time ago and
would prefer to know her much better now that her husband is out of the
picture. Of these three, Elena prefers Mark –undoubtedly screenwriter, Robinson
playing to Cornel Wilde’s status as the beefcake. Indeed, after only a few
scenes, Robinson elects to have Wilde’s hunky captain cast off his eye patch,
revealing no discernable damage, save a marginal scar across his cheek, applied
with great care by the makeup department to add more ‘character’ than ugliness
to his chiseled visage.
Two Flags West is grounded in a reality quite
uncharacteristic for a western of its time – its milieu usually given over to
grand narratives and mythologized figureheads. Refreshingly, we get no such
embellishments in Two Flags West;
the historic Fort Thorn accurately depicted as the last bastion for personal safety
from the marauding Indians and becoming the central focus of the film’s last
act; director Wise staging an energetic, harrowing and fairly gruesome assault,
seemingly hopeless until Maj. Kenniston’s noble self-sacrifice stems the tide of
imminent death. The real Fort Thorn has a fairly interesting history; built in
1854 near the Rio Grande and becoming the eastern terminus of a well-traveled
path to Arizona’s Fort Yuma. Closed as a permanent garrison, it was later
reestablished as a forward outpost, exchanging occupancies between the warring
Union and Confederate armies throughout the American Civil War.
Two Flags West picks up the fort’s history
after history itself had ostensibly finished with it: the defeat of Capt.
Robert Morris in 1860, effectively ending its importance as a military outpost.
In theory, at least, the 3rd
Cavalry continued to occupy Fort Thorn. But it is questionable whether or not
the so called ‘galvanized Yankees’
were a part of its operations. Nevertheless, here too Casey Robinson’s
screenplay chooses history over fiction as his backdrop; the 5th
Georgia Cavalry under Col. Clay Tucker’s command - as depicted in the movie -
actually actively serving on the western front. With President Lincoln’s
special proclamation on Dec. 8th, 1863, these confederate forces
joined the union army on the western front.
Our story
begins in autumn, 1864 with remnants of the Confederate 5th Georgia
Cavalry, guided by Col. Clay Tucker, forced to wait out the war or go stir
crazy inside the Union prison camp at Rock Island, Illinois. Rock Island is a
hell hole, the men corralled in cramped, crude barracks, sleeping on dirt floors
and dying of their combat-inflicted wounds or dysentery. Enter Union Capt. Mark
Bradford – sporting a patch across his eye and offering these prisoners of war
a chance to be ‘useful’ once more; only this time in service to the winning
side; assigned to guard the western gate at Fort Thorn, since grossly undermanned
from the exodus of soldiers recalled by President Lincoln.
Bradford makes
the men a singular promise; they will not be compelled in their new duties to
stand against their own. Nevertheless, many of the Georgians resist at first.
Consulted by his men, Col. Tucker suggests there are worse ways to wait out the
war than by being of use as proud military men on the western front; his own
sense of duty coming to bear as the deciding vote. On route to their new home, Sgt.
Pickens inquiries if the men, who have all been provided new Union uniforms and
mounts to ride, might sing to pass the time. Bradford, who is a most benevolent
sort, willingly agrees, to which Pickens leads the cavalry in a rousing
rendition of ‘Dixie’ much to both
Tucker and Bradford’s amusement.
Arriving at
Fort Thorn, Tucker, whose rank has been reduced to lieutenant, is introduced to
his new commanding officer, Maj. Henry Kenniston; a Southerner-hating, stern
disciplinarian whose low opinion of Tucker and his men has already anticipated
their desertion. Kenniston’s brittle sentiments have been clouded by his own
battle-scars; a visible limp; also, his hidden anxieties, still lamenting the
loss of his younger brother. On their first night at the Fort, Tucker is
invited to dine at Kenniston’s table, along with Bradford and a select group of
the fort’s gentry. This includes Kenniston’s widowed sister-in-law, Elena, whom
Tucker mistakenly assumes is Henry’s wife. She cordially avails Tucker of his misperception.
The mood turns rancid after Kenniston discovers Tucker led the cavalry charge
that killed his brother. And yet, even discovering this, Elena is not bitter
toward Tucker. But Kenniston turns sullen and vicious as he makes patronizing
comments about the South. Proud, but contrite, Tucker removes himself from this
loaded situation to retire to his barracks, rather than confronting Kenniston
at his own table.
On the moonlit
veranda, Elena is reunited with Bradford. He discovers she has been stranded at
the fort for months and begins to suspect Kenniston has ulterior motives for
this delay; to become his late brother's surrogate. It doesn’t take very long
for tensions to mount between the Northern and Southern soldiers; Tucker
ordering his men in pursuit of a band of Apache; but recalled at the last
possible moment by Kenniston, who admonishes them for their Yankee pride,
explaining how the Apache were leading them into an ambush. As a way to
demoralize and put Tucker and his men in their place, Kenniston orders them to
execute a pair of civilians suspected as Confederate gunrunners. Reminding
Kenniston of the pact under which they agreed to serve – never having to turn
against their own kind – Kenniston unrepentantly prompts Tucker he is in his
army now. The orders are to be carried out without fail or questioning, and,
they are.
Tucker
considers this a breach of their contract and stands behind his men who have
already begun plotting their desertion, unaware, perhaps, that Kenniston has
deviously orchestrated the entire affair, merely to prove his own point about
Southerners. Rationalizing that he does
not want enemies in his ranks, Kenniston assigns Tucker’s troops the perilous
task of escorting a wagon train across hostile Indian Territory. He knows
Tucker will see the caravan through, but then will likely never return to the
Fort. As Elena happily prepares to leave,
she discovers her release has been personally rescinded by Kenniston. Bitterly,
she explains to the Major she will never be his wife. He is humiliated by the
transparency of his own motives, but remains steadfast in denying Elena her
leave. In reply, she bribes the Reverend Simpkins (Everett Glass) and his wife
(Marjorie Bennett) to sneak aboard their covered wagon for the trip.
As the caravan
prepares to pull out, Bradford discovers Elena hidden in the back of the
Simpkins’ covered wagon. Nevertheless, he allows her to pass. Unaware Elena has
taken such steps to escape him, Kenniston orders the wagon train from Fort Thorn,
convinced he has rid his own shoe of a very cumbersome pebble. On their journey
Tucker befriends one of the civilians, Ephraim Strong (Harry Von Zell), who
confides he is a Confederate agent and enlists Tucker in a plan to link
California with the South. Strong convinces Tucker to return to Fort Thorn with
Elena. It will gain Kenniston’s confidence - if not his respect. Tucker, who
has begun to forge a cordial relationship with Elena is disinclined to take her
back to Kenniston, but does so at the expense of their friendship.
Back at the
Fort, Bradford is disgusted to learn Kenniston has already begun drafting
letters regarding Tucker’s presumed desertion. But Kenniston is in for a shock
and a surprise when Sgt. Duffy informs him of Tucker and his men’s return,
along with Elena, who remains bitterly resolved to avoid Kenniston’s advances.
In their absence, a Kiowa warrior, actually the son of Chief Satank has been
captured by Kenniston’s men. Satank’s tribe arrives at Fort Thorn and Satank –
with the aid of an interpreter – orders Kenniston to release his prisoner or
face dire repercussions. In reply, Kenniston retreats to the Fort, ordering the
immediate execution of Satank’s son on the grounds he is a rebel and a traitor.
He then sends the boy’s lifeless body out on horseback.
The fort
endures a brutal siege, Satank’s men decimating Kenniston’s forces and
slaughtering many innocent men and women. Elena tends to the wounded, spared an
arrow by Bradford, who is mortally shot in her stead. As night falls, Satank’s
men retreat. But no one, least of all Kenniston is fooled by this brief calm.
Satank will return at dawn to finish them off. Recognizing only he can save them
from the inevitable, Kenniston disarms himself, placing Tucker in command
before marching beyond the fort’s protective gates; obscured by a dense veil of
smoldering ruins. His shrill outcry a moment later alerts everyone to his
massacre. The next morning, Tucker and his men recover Kenniston’s stripped
body lying in the dust with multiple arrows protruding. His sacrifice – nee suicide
– has spared them from a renewed assault.
But now a dispatch
rider arrives with ominous news: General Sherman has completed his forced march
to the sea, marking an end to the Confederacy. As the Union soldiers break into
a patriot refrain of The Battle Hymn of
the Republic the Confederates belt out a reprise of Dixie: old wounds, very reluctant – and arguably, never to heal.
Elena attempts to comfort Tucker, promising things will seem better tomorrow.
It is the lone note of womanly optimism all but obscured by this otherwise
male-dominated cynicism.
Two Flags West is sadly underrated; a
western melodrama on par with the legacies of John Ford and Howard Hawks.
Interestingly, Robert Wise only directed one other western afterward, 1956’s Tribute to a Bad Man. Two Flags West was also preceded by the
only other western in Wise’s cannon, 1948’s Blood on the Moon. While both of the aforementioned movies had big
stars at their helm (James Cagney in ‘Bad Man’ and Robert Mitchum in ‘Blood’)
neither is particularly memorable. Two
Flags West is; the milieu
enriched by its ensemble casting; also, by Wise’s ability to balance history
with fiction.
Wise would
later recollect that his alliance with Darryl Zanuck was one of the most
creative and mutually beneficial. “When
we ran Two Flag West for Zanuck, I
expected him to start making comments right away,” Wise mused in an
interview, “But no – nothing…not even a
sound....I was so impressed. He really observed the film, thought about it and
then came up with his suggestions - after five minutes of puffing on a cigar.”
This mutual admiration society apparently extended from friendships already
forged on the set. Two Flags West
was actually photographed almost in its entirety at Pueblo of San Ildefonso; a
community of Tewa Indians near Santa Fe, New Mexico. Wise took great pains to
respect that community’s privacy, avoiding any location shooting around their
native burial grounds.
Jeff Chandler
was reportedly so much in awe of Joseph Cotten he chose to remain on set even
on days when he was not working, simply to drink in and absorb what he could
from Cotten’s performance. The two men would became good friends, occasionally chumming
around with Cornel Wilde and Linda Darnell, who had worked together previously
on various Fox films and were already very well acquainted. For all its chaotic narrative machinations, the
production of Two Flags West was
fairly smooth for Robert Wise, who garnered the trust and respect of his
artists and thereafter found everything about the project to his liking –
except for the heat. At an average of 102 degrees daily, Pueblo presented its
own challenges for cast and crew; heavyset cameraman, Leon Shamroy daily complaining
to Wise about the stifling heat, while wiping the sweat chronically cascading
off his brow with a handkerchief soaked in ice water.
In retrospect,
it’s rather interesting Joseph Cotten’s Clay Tucker is the only male star in
the cast to survive the film’s narrative deluge; like the character so often
played by John Wayne in a John Ford western, Cotten’s Clay Tucker destined to
roam the earth as ‘God’s lonely man’ –
a survivor of fate, but without a life or home to call his own. Joseph Cotten’s
own reputation amongst those who knew him best, almost mirrors his characterization
in Two Flags West. Indeed, when
Cotten suffered a debilitating heart attack and stroke in the early 1980s, it
was his old friend, Orson Welles who remained steadfast at his side throughout
his lengthy recovery. “He was strong and
supportive,” Cotten would write of Welles; Welles’ own opinions of Cotten as
laudatory. When Welles informed his friend, Roger Hill Cotten had written a
book, asked by Hill to quantify its flow and content, Welles simply replied, “Gentle, witty, and self-effacing…just like
Jo.”
Also in
retrospect, Two Flags West seems to
be the singular highlight of Jeff Chandler’s mid to later movie career. Like a
lot of actors of his build and youth, Hollywood attempted to fabricate an
earthy ‘hunk’ persona. This eventually impacted and typecast Chandler as the
buff and brooding romantic lead in such forgettable tripe as Female on the Beach (1955) and The Lady Takes a Flyer (1958); men of
brawn but very little brain. It was an oversight, perhaps. For there is something
rather unsettling and fierce about Chandler’s Major Kenniston in Two Flags West; a taut bundle of nerves
ready to explode, and, an emotionally scarred little boy – perhaps even tinged
with sexual frustration – the limp, code for a deeper emasculation at work –
all of it rolled into one multi-layered portrait. Alas, the actor had only
eleven more years to live after this movie; his spine injured during a routine
baseball game and leading to emergency surgery, badly bungled and causing
Chandler to hemorrhage to death nearly a month after entering the hospital.
Two Flags West gets a limited European release
via Koch Media. The disc is mislabeled as being Region B locked when, in fact,
it is Region Free. The B&W elements are in remarkably solid shape. As far
as I can gather, this isn’t a release sanctioned by 2oth Century-Fox, the
studio logo appearing nowhere on the outer packaging. I can only speculate,
since Koch is not a bootleg operation, they have licensed this print from Fox
Home Video in much the same way Criterion and Twilight Time have with other Fox
titles in the past.
Image quality
herein is first rate. The B&W full frame transfer captures all the
subtleties in Leon Shamroy’s gorgeous cinematography. Occasionally, we do
detect just a hint of digitized pixelization. Nothing dramatic or distracting,
and again, most of the image is free of it entirely. Also absent – for the most
part – are age-related artifacts. The image is smooth and satisfying, with good
solid contrast and a modicum of film grain accurately reproduced. Minted for the non-English speaking European
market, all of the packaging and disc menus are in German. This disc also
defaults to German audio. Not to worry: simply change the setting to English to
enjoy the film in its native glory. Bonus materials are limited to a German
theatrical trailer and a ‘gallery’: actually a montage of German and English
poster art and a few stills set to Hugo Friedhofer’s score.
I have to say
the cover art, which is culled from the original poster campaign, is somewhat
misleading, showing Joseph Cotten kissing Linda Darnell and a rather resolute
Cornel Wilde and utterly exuberant Jeff Chandler. I think someone at Fox’s
publicity department confused each character’s personality, as well as the plot
points when designing this PR campaign. Bottom line: highly recommended.
FILM RATING (out of 5 – 5 being the best)
4
VIDEO/AUDIO
3.5
EXTRAS
1
Comments