The Wonderful Country (film)
Encyclopedia
The Wonderful Country is a 1959
Technicolor
Western
film based on Tom Lea
's novel of the same name
that was produced by Robert Mitchum
's DRM Production company in Mexico
. Tom Lea has a cameo as a barber.
Martin Brady is employed by the Castro brothers, Marcos (Victor Manuel Mendoza), a General and Cipriano (Pedro Armendáriz
) a Governor. On a business trip to the United States to arrange the sale of a wagonload of rifles and ammunition he is delayed when he breaks his leg in an accident.
Treated by Dr Stovall (Charles McGraw
) he stays with two German Americans, Ben (John Banner
) and Ludwig (Max Slaten) to recover. Brady's expertise is sought by the commanders of the local U.S. Army, Major Colton (Gary Merrill
) and Texas Rangers
Captain Rucker (Albert Dekker
) who are planning a mission against hostile Apache
s in Mexico.
Captain Rucker knows that Brady revenged himself on the murderer of his father but no charges are standing. However his falling in love with Colton's wife Helen (Julie London
), and also his shooting a man who drew on him (Chuck Roberson
) sends him back to Mexico. Brady finds himself between the ambtious Castro brothers and assisting the U.S. Army's Buffalo Soldier
s led by a wounded Major Colton and his sergeant Satchel Paige
.
went to Lea and ask him if he [Parrish] could direct it. The only money that Lea received from the picture was for his role as the barber.
The motion picture was filmed in the state of Durango
. Parrish and Lea first asked Henry Fonda
, then Gregory Peck
to take the starring role. But, Mitchum really wanted to do the film, and after Fonda and Peck said no, Mitchum took over production. The film was not well received at the box office and by some critics, but other critics considered it beautifully filmed, by cinematographers Floyd Crosby
and Alex Phillips
.
TIME said about it: "But the result is just a crying Shane. All that is truly dramatic is the wonderful country itself" and about Mitchum's performance: "...he sounds like an Aztec exchange student after six terms at C.C.N.Y.". "The rest of the plot is as snarled as a ball of tumbleweed." and; "...a western that is more woolly than wild".
Upon its 1961 release in Cuba, it set off an ideological fury due to "two Mexican bandits who were named the Castro brothers".
1959 in film
The year 1959 in film involved some significant events, with Ben-Hur winning a record 11 Academy Awards.-Events:* The Three Stooges make their 190th and last short film, Sappy Bull Fighters....
Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
Western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
film based on Tom Lea
Tom Lea
Tom Lea may refer to:* Thomas Calloway Lea, Jr., Mayor of El Paso, Texas, for the term, father of Tom Lea, and first cousin of Homer Lea...
's novel of the same name
The Wonderful Country
The Wonderful Country is a 1952 Western novel written by Tom Lea. The book is set in Chihuahua and Sonora, Mexico, and Texas and New Mexico in the United States...
that was produced by Robert Mitchum
Robert Mitchum
Robert Charles Durman Mitchum was an American film actor, author, composer and singer and is #23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male American screen legends of all time...
's DRM Production company in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. Tom Lea has a cameo as a barber.
Plot
MercenaryMercenary
A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...
Martin Brady is employed by the Castro brothers, Marcos (Victor Manuel Mendoza), a General and Cipriano (Pedro Armendáriz
Pedro Armendáriz
Pedro Armendáriz was a Mexican actor of the cinema of Mexico and Hollywood.-Early life:Born Pedro Gregorio Armendáriz Hastings in Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico to Pedro Armendáriz García-Conde and Adela Hastings . He was also the cousin of actress Gloria Marín...
) a Governor. On a business trip to the United States to arrange the sale of a wagonload of rifles and ammunition he is delayed when he breaks his leg in an accident.
Treated by Dr Stovall (Charles McGraw
Charles McGraw
Charles Butters , best known by his stage name Charles McGraw, was an American actor, who made his first film in 1942, albeit in a small, uncredited role. He was born in Des Moines, Iowa.-Career:...
) he stays with two German Americans, Ben (John Banner
John Banner
John Banner , born Johann Banner, was an American film and television actor, who was born and died in Vienna, Austria....
) and Ludwig (Max Slaten) to recover. Brady's expertise is sought by the commanders of the local U.S. Army, Major Colton (Gary Merrill
Gary Merrill
Gary Fred Merrill was an American film and television character actor whose credits included more than fifty feature films, a half-dozen mostly short-lived TV series, and dozens of television guest appearances....
) and Texas Rangers
Texas Ranger Division
The Texas Ranger Division, commonly called the Texas Rangers, is a law enforcement agency with statewide jurisdiction in Texas, and is based in Austin, Texas...
Captain Rucker (Albert Dekker
Albert Dekker
Albert Dekker was an American character actor and politician best known for his roles in Dr. Cyclops, The Killers, Kiss Me Deadly, and The Wild Bunch. He is sometimes credited as Albert Van Dekker or Albert van Dekker...
) who are planning a mission against hostile Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
s in Mexico.
Captain Rucker knows that Brady revenged himself on the murderer of his father but no charges are standing. However his falling in love with Colton's wife Helen (Julie London
Julie London
Julie London was an American singer and actress. She was best known for her smoky, sensual voice. London was at her singing career's peak in the 1950s. Her acting career lasted more than 35 years...
), and also his shooting a man who drew on him (Chuck Roberson
Chuck Roberson
Charles Hugh "Chuck" Roberson was an American cowboy, actor, and stuntman. He was nicknamed "Bad Chuck" by director John Ford, for whom he worked many times, to distinguish him from "Good Chuck," stuntman Chuck Hayward. Roberson was reportedly the rowdier of the two, thus the nicknames.Roberson...
) sends him back to Mexico. Brady finds himself between the ambtious Castro brothers and assisting the U.S. Army's Buffalo Soldier
Buffalo Soldier
Buffalo Soldiers originally were members of the U.S. 10th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army, formed on September 21, 1866 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas....
s led by a wounded Major Colton and his sergeant Satchel Paige
Satchel Paige
Leroy Robert "Satchel" Paige was an American baseball player whose pitching in the Negro leagues and in Major League Baseball made him a legend in his own lifetime...
.
Production
Robert ParrishRobert Parrish
Robert R. Parrish was an American actor, film editor, film director, and writer. He received an Academy Award for Film Editing for the 1947 film, Body and Soul....
went to Lea and ask him if he [Parrish] could direct it. The only money that Lea received from the picture was for his role as the barber.
The motion picture was filmed in the state of Durango
Durango
Durango officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Durango is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is located in Northwest Mexico. With a population of 1,632,934, it has Mexico's second-lowest population density, after Baja...
. Parrish and Lea first asked Henry Fonda
Henry Fonda
Henry Jaynes Fonda was an American film and stage actor.Fonda made his mark early as a Broadway actor. He also appeared in 1938 in plays performed in White Plains, New York, with Joan Tompkins...
, then Gregory Peck
Gregory Peck
Eldred Gregory Peck was an American actor.One of 20th Century Fox's most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1960s, Peck continued to play important roles well into the 1980s. His notable performances include that of Atticus Finch in the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird, for which he won an...
to take the starring role. But, Mitchum really wanted to do the film, and after Fonda and Peck said no, Mitchum took over production. The film was not well received at the box office and by some critics, but other critics considered it beautifully filmed, by cinematographers Floyd Crosby
Floyd Crosby
Floyd Delafield Crosby, A.S.C. was an American cinematographer.Crosby was born and raised in West Philadelphia, the son of Julia Floyd and Frederick Van Schoonhoven Crosby...
and Alex Phillips
Alex Phillips
Alex Phillips was a Canadian-born Mexican cinematographer and the father of Alex Phillips, Jr., also a cinematographer....
.
TIME said about it: "But the result is just a crying Shane. All that is truly dramatic is the wonderful country itself" and about Mitchum's performance: "...he sounds like an Aztec exchange student after six terms at C.C.N.Y.". "The rest of the plot is as snarled as a ball of tumbleweed." and; "...a western that is more woolly than wild".
Upon its 1961 release in Cuba, it set off an ideological fury due to "two Mexican bandits who were named the Castro brothers".