CANYON PASSAGE (1946)

Set in a frontier town in 1856 Oregon, CANYON PASSAGE doesn't really have any canyon passages but it does have a whole bunch of smaller stories going on.  Most, if not all, of them involve freight company and general store owner Dana Andrews.  He's courting one girl when it's obvious that his best friend's girl likes him much better; his friend is in debt thanks to gambling debts; Ward Bond wants to kill him; his businesses are barely getting by; there's a house to build and Indians are a constant threat.

CANYON PASSAGE is a passable western, but I can't really see any reason why I would want to watch it again any time soon.  The characters (with the exception of that annoying singing dude) were fine, but the story (or should I say stories?) didn't really do anything for me.  Good acting, reasonable pace, beautiful scenery, familiar faces from a strong cast...too bad about the weak script.  Entertaining enough for a single watch.

KANSAS RAIDERS (1950)

Early Audie Murphy western (that also stars a young James Best and Tony Curtis) features Murphy as a young Jesse James who along with his brother and three friends leave Missouri after seeing his family slaughtered by "red leggers". They want to join the militia of William Quantrill, a Confederate guerrilla leader who claims to be helping the South but in reality is just killing everybody he sees to line his pockets. Once James comes to see this he's disheartened but still sticks by Quantrill. Even with the Union Army breathing down their necks.

How historically accurate is KANSAS RAIDERS? I have no idea, probably not too much, but it's still a entertaining watch and worth your time if your into such things. There's plenty of action and the pace is fast. My only major complaint would be Marguerite Chapman who played Quantrill's wife looked really old. According to Wikipedia when he died his wife was only 17. Marguerite Chapman was 32.

Recomended for fans of older Western movies.

WAKE ISLAND (1942)

Released just nine months after the actual Battle of Wake Island, WAKE ISLAND the movie has the facts of the story all messed up, but we'll let that slide since this film (one of the very first American WWII movies made about the US involvement) is more about capturing a feeling and rousing the people at home into fighting mode.

As for the movie itself, WAKE ISLAND opens with some American Marines and civilian contractors living their life on Wake Island. Digging holes and bitching about how bored they are until one day, out of nowhere, the Japanese Navy attacks. Will the Americans be able to hold out until reinforcements show up? Or will reinforcements just not show up at all?

I liked the film, but it's a little too lighthearted for my tastes. I understand the filmmakers were trying to make the characters more personable, but that one dude (William Bendix) was a fucking goofball.  Then again, what do I know because he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in this film! Other than the goofball, the rest of the film is alright. The action scenes are especially well made.  I would imagine WAKE ISLAND was a real crowd-pleaser back in 1942 even despite the continuity errors.

Modern audiences will probably find it very dated, especially laughable Brian Donlevy's outfit (and the two guys who couldn't keep their hands off of each other), but as far as pro-American propaganda goes WAKE ISLAND is entertaining enough.

Nice shirt there Seinfeld. The tie's awesome too.