THE VIRGINIAN

US, 1929, 95 minutes, Black and white.
Gary Cooper, Walter Huston, Richard Arlen, Mary Brian, Chester Conklin, Eugene Pallette.
Directed by Victor Fleming.

The Virginian is an early sound western, made by Paramount in 1929. It was directed by Victor Fleming who was to go on to make many significant films in the '30s including Red Dust and, of course, Gone With the Wind.

The film shows the beginnings of development of the making of sound films, the transition from fixed cameras to mobile cameras and sound engineering. The film has western locations, the open plains, cattle, the western town.

The film is an early vehicle for Gary Cooper - who looks rather stilted (and might be compared unfavourably, at the age of 29, to many actors in later decades who were much more successful in their career at 29). However, he had just appeared in William Wellman's Wings and was to appear in a number of films in the '30s, gaining his first Oscar in 1941 for Sergeant York. He is the Virginian, the typical hero, who has a great bond with his friend Steve (played by Richard Arlen). There are the usual adventures in the town, the attraction of the schoolteacher (Mary Brian) for him. There is an arch villain, Trampas (portrayed by Walter Huston). There are clashes between the Virginian and Trampas' men, the death of Steve, the ultimate confrontation with the death of Trampas. There is a somewhat High Noon showdown.

The film has many of the familiar ingredients of so many westerns to come. It is of historical interest for the late '20s and its influence on the style of the western. (Eugene Pallette appears in an early role, as does comedian Chester
Conklin as Uncle Hughie.) A historical item.