Jubal (film)

Last updated

Jubal
Jubal (film poster).jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Delmer Daves
Screenplay by Russell S. Hughes
Delmer Daves
Based onJubal Troop
by Paul Wellman
Produced byWilliam Fadiman
Starring Glenn Ford
Ernest Borgnine
Rod Steiger
CinematographyCharles Lawton Jr.
Edited by Al Clark
Music by David Raksin
Color process Technicolor
Production
company
Columbia Pictures
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date
  • April 24, 1956 (1956-04-24)(New York City) [1]
Running time
101 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1.8 million (US) [2]

Jubal is a 1956 American Western film directed by Delmer Daves and starring Glenn Ford, Ernest Borgnine, Rod Steiger, Valerie French, and Felicia Farr. Shot in CinemaScope, it was one of the few adult westerns in the 1950s and is described as Othello on the Range. [3] The supporting cast features Noah Beery Jr., Charles Bronson and Jack Elam.

Contents

Plot

Jubal Troop (Glenn Ford) is a cowboy who is found in a weakened condition, without a horse. He is given shelter at Shep Horgan's (Ernest Borgnine) large ranch, where he quickly makes an enemy in Pinky (Rod Steiger), a cattleman who accuses Jubal of carrying the smell of sheep.

Horgan is a cheerful, agreeable fellow who is married to an attractive, much younger woman named Mae (Valerie French) whom he met in Canada. He takes an immediate shine to Jubal and offers him a permanent job. Behind his back Mae also has taken a liking to Jubal, which she expresses to him in no uncertain terms. Horgan is impressed with Jubal's work ethic and makes him foreman over the other cowhands. That further antagonises Pinky, whom Horgan does not trust.

Jubal fends off Mae's advances while developing an interest in Naomi (Felicia Farr), a young woman from a travelling wagon train of an unnamed religious group that the cowboys call "rawhiders." Pinky and the other cowboys try to run off the strangers and resent Jubal's interference on their behalf. Jubal's only ally is a drifter named Reb (Charles Bronson), who has attached himself to the wagon train. On Jubal's recommendation Reb is hired to help him at the ranch.

Pinky, who has carried on with Mae behind her husband's back, tells Horgan that his wife and Jubal have betrayed him. Horgan demands the truth from Mae, who angrily responds that she can't stand him and lies that Jubal has been seeing her.

An enraged Horgan rides to town and confronts Jubal, intending to kill him. Reb flips a gun to Jubal just in time and Horgan is shot dead.

Pinky makes another play for Mae, then beats her savagely when she pushes him away. Pinky then rallies the others to go after Jubal, persuading them that he stole Horgan's wife and murdered him. A posse gets the truth from a dying Mae, that her accusations toward Jubal were completely untrue. She also reveals, just before she dies, that Pinky beat her. The posse slowly circles Pinky and it's clear they intend to hang him. Jubal rides away with Naomi and Reb.

Cast

Production

Rod Steiger's role was meant to be played by Columbia contract star Aldo Ray but he was unhappy at not receiving a bonus after being loaned out on other films, and refused to appear. [4]

Reception

Upon the film's release, film critic Jonathan Rosenbaum praised the film, calling it a "taut, neurotic melodrama". [5] Lee Pfeiffer from Cinema Retro , in a review of the Criterion Collection's blu-ray release of the film, compares it with Daves's seminal 3:10 to Yuma, saying "there is much in Jubal that rivals that classic".[ citation needed ] On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds 100% approval rating based on 10 reviews. [6]

Home media

Jubal was released by the Criterion Collection in Blu-Ray and DVD. [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

Marty (<i>The Philco Television Playhouse</i>) 23rd episode of the 5th season of The Philco Television Playhouse

"Marty" is a 1953 television play by Paddy Chayefsky. It was telecast live May 24, 1953, on The Philco Television Playhouse with Rod Steiger in the title role and Nancy Marchand, in her television debut, playing opposite him as Clara. Chayefsky's story of a decent, hard-working Bronx butcher, pining for the company of a woman in his life but despairing of ever finding true love in a relationship, was produced by Fred Coe with associate producer Gordon Duff.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rod Steiger</span> American actor (1925–2002)

Rodney Stephen Steiger was an American actor, noted for his portrayal of offbeat, often volatile and crazed characters. Cited as "one of Hollywood's most charismatic and dynamic stars," he is closely associated with the art of method acting, embodying the characters he played, which at times led to clashes with directors and co-stars. He starred as Marlon Brando's mobster brother Charley in On the Waterfront (1954), the title character Sol Nazerman in The Pawnbroker (1964) which won him the Silver Bear for Best Actor, and as police chief Bill Gillespie opposite Sidney Poitier in the film In the Heat of the Night (1967) which won him the Academy Award for Best Actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glenn Ford</span> Canadian-American actor (1916–2006)

Gwyllyn Samuel Newton "Glenn" Ford was a Canadian-American actor who often portrayed ordinary men in unusual circumstances. Ford was most prominent during Hollywood's Golden Age as one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, who had a career that lasted more than 50 years. Although he played in many genres of movies, some of his most significant roles were in the film noirs Gilda (1946) and The Big Heat (1953), and the high school angst film Blackboard Jungle (1955). However, it was for comedies or westerns which he received acting laurels, including three Golden Globe Nominations for Best Actor in a Comedy movie, winning for Pocketful of Miracles (1961). He also played a supporting role as Clark Kent's adoptive father, Jonathan Kent, in Superman (1978).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noah Beery</span> American actor (1882–1946)

Noah Nicholas Beery was an American actor who appeared in films from 1913 until his death in 1946. He was the older brother of Academy Award-winning actor Wallace Beery as well as the father of prominent character actor Noah Beery Jr. He was billed as either Noah Beery or Noah Beery Sr. depending upon the film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noah Beery Jr.</span> American actor (1913-1994)

Noah Lindsey Beery was an American actor often specializing in warm, friendly character roles similar to many portrayed by his Oscar-winning uncle, Wallace Beery. Unlike his more famous uncle, however, Beery Jr. seldom broke away from playing supporting roles. Active as an actor in films or television for well over half a century, he was best known for playing James Garner's character's father, Joseph "Rocky" Rockford, in the NBC television series The Rockford Files (1974–1980). His father, Noah Nicholas Beery enjoyed a similarly lengthy film career as an extremely prominent supporting actor in major films, although the elder Beery was also frequently a leading man during the silent film era.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Elam</span> American actor (1920–2003)

William Scott "Jack" Elam was an American film and television actor best known for his numerous roles as villains in Western films and, later in his career, comedies. His most distinguishing physical quality was his misaligned eye. Before his career in acting, he took several jobs in finance and served two years in the United States Navy during World War II.

<i>3:10 to Yuma</i> (1957 film) 1957 film by Delmer Daves

3:10 to Yuma is a 1957 American Western film directed by Delmer Daves, starring Glenn Ford and Van Heflin. Based on a 1953 short story by Elmore Leonard, it is about a drought-impoverished rancher who takes on the risky job of escorting a notorious outlaw to justice. In 2012, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delmer Daves</span> American film director, producer, and screenwriter (1904–1977)

Delmer Lawrence Daves was an American screenwriter, film director and film producer. He worked in many genres, including film noir and warfare, but he is best known for his Western movies, especially Broken Arrow (1950), The Last Wagon (1956), 3:10 to Yuma (1957) and The Hanging Tree (1959). He was forced to work on studio-based films only after heart trouble in 1959 but one of these, A Summer Place, was nevertheless a huge commercial success.

<i>The Last Wagon</i> (1956 film) 1956 film by Delmer Daves

The Last Wagon is a 1956 American CinemaScope Western film starring Richard Widmark. It was co-written and directed by Delmer Daves and tells a story set during the American Indian Wars: the survivors of an Indian massacre must rely on a man wanted for several murders to lead them out of danger.

The Fastest Gun Alive is a 1956 MGM Western film starring Glenn Ford, Jeanne Crain, and Broderick Crawford directed by Russell Rouse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Felicia Farr</span> American actress (born 1932)

Felicia Farr is a former American actress and model.

<i>Oklahoma!</i> (1955 film) 1955 American musical film directed by Fred Zinnemann

Oklahoma! is a 1955 American musical film based on the 1943 musical of the same name by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, which in turn was based on the 1931 play Green Grow The Lilacs written by Lynn Riggs. It stars Gordon MacRae, Shirley Jones, Rod Steiger, Charlotte Greenwood, Gloria Grahame, Gene Nelson, James Whitmore, and Eddie Albert. The production was the only musical directed by Fred Zinnemann. Oklahoma! was the first feature film photographed in the Todd-AO 70 mm widescreen process.

<i>Cowboy</i> (1958 film) 1958 film by Delmer Daves

Cowboy is a 1958 American Western film directed by Delmer Daves and starring Glenn Ford, Jack Lemmon, Anna Kashfi and Brian Donlevy. This film is an adaptation of the Frank Harris semi-autobiographical novel My Reminiscences as a Cowboy. Lemmon's character is based on Harris. The opening animated title sequence was created by Saul Bass. The screenwriters were Edmund H. North and Dalton Trumbo - the latter received no screen credit at the time because he had been blacklisted as one of the Hollywood Ten.

<i>Marty</i> (film) 1955 American romantic drama film directed by Delbert Mann

Marty is a 1955 American romantic drama film directed by Delbert Mann in his directorial debut. The screenplay was written by Paddy Chayefsky, expanding upon his 1953 teleplay of the same name, which was broadcast on The Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse and starred Rod Steiger in the title role.

<i>W. C. Fields and Me</i> 1976 film by Arthur Hiller

W. C. Fields and Me is a 1976 American biographical film directed by Arthur Hiller and starring Rod Steiger and Valerie Perrine. The screenplay by Bob Merrill is based on a memoir by Carlotta Monti, mistress of actor W. C. Fields during the last 14 years of his life. The film was released by Universal Pictures.

<i>Arctic Blue</i> 1993 American film

Arctic Blue is a 1993 action thriller film directed by Peter Masterson and starring Rutger Hauer, Dylan Walsh, Rya Kihlstedt, and John Cuthbert.

The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County is a 1970 American comedy Western film by Universal Studios, directed by Anton Leader and Ranald MacDougall, and starring Dan Blocker and Nanette Fabray, with a supporting cast featuring Jim Backus, Mickey Rooney, Wally Cox, Jack Elam, Noah Beery, Jr. and Don "Red" Barry. MacDougal wrote the screenplay.

<i>The Last Challenge</i> 1967 film by Richard Thorpe

The Last Challenge is a 1967 American Western in Panavision, produced and directed by Richard Thorpe. The film starred Glenn Ford and Angie Dickinson and centered around a town sheriff contending with his reputation as the "fastest gun in the West." It is also known under the titles of Pistolero and The Pistolero of Red River.

The First Texan is a 1956 American Western film in CinemaScope and Technicolor directed by Byron Haskin. It stars Joel McCrea and Felicia Farr.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neyle Morrow</span> American film and television actor

Francis Neyle Marx Jr. was an American film and television actor.

References

  1. TCM.com
  2. 'The Top Box-Office Hits of 1956', Variety Weekly, January 2, 1957
  3. Articles – TCM.com
  4. Pryor, Thomas (July 25, 1955). "KRAMER AND U. A. SIGN 2-FILM PACT: Producer-Director's Contract Goes Into Effect in Spring After 'Pride and Passion'". The New York Times . p. 16.
  5. "Jubal | Jonathan Rosenbaum". www.jonathanrosenbaum.net. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  6. "Jubal (1956)". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved July 1, 2021.
  7. "Jubal". The Criterion Collection. Retrieved July 17, 2019.