Broken Lance (1954)

An iron fisted rancher (Spencer Tracy) has alienated his three sons (Richard Widmark, Hugh O'Brian, Earl Holliman) from his first marriage by treating them as ranch hands rather than sons. He's more kindly disposed to his son (Robert Wagner) from his second marriage to an Indian woman (Katy Jurado in an Oscar nominated performance). The hostility between sons and the father will lead to tragedy for the family. This is a loose remake of the 1949 film HOUSE OF STRANGERS with the story transplanted from lower East Side New York to the American West. The story itself owes a lot to Shakespeare's KING LEAR. Curiously, the writer Philip Yordan who wrote the 1949 film won an Oscar for this remake when the original was never nominated. That aside, I love this western. It's one of the best westerns of the 1950s which still hasn't received the respect it deserves. Tracy dominates the film with his bold performance as the hard headed patriarch. But the other actors hold their own. Solidly directed by Edward Dmytryk. Leigh Harline composed the killer score. With Jean Peters, E.G. Marshall, Carl Benton Reid and Eduard Franz.