Canadian Pacific ** (1949, Randolph Scott, Jane Wyatt, Nancy Olson, J Carrol Naish, Victor Jory, Robert Barrat) – Classic Movie Review 8950

Director Edwin L Marin’s solid, busy, sometimes impressive minor 1949 Western movie Canadian Pacific stars an ideal Randolph Scott as manly railroad surveyor Tom Andrews, who discovers the pass through the Rockies, fights Indians and battles trapper-boss bad guy Dirk Rourke (Victor Jory), all of whom are trying to stop rail progress for their own supposedly selfish reasons.

Meanwhile Tom Andrews still finds time to romance both a nice lady doctor, the construction camp medic Dr Edith Cabot (Jane Wyatt), and the wayward Cecille Gautier (Nancy Olson). Also notable in the cast, J Carrol Naish plays Dynamite Dawson and Robert Barrat plays railroad boss Cornelius Van Horne.

The redoubtable Scott, the Rockies location filming, the film’s visual sweep and the action sequences make it worthwhile. However, as an attempt to retell these real-life events it hardly gets started with such a fanciful script based on a story by Jack DeWitt. But then, hey, after all this isn’t a history lesson.

Also in the cast are Walter Sande, Don Haggerty, Grandon Rhodes, Mary Kent, John Parrish, John Hamilton, Richard Wessel, and Howard Negley.

Canadian Pacific is directed by Edwin L Marin, runs 94 minutes, is made by Nat Holt Productions, is released by 20th Century Fox, is written by Jack DeWitt and Kenneth Gamet, based on a story by Jack DeWitt, is shot in Cinecolor by Fred Jackman Jr, is produced by Nat Holt, and is scored by Dimitri Tiomkin

Nancy Olson was born on 14 July 1928.

Scott was 51 but his love interest Nancy Olson was only 21. Born on 14 July 1928, she was Oscar nominated as Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Sunset Blvd (1950).

Randolph Scott (1898–1987) was one of the most popular Western stars but retired to enjoy his enormous wealth after Ride the High Country (1962).

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 8950

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