''Way of a Gaucho'' is a 1952 American
Western drama film directed by
Jacques Tourneur
Jacques Tourneur (; November 12, 1904 – December 19, 1977) was a French film director known for the classic film noir ''Out of the Past'' and a series of low-budget horror films he made for RKO Studios, including ''Cat People (1942 film), Cat ...
and starring
Gene Tierney
Gene Eliza Tierney (November 19, 1920 – November 6, 1991) was an American film and stage actress. Acclaimed for her great beauty, she became established as a leading lady. Tierney was best known for her portrayal of the title character in the ...
and
Rory Calhoun
Rory Calhoun (born Francis Timothy McCown, August 8, 1922April 28, 1999) was an American film and television actor. He starred in numerous Westerns in the 1950s and 1960s, and appeared in supporting roles in films such as '' How to Marry a Milli ...
. It was written by
Philip Dunne and based on a novel by Herbert Childs.
The film was made by
20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...
and shot
on location in
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
. It was one of a growing trend of
Runaway production
Runaway production is a term used by the American Hollywood industry to describe filmmaking and television productions that are intended for initial release/exhibition or television broadcast in the U.S., but are actually filmed outside of the ...
s which saw American production shift away from
Hollywood to other countries, particularly Britain and Italy, where the Hollywood studios had large amounts of money frozen because of
currency controls. During World War II the Argentinian market had remained open to Hollywood films and Fox had built up significant earnings which they were unable to spend outside the country.
The film failed to make a profit on its release. The story portrays the adventures of an
Argentine rebel
gaucho
A gaucho () or gaúcho () is a skilled horseman, reputed to be brave and unruly. The figure of the gaucho is a folk symbol of Argentina, Uruguay, Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, and the south of Chilean Patagonia. Gauchos became greatly admired and ...
, a South American cattleman considered a variant of the Mexican
vaquero and the American
cowboy.
Plot
In 1875
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
, a young
gaucho
A gaucho () or gaúcho () is a skilled horseman, reputed to be brave and unruly. The figure of the gaucho is a folk symbol of Argentina, Uruguay, Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, and the south of Chilean Patagonia. Gauchos became greatly admired and ...
kills another man in a
duel. His prison sentence is commuted to joining the army. He serves under the tough Major Salinas, but soon grows tired of military life and
deserts
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
. He becomes Valverde and leads a band of gauchos to resist the increasing encroachment of railroad agents into the
Pampas
The Pampas (from the qu, pampa, meaning "plain") are fertile South American low grasslands that cover more than and include the Argentine provinces of Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Santa Fe, Entre Ríos, and Córdoba; all of Uruguay; and Brazi ...
.
In the meantime Salinas quits the army and becomes chief of police, so he can continue his vendetta against him. After falling in love with an aristocratic woman, Martin decides to escape with her to
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
, crossing the
Andes
The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...
on horseback. On the way Teresa tells him that she is pregnant, so they decide to return and get married instead, because of her safety and that for them is inconceivable for the child to be raised without a legitimate last name.
When they arrive at the cathedral, the police follow them so Martin has to escape again, leaving Teresa in the care of Father Fernandez. That night Martin's childhood friend Miguel talks with Teresa about a deal he reached with the Governor, in which Martin voluntarily turns himself in, in exchange for a 3-year prison sentence and a clean slate.
Teresa tells Miguel where Martin is hiding, but Salinas also follows, prompting a horse chase through a cattle run, that causes Miguel to fall from his horse and be trampled to death by the herd. That same night, Martin returns filled with guilt to meet Teresa and while she offers to escape to Brazil or Europe, he declines and tells her to meet him at noon at the cathedral. The next day Father Fernandez arranges a meeting alone with Salinas, where Martin agrees to turn himself in and face the consequences of his actions, as long as he can first marry Teresa as a free man.
Cast
*
Rory Calhoun
Rory Calhoun (born Francis Timothy McCown, August 8, 1922April 28, 1999) was an American film and television actor. He starred in numerous Westerns in the 1950s and 1960s, and appeared in supporting roles in films such as '' How to Marry a Milli ...
as Martin Penalosa
*
Gene Tierney
Gene Eliza Tierney (November 19, 1920 – November 6, 1991) was an American film and stage actress. Acclaimed for her great beauty, she became established as a leading lady. Tierney was best known for her portrayal of the title character in the ...
as Teresa Chavez
*
Richard Boone
Richard Allen Boone (June 18, 1917 – January 10, 1981) was an American actor who starred in over 50 films and was notable for his roles in Westerns, including his starring role in the television series '' Have Gun – Will Travel''.
Early li ...
as Maj. Salinas
*
Hugh Marlowe
Hugh Marlowe (born Hugh Herbert Hipple; January 30, 1911May 2, 1982) was an American film, television, stage and radio actor.
Early life
Marlowe was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was born Hugh Herbert Hipple. He was of primarily Engli ...
as Don Miguel Aleondo
*
Everett Sloane as Falcon
Production
Development
The film was based on a novel by Herbert Childs which was published in 1948. The ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' called it an "admirable first novel".
20th Century Fox bought the film rights in July 1950. Henry King was the original director assigned and it was hoped to star
Tyrone Power
Tyrone Edmund Power III (May 5, 1914 – November 15, 1958) was an American actor. From the 1930s to the 1950s, Power appeared in dozens of films, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads. His better-known films include ''Jesse James'', ' ...
. Philip Dunne wrote the script and in January 1951 he was promoted to producer. (Fox often promoted writers to producers – such as
Charles Brackett
Charles William Brackett (November 26, 1892 – March 9, 1969) was an American screenwriter and film producer. He collaborated with Billy Wilder on sixteen films.
Life and career
Brackett was born in Saratoga Springs, New York, the son of ...
,
Lamar Trotti and
Nunnally Johnson
Nunnally Hunter Johnson (December 5, 1897 – March 25, 1977) was an American screenwriter, film director, producer, and playwright. As a filmmaker, he wrote the screenplays to more than fifty films in a career that spanned from 1927 to 1967. He ...
.)
By March there was talks that Power would no longer star. Then in May King, who wanted to direct another movie, was replaced by
Jacques Tourneur
Jacques Tourneur (; November 12, 1904 – December 19, 1977) was a French film director known for the classic film noir ''Out of the Past'' and a series of low-budget horror films he made for RKO Studios, including ''Cat People (1942 film), Cat ...
, who had just signed a long-term contract with the studio.
The studio wanted Power to star, but he was unhappy with continually being cast in period movies. He refused to star in ''
Lydia Bailey
''Lydia Bailey'' is a 1952 American historical film directed by Jean Negulesco, based on the novel of the same name by Kenneth Roberts. It stars Dale Robertson and Anne Francis.
Plot
In 1802, lawyer Albion Hamlin travels from Baltimore to Cap ...
'' and was put on suspension by Fox, which meant he missed out on ''Gaucho''. (Power would later come to terms with the studio and appear in ''Diplomatic Courier''.) In August the lead role was given to
Rory Calhoun
Rory Calhoun (born Francis Timothy McCown, August 8, 1922April 28, 1999) was an American film and television actor. He starred in numerous Westerns in the 1950s and 1960s, and appeared in supporting roles in films such as '' How to Marry a Milli ...
, who the studio were grooming for stardom. "I've had my eye on Rory for several years", said Darryl Zanuck, head of Fox, "but he was under contract to another studio."
The female lead was given to
Jean Peters
Elizabeth Jean Peters (October 15, 1926 – October 13, 2000) was an American film actress. She is known as a star of 20th Century Fox in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and as the second wife of Howard Hughes. Although possibly best remembered f ...
. The third lead was given to Richard Boone, who had made a number of movies for Fox.
Dunne and Tourneur left for South America in late August to do location filming. Dunne estimated the budget would be around $2 million.
Peters asked to be excused from the film for ill health and was replaced by
Gene Tierney
Gene Eliza Tierney (November 19, 1920 – November 6, 1991) was an American film and stage actress. Acclaimed for her great beauty, she became established as a leading lady. Tierney was best known for her portrayal of the title character in the ...
.
Shooting
There were
political disturbances in Argentina before and during filming but it was decided to proceed anyway. Filming began October 8, 1951.
Apart from the leading parts, English-speaking Argentine actors were hired. The film's production was troubled, in part because of a tense relationship between the filmmakers and the
Peronist government of Argentina. The story is freely based on the
epic poem
An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants.
...
''
Martín Fierro
''Martín Fierro'', also known as ''El Gaucho Martín Fierro'', is a 2,316-line epic poem by the Argentine writer José Hernández. The poem was originally published in two parts, ''El Gaucho Martín Fierro'' (1872) and ''La Vuelta de Martín Fi ...
'' (1872 and 1879) by Argentine poet, politician and journalist
José Hernández. The film's producer and screenwriter
Philip Dunne observed that
Juan Perón's followers "had made the legendary gaucho, then almost extinct, a national hero and symbol of their own aggressive
nationalism
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
" and the script was closely monitored by the Minister of Information
Raul Apold. The budget overran by $413,000 and eventually cost $2,239,000.
"We believe we've got a good picture", said Dunne towards the end of the shoot. "The scenery has been magnificent and Darryl Zanuck gave me some of his best people to work with. We've made everything authentic for the period... We were budgeted for $2 million for the picture, about half in dollars, half in pesos. But we didn't make the picture here just to use blocked pesos. Zanuck told me he wanted to make a great picture. He got one."
Legacy
The making of a Gaucho film in Argentina by a major United States film studio inspired the local studios to make a
Western movie
The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...
in Argentina for the first time. ''
El último cow-boy'' (''The Last Cowboy'') is the result, an Argentinian
black and white film
Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey.
Media
The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...
directed by
Juan Sires
''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanish, ...
, based on the script by
Eric Della Valle and
Miguel Petruccelli, that premiered on February 25, 1954 and had as its cast:
Augusto Codeca,
Hector Calcaño,
Hector Quintanilla and
Pedro Laxalt. The film was initially going to be called "Camino del Cow-boy" (The Way of The Cowboy), seeking to replicate in jocular form Tourneur's ''Camino del Gaucho''/''Way of a Gaucho''.
References
Bibliography
* Fujiwara, Chris. ''Jacques Tourneur: The Cinema of Nightfall''. McFarland & Co, 1998.
* Lev, Peter. ''The Fifties: Transforming the Screen 1950–1959''. University of California Press, 2003.
* Solomon, Aubrey. ''Twentieth Century-Fox: A Corporate and Financial History''. Scarecrow Press, 1988.
External links
*
*
*
{{Jacques Tourneur
Films directed by Jacques Tourneur
1952 films
American Western (genre) films
Films shot in Argentina
Films set in Argentina
Films set in the 1870s
1952 Western (genre) films
20th Century Fox films
1950s English-language films
Films with screenplays by Philip Dunne
Fictional gauchos
Films about gauchos
American historical adventure films
1950s historical adventure films
Films scored by Sol Kaplan
1950s American films