Arizona (1940)

Arizona: Directed by Wesley Ruggles. With Jean Arthur, William Holden, Warren William, Porter Hall. During the 1860s Tucson, a pioneer woman struggles to succeed in the freight and cattle business while at risk at the hands of corrupt and violent local businessmen and rampaging Indians.

“u0026quot;Arizonau0026quot; is a very enjoyable movie about pioneer settlement of the West. Without giving away the plot, letu0026#39;s just say that it has enough twists and angles to make it stand apart from the normal grind of Westerns. It gives us a little bit of all the various stock parts of Westerns – Indians, cowboys, cavalry, good guys, bad guys, guns and shootings, robbery and romance, sagebrush and scenery, horses and a stampede, a wagon train and cattle drive. But itu0026#39;s the way those bits are put together and woven into a nice story that sets u0026quot;Arizonau0026quot; apart and gives it the feel of an epic film. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eJean Arthur is excellent as Phoebe Titus. Sheu0026#39;s a self-assured, decent, hard-working, and tough Western gal with big dreams. We never learn why or how she got to Tucson on her own. But viewers are taken with her sincerity and toughness which has just a touch of humor. The men in the movie are also won over by her pies. I canu0026#39;t think of another Western that has a pie shop or stand in it. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWilliam Holden is a delight as Peter Muncie. This is only the fifth movie in which he was listed in the credits. Itu0026#39;s one of his early starring roles and his very first Western. Holdenu0026#39;s character has a very likable, easy-going and pleasantness about him. A pity we didnu0026#39;t see more of that persona throughout his career. For most of his roles later on, Holden had a more straight or serious demeanor – even dour at times.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAnother reviewer commented on Warren Williamu0026#39;s excellent role as Jefferson Carteret. He played the villain very well. William was a very accomplished actor who might have done some great films in the 1950s and 1960s. But he died in 1948 from cancer. He was just 53. He had played suave, sophisticated and intelligent leading men, and fiends and conniving crooks and scoundrels, equally well. I especially enjoy him as Perry Mason in the original movies about that fictional detective- lawyer. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eA number of other character actors gave banner performances in this film. Edgar Buchanan, Porter Hall, Paul Harvey and Regis Toomey stand out. The direction and cinematography were excellent, and the musical score for this film was a delight. It received two Academy Award nominations, one for musical score. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOthers have commented about the setting and feel of reality about the movie. u0026quot;Arizonau0026quot; was made in 1940, when it was possible to find space to shoot a film around Tucson that wasnu0026#39;t invaded by utility poles and lines, paved highways and other signs of modern times. The ramshackle settlement of the early town sure gives it a feel of reality. Iu0026#39;m not so sure, though, how accurate a picture that is of Tucson at the time of the story. Itu0026#39;s taking place around the Civil War years. The town of Tucson wasnu0026#39;t incorporated until 1877, but the town got its start a hundred years earlier. Hugh Oconor is the founding father of Tucson. He was the military governor of northern Mexico and authorized a fort to be built there in 1775. Even before that, the very first development was the Mission San Xavier del Bac in 1700. The mission is still operating today and is a historic site south of Tucson. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eColumbia Pictures built the set for the film, with a sound stage, a few miles west of present-day downtown Tucson. It sat idle for a number of years after the movie was made. Then, in 1960, it was fixed up and opened as an active movie set and tourist park. In time, more streets were added and some amusement events were staged – gunfights and bank robberies. Nearly 70 movies have been filmed in part or in whole in Old Tucson, as it is called. Most were Westerns, but a number of mysteries and dramas were made there – even a comedy or two. John Wayne filmed four of his Westerns in Old Tucson – u0026quot;Rio Bravo,u0026quot; u0026quot;McLintock,u0026quot; u0026quot;El Dorado,u0026quot; and u0026quot;Rio Lobo.u0026quot; A 1995 fire destroyed much of the set and sound stage; but the community rebuilt the movie set town and it is still open today.”