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Westward the Women

Westward the Women

Western · 1951

There's a deficit of good, honest women in the West, and Roy Whitman wants to change that. His solution is to bring a caravan of over 100 mail-order brides from Chicago to California. It will be a long, difficult and dangerous journey for the women. So Whitman hires hardened, cynical Buck Wyatt to be their guide across the inhospitable frontier. But as disaster strikes on the trail, Buck just might discover that these women are stronger than he thinks.

Movie details

Westward the Women

“The BIG MGM Spectacle ! HE LED 200 WOMEN ON AN ADVENTURE THAT MOST MEN FEARED TO FACE!”

1951 Western 1h 58m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.0 / 10

Community rating

There's a deficit of good, honest women in the West, and Roy Whitman wants to change that. His solution is to bring a caravan of over 100 mail-order brides from Chicago to California. It will be a long, difficult and dangerous journey for the women. So Whitman hires hardened, cynical Buck Wyatt to be their guide across the inhospitable frontier. But as disaster strikes on the trail, Buck just might discover that these women are stronger than he thinks.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Westward the Women?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

William A. Wellman

Written by

Frank Capra · Charles Schnee

Robert Taylor

Robert Taylor

Buck Wyatt

Denise Darcel

Denise Darcel

Fifi Danon

Hope Emerson

Hope Emerson

Patience Hawley

John McIntire

John McIntire

Roy E. Whitman

Julie Bishop

Julie Bishop

Laurie Smith

Lenore Lonergan

Lenore Lonergan

Maggie O'Malley

Henry Nakamura

Henry Nakamura

Ito

Court is in session

Put Westward the Women on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Auteur Devotee

“Ambition earns the room.”

The film reaches for consequence and scale, accepting the risk of seriousness instead of shrinking from it.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Importance has entered the chat.”

The production keeps announcing its significance, as though awards-season posture were proof of insight.