Rachel and the Stranger (1948) User Reviews

Rachel and her 3 guys

[bkoganbing · 8/10 · 12 December 2004]

This is a film that for most of its running time has no other players than the three adult leads and a child. The players had better be good for this one. Fortunately they are and Rachel and the Stranger has a good quiet charm about it.

The title role is played by Loretta Young. She was a year past her Oscar winning performance in The Farmer's Daughter and really at the top of her game. Rachel is a bondservant who is bought by widower William Holden to help out at the family farm, bring back a feminine touch to the place and help raise his son, Gary Gray. Rachel is bought for "eighteen dollars and owing four" by Holden, but frontier proprieties being what they were, Holden has to marry her.

But she's no wife, she's bought and paid for help, until Holden's friend Robert Mitchum shows up and starts looking at her as a desirable woman. Now Holden starts thinking along those lines and the fun begins.

Holden and Mitchum both do very well in typical roles for both at the time. Bill Holden called this his "smiling jim" period which ended with Sunset Boulevard a year later.

Mitchum gets to sing in Rachel and the Stranger and even cut a couple of records of the songs he sings from the film. Not bad for Bob, among the many accomplishments of that complex and talented man was as a singer and songwriter. He didn't do it often enough in movies.

But the movie really turns on Loretta Young's performance. She strikes just the right note as the bondwoman who helps make the whole lot of them a family again.

The movie is also a good depiction of frontier Ohio. An Indian attack is part of the problems the quartet faces and the Shawnees were very active there until the Battle of Fallen Timbers which took place in 1795. Figure the action to be taking place slightly before that.

A nice entertaining film.

Funny

[zava_t · 8/10 · 5 November 2008]

I loved this movie. I thought the banter between Holden and Mitchum were subtly hilarious. The facial expressions were spot on from Holden. Young was formidable in this part as well. I think it takes a strong cast to make a movie that revolves around four sole characters. It was a great romantic comedy. I liked the chemistry between Mitchum and Young on screen. I also thought that Gary Gray added the right amount of drama/comedy to the whole show. I loved the scenes in the woods with Mitchum and Holden bickering and making their pleas to Young. All in all, I think this is a good movie, and definitely worth the time of watching.

A bride for David

[jotix100 · 7/10 · 27 May 2007]

"Rachel and the Stranger" is a pleasant film that combines two genres to great advantage. On the one hand, it has the feel of a western, but it is also a tender love story. Pictures like this one were made in the Hollywood of the post-war when all the men were back and happier times seemed just on the horizon. The film reflects the hope of those years as it gave its viewers a good time for the prize of admission.

The story is simple enough. A lonely widower, David Harris, with a young son can't cope running their farm without the help of a woman. The solution is to go into the near settlement where no one knows his wife has died to try to get a woman that could come and help with the farm work. He has to resort to buy a servant woman, Rachel, for a ridiculous sum and heads back to his place. There is a best friend who takes only one look at Rachel to realize she's a diamond in the rough. Through Jim's interest in Racehl, David comes to realize what this woman is worth after she walks out on him and the farm. David will come to his senses and will realize he has loved Rachel all along.

The film unites three stars in their own right: William Holden, Loretta Young and Robert Mitchum, something that would be prohibitive by today's salaries and egos. RKO scored big with the casting alone. Norman Foster directed with his own easy style. The three principals do an excellent job in creating characters that the viewer will like.

"Rachel and the Stranger" is a good way to spend an evening when there is nothing else to do.

"I suppose singing does make you thirsty, like salt pork and hard liquor."

[utgard14 · 7/10 · 4 September 2014]

After the death of his wife, pioneer farmer David Harvey (William Holden) decides to take a new bride. What he's really after is less a wife than a housekeeper who will do chores and take care of his son. He finds that in indentured servant Rachel (Loretta Young), whom he purchases and then marries at the urging of the local parson. David shows no affection towards Rachel, treating her just like a servant. This changes when traveling fur trapper Jim Fairways (Robert Mitchum) shows up. Jim's an old friend of David's and loved his late wife though she chose David over him. When Jim starts paying Rachel attention, it stirs feelings of jealousy in David and he starts to see Rachel in a new light.

Charming western love story with top stars at their best. Holden and Mitchum are superb but Young really shines, carrying most of the picture just through her facial expressions. What a lovely face it was, too. Young and Mitchum both sing in this, as well. I should also mention Gary Gray is good as the son. A simple story but wonderfully told with that old Hollywood magic.

Excellent Blk & White Movie

[robbjk · 21 July 2004]

This is an excellent movie. The 1st time i saw it was in the 70's & i look forward to seeing it & wish that it were on more often,at least once or twice a yr. What a lucky woman to have a potential love interest like Robert Mitchum,that it made her husband sit up & take notice in how he & his son were treating her. The scenery is just a big a part of the movie as the actors are. This movie first showed me that living in the country could fill your soul up,that's 1 reason why i live in wyoming. Not everything has to be in your face blood & gore or stupidity & 4 letter words to get your attention. Too bad AMC doesn't air it more often. Hope its on DVD soon. If you get the chance to see this movie don't pass it up,you won't regret it.

Quietly charming and unpretentious yarn, nicely played...

[Doylenf · 6/10 · 6 January 2011]

RACHEL AND THE STRANGER has the kind of quiet charm that LORETTA YOUNG always possessed and benefits from the more rugged screen presence of its leading men--WILLIAM HOLDEN and ROBERT MITCHUM. Loretta is an indentured servant who becomes the wife of William Holden and must prove herself worthy of the affections of Holden and his young son.

There really is very little in the story that is original and the outcome can be predicted from scene one. It's clear that Loretta, as Holden's second wife, will have a hard time replacing his winsome wife who was a woman of modest talents and dearly loved by husband and son (GARY GRAY). Not unexpectedly, they both warm to her and so does Holden's "stranger" friend, ROBERT MITCHUM, who does a nice job raising his voice in song accompanied by guitar. Mitchum gives his usual laid back performance, nicely understated. The story may be a little too slow moving for some tastes since it's more of a character study of a widower and his new wife than it is a western.

There's no real excitement to the story until the Indian attack which comes late in the story, but the film depends on the central performances of Young, Holden and Mitchum to hold interest as the three of them have some amusing interactions throughout the story.

Nicely photographed in outdoor settings photographed in crisp B&W, it's a film full of simple charm without anything pretentious about it.

Only drawback: Overuse of the phrase "I reckon" to give the dialog a bucolic flavor. Its use is way overdone and actually becomes irritating when the script has the phrase repeated every few seconds by everyone in the cast.

'Rebecca' in Western clothes.

[the red duchess · 7/10 · 11 October 2000]

This film is a Western, but combines a number of strange bedfellows - the romantic comedies of Hawks (two men fight over a woman treated as a slave); melodrama (the film is brilliant at visualising the limited options open to Rachel, from the proscenium curtains looking out at a world she has no freedom in and the metronome ticking away her life, to the overall claustrophobic setting (a small farm) and limited dramatis personae), and even psychological thriller (like REBECCA, Rachel is a second wife living in the shadow of a perfect predecessor; both films share a cathartic conflagration). The unsophisticated characters conceal a complex film about family and gender, in which the usual Indian threat is more of a psychological displacement.

Highly Recommended

[aimless-46 · 9/10 · 17 April 2006]

At its most basic, "Rachel and the Stranger" is a domestic comedy set in the wilderness of 18th century Ohio. Director Norman Foster manages to pack more charm into each five minutes than most films have during their entire running length.

At its most ambitious, "Rachel and the Stranger" is an allegorical story about the impact of a catalyst into a seemingly stable dynamic. In this case the stranger in the title, Jim (Robert Mitchum), visits the isolated farm of long-time friend David Harvey (William Holden), his young son Davey (Gary Gray), and their bond servant Rachel (Loretta Young). David bought Rachel (who is working off her late father's debts) after his wife died, needing a replacement to help raise Davey. He married her out of respect for social convention but has no intention of consummating the marriage.

While David treats Rachel with respect and consideration, his son is openly resentful of the substitute mother. After some initial progress the threesome settles into a distanced existence, a rut from which there is little chance they will be able to escape on their own. But things quickly change when Jim stops by on his way to town. For the first time Rachel has someone who actively engages her. Jim's attentions build up Rachel's status in Davey's eyes while causing David to see her obvious attractions for the first time. But Foster doesn't limit things to this predictable interplay; he builds on it by having Rachel quickly come out of her guarded shell in response to Jim's interest. Even the makeup people get into the act as Young goes from the look of a plain pioneer woman to a subtle radiance.

All four stars are excellent. It was probably Holden's best performance as he provides most of the humor with his growing attraction to Rachel and his increasing irritation with the attention Jim is paying to her.

Young was about 10 years too old for her 25 year-old character but this is not really a factor as the age of the character is unimportant; you wonder why they did not simply change the one reference to her age after casting Young for the part. Young's acting tends to be underrated because of her later work as a television hostess but even her film work as a teenager was extraordinary. She was an especially good casting choice because the repressed Rachel needs to subtly convey a depth and dimensionality early in the film to make her later transformation plausible.

Mitchum gives perhaps his liveliest performance as he seems to be having a lot of fun with his part. Gray is solid as always, one of those rare child actors who were not irritating after a few minutes on the screen.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

The Sight Of The Hunter

[writers_reign · 6/10 · 23 March 2012]

This is an unpretentious 'little' film that succeeds in charming even a latter-day audience though back in the late forties it was probably very much in the mainstream. In probably nineteenth century rural Ohio William Holden is neglecting his farm and young son in favor of grieving for his late wife, recently (presumably) deceased as the film opens, victim of an unspecified ailment. Travelling 'hunter'cum-trapper, Robert Mitchum, a long-time friend of the family and one-time rival of Holden for the hand of the dead woman, makes a regular visit to the farm, learns the situation and advises Holden to do something about both the domestic chores and a maternal presence for his son. Holden addresses this problem by riding into the nearby town and 'buying' a 'bond' woman, Loretta Young, to handle both tasks. Back at the farm he treats her as little better than a skivvy, allowing his son to do the same. He appears to have little interest in sleeping with her and is, at best, awkwardly civil. The scene is now set for Mitchum to make a return visit but this time as hunter-trapper-catalyst; his treating of Young with both respect and as a desirable woman, triggers Holden's latent jealousy and paves the way for a happy 'bonding' with the bond woman. All three leads perform well and the result is a true, feel-good movie.

A Forgotten Classic

[Prof-Hieronymos-Grost · 10/10 · 11 August 2005]

"Big" Davey Harvey(William Holden) a widower, and his only son Davey live in the mountains of Ohio during the Pioneer days. Big Davey increasingly frustrated at the influence of his fur hunter friend Jim Fairways(Robert Mitchum) decides his son needs a woman's influence around the house and sets off to the local stockade to find a wife much to the protestations of little Davey who doesn't want anyone to replace his recently deceased mother.Big Davey is recommended a bonds girl Rachel(Loretta Young )who is surplus to requirements and he buys her for 18 dollars.Both of the Harveys are cold and distant towards their new family member and treat her as the slave she is, until that is the charismatic Jim Fairways arrives and treats her like a queen,they hit it off straight away much to the jealousy of Big Davey who is just not ready for love yet…. this triggers a battle of wills to win the heart of Rachel…and just to add to their problems the film is set against a backdrop of continuing raids by rogue Shawnee Indians on the local homesteads.This is truly a forgotten western classic that still feels very fresh today,Rachel and the Stranger is very very charming film,that is also very funny and has a simple but intelligent script,on top of that add three truly Epic performances by the three leads and an action packed finale and you have a wonderful film.

PS.Mitchum never ceases to amaze me, a true giant of the Cinema and a really good singer too

A nice family film--but NOT a 10!

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 28 April 2008]

I have a pet peeve and before I begin I want to say a few words about it. I have done a huge number of reviews and am constantly noticing that even the most mediocre films get scores of 10 from some reviewers. While this is definitely a better than average film, no sane person could say it deserves a score akin to that of GONE WITH THE WIND or THE GODFATHER. I think it's great to love a film, but over-scoring it doesn't lend much credence to your review. Just my two cents worth and I'm sure I'll catch heck for saying it.

As for this movie, it's a nice little family film that benefits from being very unique and having several wonderful performances. In this slice of pioneer life film, William Holden and his son are left alone after the death of his wife. Needing a mother for the boy and someone to help out around their frontier homestead, he travels to the nearby fort to find a wife. There, he buys an indentured servant (Loretta Young) and brings her back home after marrying her. Not exactly a romance, I know! Unfortunately, there never really is any romance, as Holden and son treat her more like a hired hand and after a while it's obvious she resents this--especially after she works herself to the bone caring for them. Into this very unhappy situation comes "the stranger" (Robert Mitchum)--who immediately realizes the problem and proposes to take Rachel away from this drudgery--and pay Holden for her! While there is a lot more to the film, this certainly made for an unusual flick.

The performances all around are excellent and the film ended on a very good and not especially sappy note. Well worth your time and I have no serious complaints--other than the writer who indicated that Miss Young was playing a lady who was 25 (yeah, right!!). In actuality she was a decade older and she wasn't fooling anyone--but still a lovely woman regardless of the age difference.

My favorite western/love story

[tpottera · 10/10 · 28 July 2002]

This is a WONDERFUL movie. Why it wasn't released for home video....Its a beautiful story of a widower (Holden) and his son who feel they need a woman around the house. A neighbor recommends a bond slave (Young) and after persuasion, he reluctantly marries her. She moves in but finds there is not a welcome wagon from the boy or Holden! She is just a housekeeper to them. A wily bachelor friend (Mitchum) shows up unexpectedly and has eyes for Young! Holden doesn't know what to think. He hasn't gotten over the death of his wife yet and can't love Young, but with Mitchum's arrival he starts to get jealous! Simple but deep, touching story with nice filming and awesome performance by all. Especially Mitchum as the lonely bachelor trying to steal Young. Catch it on the classic movie channel.

Watch this to fall in love with Robert Mitchum

[HotToastyRag · 7/10 · 19 August 2018]

The romance in Rachel and the Stranger is pretty typical, and therefore trite, but I'm going to recommend you rent it anyway, just to fall in love with Robert Mitchum. William Holden is the lead, playing a widower who buys an indentured servant to marry, keep house, and act as a mother to his young son, Gary Gray. Even though his new wife is Loretta Young, he has no romantic feelings for her and treats her like a servant-until Bill's friend Robert Mitchum comes for a visit. Bob is gorgeous, and even though he spends all his time in the wilderness, he still knows how to treat a lady. His adorable Southern manners, cheerful personality, and kindness to Gary make Loretta look twice at him across the dinner table. Plus, he sings!

This isn't the only movie you can rent to hear Robert Mitchum's lovely singing voice, but if you want to hear him sing five different songs in less than ninety minutes, this is the only one you're going to get. Unfortunately-my laments won't change the facts-Robert Mitchum didn't play Skye Masterson in Guys and Dolls and was never cast in a bona fide musical, so this is the most singing you're going to get out of him, unless you can find copies of his two musical albums.

I'm not really a William Holden fan, and this movie didn't change my mind. His character was a "typical guy" and didn't really have any redeeming qualities. Jealousy, insensitivity, and disloyalty were his main traits. But, since Robert Mitchum was as cute as it gets, I was a happy audience member.

Strange Rachel.

[morrison-dylan-fan · 5/10 · 16 October 2016]

Taking a look at the BBC listings,I spotted a Western double bill.Recording the movies,I found details on Fritz Lang's Rancho Notorious to make it sound a more complex plot to Robert Mitchum's gunslinger,which led to me deciding,that for the first of this Western fest,I would walk to the salon with Big Bob.

The plot:

Bringing up his son Davy on his own after the tragic death of his wife, David Harvey decides that he and his son need a women round the house. Going to get a servant woman from settlement head Parson Jackson,Harvey gets pushed to accept Rachel as his servant,and to get married to her! Unwilling to accept Rachel as a new women in their lives,the Harvey's live Rachel as a farmhand. Believing that she will never be accepted,Rachel and the Harvey's are woken up by the Harvey's old friend Jim Fairways arriving in town.

View on the film:

Rushed out when Mitchum was arrested for possessing marijuana,director Norman Foster & cinematographer Maury Gertsman avoid any sign of rebellion, emphasised by Roy Webb whimsical score,soaked up in the stilted shots Foster uses to breath in the superb rural location. Firing an arrow to end the film on a Western battle with the Indians, Waldo Salt's adaptation of Howard Fast's story loads up the Melodrama's "Women's Picture."

Entering the Harvey's farm with Rachel,Salt wonderfully shows no fears in highlighting the harsher side of Davy and David,with the memory of their wife/mother leading to them wearing their Melodrama hats,until the arrival of Fairways,leads to them finally becoming aware of who Rachel truly is. Despite some of the dialogue being dry,the cast make the movie sing,thanks to an irresistible chemistry.Pushed around,the elegant Loretta Young gives a charming performance as Rachel,who despite being pushed away by everyone,is given a firm determination by Young.Changing the way the Harvey's (played by a great William Holden and Gary Gray) see Rachel in a new light,Big Bob (who also sings!) gives a terrific performance as Fairways who is given a Folk music glow by Bob's reunion with the family,with Mitchum given Fairways a glint of rebellion in his eyes,as Rachel meets the stranger.

Great Cast

[Michael_Elliott · 13 March 2008]

Rachel and the Stranger (1947)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Highly entertaining western/comedy/drama has a man (William Holden) losing his wife but buying a slave woman (Loretta Young) and marrying her so that she can school his kid. Things get complicated when he doesn't pay her too much attention and his friend (Robert Mitchum) comes back from the hunting season. For the most part this is your typical love triangle but the incredible performances from the three leads makes this incredibly hard not to love. You've just gotta love a movie that opens with Mitchum walking through the woods singing and playing a guitar. Young and Mitchum also do a duet later in the film that is quite nice. The chemistry between the three stars makes this film work a lot better than it probably should have. There's some nice laughs at the end when the two men finally fight over her as well as suspense during an Indian attack.

I pick Mitchum

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 17 September 2020]

In colonial America, widower farmer David Harvey (William Holden) lives on a remote homestead with his son Davey facing threatened attacks by Shawnee Indians. They need a woman around the home. He purchases indentured servant Rachel (Loretta Young) and marries her. She is treated less as a wife and more as household help. Frontiersman Jim Fairways (Robert Mitchum) offers to buy her contract.

Quite frankly, I'm not sure which one is better. At first, I'm more inclined to pick Mitchum since he actually wants her. The Indian attack is really intense. The fires add to the intensity. This shows a tame idea of indentured servitude and nameless savage Indians. It's old fashion like that. It probably missed an opportunity with her talking to herself. That could have been something interesting.

Buying a wife, a mother and a slave couldn't be the same thing, but it could be the same woman.

[SAMTHEBESTEST · 7/10 · 4 June 2023]

Rachel and the Stranger (1948) : Brief Review -

Buying a wife, a mother and a slave couldn't be the same thing, but it could be the same woman. Just read the tagline, and you have understood the entire plot of Norman Foster's Rachel and the Stranger. The film is about a widower who buys a bondwoman after his wife's death. He needs a woman to grow up his boy properly and to take care of the house and the cooking stuff, but hardly did he know about his own loneliness. He wanted a multitasker, and he got one, but only if he could have recognised her worth. You see, this script is too influential. We have seen this idea being used in many films later and getting expanded in good manners too. Here, we have another character that adds something more to the basic plot, and that's Jim, played by Robert Mitchum. A man with an itch to roam around everywhere, can sing and respects women too. Unfortunately, he is the one who would lose a woman he wanted to his friend, i.e., our protagonist. Maybe his character could have been shown in better ways, I believe. I reckon he could have been the man who would make David understand the value of a woman by flirting with her delusionally. Instead, he makes it real, and they fight like animals. There is a feminist angle as Rachel decides to quit, lacking respect and making it her prestige issue. That part was really good, and it made me forget the earlier blunder of them fighting for a woman. So, it's a happy film set within a restricted area, far from city culture. A ranch, pretty faces, decency, and lots of dogs and stocks around-it's a fancy west-side affair in that sense. William Holden is fine; Loretta Young is even better; and there is Robert Mitchum, who just steals the show with his humour, expressions, and wild characteristics. Child artist Gary Gray had done well too. If it weren't for the male egotism and competitive nature, I believe Norman Foster would have made a superb film. Westerns can be delightful and entertaining sometimes.

RATING - 7/10*

By - samthebestest.

A Transition Film for Three Major Stars!

[malvernp · 7/10 · 5 September 2023]

Rachel and the Stranger (RATS) is film that may be best known today as being part of an important transition in the careers of its three principal actors.

When he made RATS, William Holden (born 1918) was on the cusp of one of the most significant leading man careers in Hollywood history. He was just two years away from his breakthrough role as Joe Gillis in Sunset Boulevard (1950), and that film would soon be followed by Stalag 17 (1953). He was about to enter the rarified category of "superstar."

Robert Mitchum (born 1917) had already achieved considerable success with his work in The Story of G. I. Joe (1945) and Out of the Past (1947). All this changed on Sept. 1, 1948 when Mitchum was arrested on a marijuana charge that rocked Hollywood. Some $5 million were then tied up with his unreleased films, including RATS, Blood on the Moon (1948) and The Red Pony (1949). What few people realized at the time was that Mitchum would overcome this scandal and emerge as a major film star who became even more important in the years ahead--with a long significant body of movies destined to define his future.

Loretta Young (born 1913) achieved instant fame when she co-starred at the age of 15 opposite Lon Chaney in the silent Laugh Clown Laugh (1928). She remained a star of the first rank throughout the 1930s and into the 1940s. When her career began to falter, Young revived it with her Oscar winning performance in The Farmer's Daughter (1947). RATS soon followed, as Young moved into more mature roles. Then in 1953, she retired as a film star and created the popular television series The Loretta Young Show. It ran for eight successful seasons and completely rejuvenated her acting career. Like Audrey Hepburn many years later, Young was able to transition when in her 30s into romantic parts opposite younger men. This was quite a tribute to her extraordinary beauty and youthful appearance.

As for RATS itself, it is a pleasant, warm and engaging romance/action movie that did not greatly challenge its three stars---and gave each of them the opportunity to showcase their charm and attractiveness. It paved the way for many more famous acting opportunities yet to come.

more here than meets the eye

[rupie · 8/10 · 25 August 2000]

I too became a fan of this movie (thank you American Movie Classics). What at first appeared to be a run-of-the-mill frontier cabin story turned into an absorbing, well-written, well-acted human interest story with four engaging characters, a beautiful locale (the movie would have benefited from color), and a fine score to boot. The concept of a bonded (indentured) servant added an interesting historical facet. The cast, of course, is top notch. Mitchum and Holden work particularly well together. The film should be a lot better known than it is, and is well worth a see.

An excellent pioneer romance

[dfwesley · 7/10 · 6 January 2017]

Three top notch movie stars are thrown together in this fine movie and they all perform splendidly.

Robert Mitchum plays his typical blase character to perfection, and William Holden is solid and expressive as Davy Harris. Loretta Young, as the focus of this dual attraction, steals the film with a wonderful performance.

The setting and scenery would have benefited from color, and I wonder why it wasn't done.

The plot proves that it took a stranger's attention to make Harris truly appreciate Rachel. The homestead has to be rebuilt, but true love finally comes to the surface.

Sadly Underrated Western

[Meredy · 10/10 · 5 November 1999]

This film is often overlooked despite the presence of Loretta Young, Robert Mitchum and William Holden in the cast. It's a well-done frontier story with plenty of action and romance. Loretta Young has never looked more fetching and the Mitchum/Holden combo is a knock out.

William Holden and Robert Mitchum compete for Loretta Young's affections

[jacobs-greenwood · 7/10 · 6 December 2016]

Directed by Norman Foster, this 80 minute drama gives one a real sense of the role of women in the pioneering days of the old West. Times were a lot different then, and women were expected to do chores from sun up to sundown with little thanks or appreciation while their menfolk cleared the land, farmed it, and caught or killed something for her to cook as their dinner.

Loretta Young plays Rachel while William Holden plays the titled "stranger", a widower with a preteen son (Gary Gray), who "buys" her to replace his recently departed wife. His wife had wanted her son to be raised properly, as a boy in the East would be, despite the wilderness in which they lived.

So, in order to provide the boy with the proper education and schooling, Holden's character marries a bonded (because she was repaying her deceased father's debt) woman, Rachel, after paying "18 (dollars) plus 4" (more later) for her. The parson (Tom Tully) and his wife (Sara Haden) had convinced him that living under the same roof with another woman wouldn't be proper unless they were husband and wife.

Holden's character, David Harvey, proceeds in treating Rachel like chattel until his old friend, and wandering hunter Jim Fairways (Robert Mitchum) comes to call. Apparently David and Jim had competed for the affections of the woman that became David's first wife. She had married David because he was more proper, and less wild than Jim, who thus far had shown no willingness to settle down. Davey (Jr.) would love to do as Jim does, which was the main impetus for David to go and find a replacement "wife" in the first place, to respect his first's wishes and raise Davey proper.

However, soon Jim has become a long-term guest of the Harveys, and (seeing the way that Jim treats his "in-name-only" wife) David begins to notice that Rachel is more than just his "slave", but a woman in her own right. He discovers that she has musical skills (Mitchum sings too!) like his first wife, and she makes it a point to secretly learn to shoot like his first wife could as well. It is the latter of these skills which wins over his boy Davey.

Eventually, David and Jim are repeating their earlier pattern of competing for the same woman. Fortunately, some real Western action involving the native Cheyenne tribe is introduced into the story, which saves the film from stalling and wraps up the story nicely, if predictably.

Adorable Romance

[claudio_carvalho · 9/10 · 14 September 2009]

In time of colonization of America, the widower David Harvey (William Holden) lives in an isolated farm in the woods with his son Davey (Gary Grey). Father and son miss their wife and mother Susan, who has recently died, and David concludes that he needs a woman to educate his son properly and to cook and clean the house. David decides to travel with Davey to the nearby fort to seek a woman and the reverend proposes the bond servant Rachel (Loretta Young) for him. David buys Rachel, and Davey overhears the negotiation; but the reverend demands that they should marry to each other to have a decent life in the same house. The trio travels back to the farm and David and Davey treat Rachel like a slave without any respect or affection. When David's drifter friend Jim Fairways (Robert Mitchum) visits them, he stays for a couple of days with the family and treats Rachel respectfully like a lady. Then Jim courts Rachel, and David feels jealous and realizes how important she is for him.

"Rachel and the Stranger" is an adorable romance and I loved this western. I did not know the concept of indentured servant in America, and the humiliating situation of Rachel is heartbreaking, fruit of the unpaid debts of her father. Loretta Young has a fantastic performance and William Holden and Robert Mitchum have hilarious moments with their witty lines. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Rachel e o Estranho" ("Rachel and the Stranger")

Forgotten Classic

[aleksanderk-95350 · 7/10 · 15 July 2021]

An engaging romance with fantastic acting. In this interesting film as you see David Harvey change his ways. After Jim makes him jealous leading to an epic struggle. At the end when the Indians attack them. They put aside there differences to help one another.

Two Grown Men Fighting Like a Couple of Wild Indians!

[wes-connors · 5/10 · 28 August 2007]

Loretta Young (she's Rachel) stars as a "bond woman" (white slave) who is sold for $18.00 to William Holden (he's Big Davey). Mr. Holden buys Ms. Young because he feels his son Gary Gray (he's Little Davey) needs a mother to grow up right. Robert Mitchum (he's Big Jim) plays Holden's pal and frequent overnight guest. By the way, Mr. Mitchum is a singing cowboy (and better than you may be thinking). Holden shows no sexual interest in wife Young, but with Mitchum around…

Interesting premise, performed ably by the stars. The stronger scenes, I thought, occurred when several of the four players appeared in scenes with only one other actor For example, Young and Mitchum, Young and Gray, etc. The songs are done well. The drama doesn't really reach full potential, though. It's difficult to accept the exquisitely made-up Hollywood beauty Loretta Young as a 25-year-old slave woman. The script could have been re-written to fix that, and some other points. Some scenes between the principals would have been improved with re-takes.

Young Mr. Gray holds his own among the "Big" stars. He plays very naturally, and lifts the movie considerably. As the film nears its climax, he disappears (it is explained); which makes the film suffer. The ending would have been more exciting with a little boy, and the family element could have been highlighted. There is some excitement in the ending, but it would have been better if more tension was built.

Loretta Young's character says, at one point, "Two grown men fighting like a couple of wild Indians!" that's a good, brief description of the movie.

***** Rachel and the Stranger (1948) Norman Foster ~ Loretta Young, William Holden, Robert Mitchum