It's 1894. Brant Royle (Gary Cooper) has returned to Kingsmont seeking revenge. His late father's tobacco business was destroyed by Maj. James Singleton (Donald Crisp). Brant encounters Margaret Jane Singleton (Patricia Neal). Margaret mischievously stirs up trouble with her protective father leading a confrontation with Brant. Connecticut Yankee John Barton is in town trying to sell his plans for a cigarette-making machine. Brant doesn't have the money but with his former lover madam Sonia Kovac (Lauren Bacall), he hopes to make the machine to drive Singleton out of business.
This is a nice love triangle. They have good conflicts which heat up their relationships. Cooper's nice guy persona allows his revenge to be sweetened. Otherwise, this could have been too bitter for the general public. It allows one to stay with him even as he is corrupted by greed and power. He takes a dark turn and it's great. This is a tragedy of epic Grecian nature. Brant's ending is poetic. The ending for Malley and Sonia should be that they join up with Barton starting up an automobile company in Detroit. Also, Neal and Bacall may be better off switching their roles. Bacall is a perfect femme fatale and Neal is naturally grounded. It's a bit of against type casting. Overall, this is solid tragedy done well.
This is a nice love triangle. They have good conflicts which heat up their relationships. Cooper's nice guy persona allows his revenge to be sweetened. Otherwise, this could have been too bitter for the general public. It allows one to stay with him even as he is corrupted by greed and power. He takes a dark turn and it's great. This is a tragedy of epic Grecian nature. Brant's ending is poetic. The ending for Malley and Sonia should be that they join up with Barton starting up an automobile company in Detroit. Also, Neal and Bacall may be better off switching their roles. Bacall is a perfect femme fatale and Neal is naturally grounded. It's a bit of against type casting. Overall, this is solid tragedy done well.