Themes: Self-Destructive Romance, Dangerous Attraction, Love Triangles
Main Cast: Griff Barnett, Jennifer Jones, Gregory Peck, Charles Bickford, Joseph Cotten, Lionel Barrymore, Sidney Blackmer, Harry Carey, Lillian Gish
Release Year: 1946
Country: US/UK
Run Time: 130 minutes
Plot
In David O. Selznick's Duel in the Sun, Jennifer Jones stars as Pearl Chavez, whom everyone has tagged as a "bad girl" foredoomed to an unhappy end. She is taken into the home of wealthy, greedy rancher McCanles (Lionel Barrymore) and his kindly wife Laura Belle (Lillian Gish), who'd once been the sweetheart of Pearl's recently executed father (Herbert Marshall). Almost immediately, Pearl becomes the object of an emotional tug-of-war between McCanles' virtuous son Jesse (Joseph Cotten) and wicked ne'er-do-well offspring Lewt (Gregory Peck). After killing a man (Charles Bickford) who'd tried proposing to Pearl, Lewt becomes a fugitive, secretly working to undermine the railroad that threatens to cut across McCanles' land. The level-headed Jesse tries to negotiate with the railroad men, and as a result is ordered from the ranch by McCanles. While all this is going on, Pearl, sick to death of being told what a bad job she is, decides to become the Jezebel everyone assumes she is. Duel in the Sun was based on the novel by Niven Busch, who'd written the work hoping that his wife Teresa Wright would play Pearl--but that was before Selznick fell head over heels in love with Jennifer Jones. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
Appropriately nicknamed "Lust in the Dust," Duel in the Sun is a wacky, grandiose melodrama, famous for its sexual innuendo. Producer David O. Selznick was attempting to top his success with Gone With the Wind, and though it did make quite a lot of money, Duel never matched the level of public and critical adulation of his previous film. It's still good fun to watch, especially the riotous ending. Despite starring the producer's second wife, Jennifer Jones, and a host of other big names (Gregory Peck, Lillian Gish, Joseph Cotten, Lionel Barrymore), the film relegates the performers mostly to the background -- as they are in the final shot. Selznick was so keen on producing the "biggest movie ever" that, in 1946, Duel was the most expensive film ever made. The producer's meddling in the filmmaking process drove director King Vidor from the picture, and five other uncredited directors would work on the film after him, including Josef von Sternberg and William Dieterle. ~ Brendon Hanley, All Movie Guide
James Basevi - Art Director, John Ewing - Art Director, Tilly Losch - Choreography, Lloyd Shaw - Choreography, Walter Plunkett - Costume Designer, Lowell J. Farrell - First Assistant Director, King Vidor - Director, John D. Faure - Editor, William H. Ziegler - Editor, Hal Kern - Editor, Charles Freeman - Editor, Dimitri Tiomkin - Composer (Music Score), Dimitri Tiomkin - Musical Direction/Supervision, J. McMillan Johnson - Production Designer, Charles P. Boyle - Cinematographer, Allen M. Davey - Cinematographer, Lee Garmes - Cinematographer, Ray Rennahan - Cinematographer, Harold Hal Rosson - Cinematographer, David O. Selznick - Producer, Emile Kuri - Set Designer, Jack Cosgrove - Special Effects, Clarence Slifer - Special Effects, Richard DeWeese - Sound/Sound Designer, James G. Stewart - Sound/Sound Designer, Oliver H.P. Garrett - Screenwriter, David O. Selznick - Screenwriter, Niven Busch - Book Author
Pearl Chavez (Jennifer Jones) is orphaned after her father Scott Chavez (Herbert Marshall) kills her mother (Tilly Losch), having caught his wife with a lover (Sidney Blackmer). Before his execution, Chavez arranges for Pearl to live with his second cousin and old sweetheart, Laura Belle (Lillian Gish).
Arriving by stagecoach, Pearl is met by Jesse McCanles (Joseph Cotten), one of Laura Belle's two grown sons. He takes her to Spanish Bit, their enormous cattle ranch. The gentle and gracious Laura Belle is happy to welcome her to their home, but not so her husband, the wheelchair-bound Senator Jackson McCanles (Lionel Barrymore), who calls her "a half-breed" and despises her father.
The second son, Lewt (Gregory Peck), is a ladies man with a personality quite unlike that of his gentlemanly brother Jesse. He expresses his interest in Pearl in direct terms and she takes a strong dislike to him. Laura Belle calls in the "Sinkiller" (Walter Huston), a gun-toting preacher, to counsel Pearl on how to avoid the evils of temptation. Pearl is determined to remain "a good girl."
When she is overpowered by Lewt in her bedroom one night, Pearl is angry with him and ashamed of her own behavior. But she also cannot help but be flattered by his lust and attentions. Jesse, meanwhile, is ostracized by his father and no longer welcome at the ranch after siding with railroad men against the Senator's personal interests. Jesse is in love with Pearl but he leaves to pursue a political career. He eventually becomes engaged to Helen Langford (Joan Tetzel), the daughter of a railroad man.
Offended when Lewt reneges on a promise to marry her, Pearl takes up with Sam Pierce (Charles Bickford), a neighboring rancher who is smitten with her. She does not love him but says yes to his proposal. Before they can be married, however, Lewt picks a fight with Pierce in a saloon and guns him down. He insists that Pearl can belong only to him. However, Lewt becomes a wanted man.
On the run from the law, Lewt finds time to derail a train and occasionally drop by the ranch late at night and foist his attentions on Pearl. She cannot resist her desire for him and lies for Lewt to the law, hiding him in her room.
Laura Belle's health takes a turn for the worse and the Senator admits his love for her before she dies. Jesse returns to visit but is too late; his mother is dead. The Senator continues to shun him, as does Lewt, their family feud finally resulting in a showdown. Lewt tosses a gun to his unarmed brother but before it can be picked up, he shoots Jesse.
The Senator's old friend, Lem Smoot (Harry Carey) tells him that Jesse is going to make it and the old man softens up towards his son. A livid Pearl is relieved that Jesse is going to survive. When Helen arrives, she invites Pearl to leave Spanish Bit forever and come live with them in Austin. Pearl agrees, but she is tipped off by one of the Spanish Bit hands, Sid (Scott McKay) that Lewt intends to come after Jesse again. She arms herself and engages in a shootout with Lewt in the desert, where they die in each other's arms.
The film received the nickname "Lust in the Dust", which eventually became the name of another movie. A scene in which Jones does a seductive dance for Gregory Peck was cut from the film before it was released. The film as shot could not make it past the Hays Code censors or religious review boards and so was heavily edited. This reportedly included the changing of rape scenes to love scenes and downplaying the original story's more overt sexuality.
Selznick had high hopes that Duel in the Sun would surpass his success with Gone with the Wind. The film received poor reviews, however, and was highly controversial due to its sexual content and to Selznick's real-life relationship with Jones, which broke up both of their marriages. Despite the bad press, it was a box-office success for Selznick, although not a second Gone with the Wind. It earned $11,300,000 in rentals during its initial release and much more overseas and in the 1954 re-release. Because of the film's huge production costs (rumoured to be over $6,000,000), its $2,000,000 advertising campaign (unheard of at the time) and Selznick's costly distribution tactics, the film apparently only broke even.
Legacy
The film was one of the first to be honored by a record album, featuring selections from Dimitri Tiomkin's musical score. Rather than use excerpts from the soundtrack, RCA Victor recorded some of the music with the Boston Pops Orchestra conducted by Arthur Fiedler. The music was split into approximately three-minute sections and released on 10-inch 78-rpm discs in 1946.
A long musical prelude as well as an overture preceded the film.
Duel in the Sun was first shown on television during a special ABC Sunday evening showing. It was released on DVD in 2004.
Martin Scorsese has stated that this was the first film he ever saw and holds it in high regard. He mentioned it in his documentary of American movies.
David Stratton has also stated that he holds it in high regard. He first saw the film at the age of six.
The film appears on a They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? list of the 1,000 greatest films of all time. [1]
