Cimarron (1931)

Alright, time for the next movie on my list, Cimarron.

Movies Also Nominated:

• East Lynne (Drama)
• The Front Page (Comedy)
• Skippy (Dramedy)
• Trader Horn (Action)

Found on:

• Filesonic (Two Parts)

Play-by-Play:

• Epic music while credits show in the beginning, I wonder what year this changes.
• Haven't ever heard of this movie, so expectations are not that high.
• Okay, set in the manifest destiny days, when land was free for the taking.
• Enter Yancey Cravet, obviously popular for some reason. Heading for Bear Creek.
• Enter Dixie Lee, heading for Bear Creek too...coincidence, we'll find out.
• From it's Wikipedia page, the movie's budget was a huge. You can tells by the land rush scenes.
• More than 5,000 extras, twenty-eight cameramen, and numerous camera assistants and photographers were used to capture scenes of wagons racing across grassy hills and prairie.

• Yancey riding his horse while Dixie is close behind him. Yancey spots the perfect lot. He looks back just as Dixie falls into a ditch and breaks her horse's legs.Yancey runs to help her. She begs him to shoot her horse, he does. She steals his horse and rides away.
• She quickly puts her stake in the plot that Yancey was eyeing.
• Yancey, back at home, relays the story to his family, they are not happy but would rather him there at the home. But Yancey has a vision of a newspaper empire in the new territory. But this time he's bringing his family.
• Yancey leaves, his wife's family try to talk her out of leaving with Yancey, but Sabra does anyway.

• So Yancey takes her and their son out west. but while unpacking a rug they discover Isaiah, The Venable's slave and the son of the family's cook. Yancey says he can stay.
• Very stereotypical and very racist. Shown twice already begging on his knees and calling it Oklahomey
• Later that night, Yancey speaks to Sabra about their future life and home. Suddenly, a gang of bandits who demand all their money. Yancey somehow knows the leader, "The Kid." Yancey tells Kid his plans to head down to the town of Osage and start up his newspaper. Kid and his gang leave.
• The Cravets arrive in Osage. Isaiah's face lights as they pass the grocer's tent because he sees the watermelon. Again, very racist. Osage is shown as a very violent town. They adjourn to the hotel. Sabra voices her concerns about raising their son in such a town. Yancey calms her down and heads for the bar to meet the townsfolk.
• Yancey meets Lon Yountis, a rough looking guy. Yancey's investigative prowess is shown because he soon finds out Lon may have something to do with the murder of the last newspaper editor, Mr. Peglett. Lon doesn't take too kindly to accusations.

• Yancey then meets a stuttering printer by the name of Jesse Rickey and asks for a job.
• The next morning while Isaiah is shown singing and shining shoes, Yancey and Sabra walk through the streets of Osage. They say howdy to Sal Levy, a walking notion counter (Traveling salesman?)
• Lon takes a couple shots at Yancey as they pass the bar and knock his hat off . Yancey shoots back and clips Lon in the ear.
• Yancey newspaper is finally finished, the "Oklahoma Wigwam" Yancey leaves to investigate the Peglett Murder.
• Lon is seen bullying Sol Levy. One of them succeeds in roping him in and try to force him to drink. Sol gets away but Lon and his gang start shooting at him. He falls back onto a t-shaped post which makes him look like he is being crucified.

• Yancey to the rescue. He shoots the whiskey bottle out of Lon's hand and then confronts him. Sol is sent on his way and Yancey then asks Lon about Peglett. "Stick to your law" Lon growls. Yancey lets out a Indian howl, obviously, meaning it's either gonna be him or Lon.
• Sabra tells Yancey she is afraid for him, stirring up trouble with questions about Peglett. Yancey tells her that he is not going to stop because his paper "...prints all the news, all the time, knowing no law except the law of god and the government of these United States."
• The mayor stops by to ask Yancey to conduct next Sunday's service, he agrees. Sabra again tells Yancey she is scared and doesn't want Yancey to go, he does anyway.
• That Sunday, the whole town assembles in the only place big enough top accommodate such a crowd, the gambling hall.
• Lon and his gang shows up. Dixie Lee shows up again, she's very unpopular with the town. Sol asks Yancey if it is alright if he is there, Yancey says its fine.

• They take up a collection for a new church organ and sing a song. They count up the collection and Yancey says that someone out there skipped out. One of the guys points out that it was one of the Indians. Yancey says its fine because Indians are too smart to give anything to a race that is taking away their land.
• Yancey begins his sermon. He says that there is a lion walking in the streets of Osage, talking about Lon and him killing Peglett. He says he is going to tell the entire congregation the name of the murderer, this causes Lon to Pull his gun and shoot at Yancey. However, Yancey pulled a move right out of the Matrix and dodged the bullet and shot back and killed Lon. Yancey ends the service with a prayer.
• Dixie Lee confront Yancey. She tells him that she was run out of the property she stole from him. Sabra again tells Yancey she is not happy that he is talking with Dixie.
• Yancey carves a notch in his gun, showing he killed another, showing that he has killed 6 people.
• Jump to 1890, the railroad is coming to Osage. Also, Yancey and Sabra are celebrating the birth of their daughter, Donna.

• While discussing her plans for the future, Sabra faints.
• A gang of outlaws comes into town and starts shooting up the town. It turns out to be the Kid from earlier in the movie. Isaiah runs out to find the Cravets son, Cim, but gets shot in the process.
• Yancey makes his way toward the gang shooting his way to the leader of the gang. Yancey finally is able to shoot the Kid, wounding him. As the Kid limps over to his horse he turns around and shoots Yancey in the arm. Yancey then shoots him.
• The Kid apologizes to Yancey then dies. Yancey finds out about the all the rewards that he is entitled to for killing the kid. As Yancey is walking back, Isiah is seen gasping by Mr. Yancey, but is unheard.
• Yancey tells Sabra that he is going to send back all the rewards because he wasn't doing for the money, he did it to protect his family plus he knew the Kid and was his friend.
• Sol Leavey brings Isaiah body in, Yancey takes him, but the family is silent.
• 1893: The president announces that he is opening the Cherokee land for settlers. Yancey tells the townsfolk that he has to much work to do to go with them. But Yancey obviously wants to go.
• Sabra is telling Yancey of the recent Woman's Club Meeting; Yancey explains about the new land rush. Yancey explains that he can't stay in one place for too long and that he wants to leave and create a new empire. Sabra tells him not to, but he does anyway.

• Yancey wants the whole family to go but Sabra doesn't want to. He says he will send back for her and rides off in the sunset.
• 1898: Five years pass and no word from Yancey. Some of the townsfolk discuss dome of the rumors surrounding Yancey's whereabouts.
• Sol now has his own store. Sabra runs the paper. She still misses Yancey. Sam and Donna are growing big, they are spitting image of their parents. Sabra hired an Indian girl to help out around the house, Ruby.
• Yancey comes back to Osage, The townsfolk cheer. Sabra goes out and checks. Yancey comes in and kisses Sabra, she see the military uniform. Yancey compares Sabra to the Odysseus's wife Penelope.
• Yancey learns about Dixie Lee trials and that no one is defending her, Yancey takes the job. Sabra is angry and asks "Whats that woman to you?"
• The prosecution, the former Governor, calls Dixie a menace to decent society, a viper, a disgrace to women everywhere.

• Yancey's Turn: He say the prosecution the only man in the world who can strut sitting down. He then proceeds to tell Dixie's story to the jury and then asks her a series of questions about her childhood, upbringing, careers, and relationships.
• The jury finds Dixie not guilty. Sabra is not happy about Yancey not listening to her and defending Dixie. Sabra now knowing the truth about Dixie feels bad about being means to her
• 1907: Roosevelt make Oklahoma a state. Osage is a good sized city now with oil.
• Sabra is fitting Donna dress. Donna is complaining about having to wear homemade clothes to school.
• Cim is dating Ruby, the Indian they had hired to help with the chores. Sabra and donna are not happy, Sabra threatens to tell Yancey. Cim says that Yancey already knows and has approved. Donna makes the comment that she is going to marry a rich white man.
• Louie, striking it rich in oil, bought himself a brand new car. Sol Leavy is thriving as owner of a popular store in town. Yancey is running for Governor.
• Pat, the prosecution in Dixie trail, meets up with Yancey to see if he can bribe him to accept the governments plans to hurt the Indians in exchange for votes in the upcoming election. Yancey refuses and kicks Pat out.

• Yancey plans to expose the governments plans and print that the Indians deserve citizenship, Sabra says not to but he does anyway. He tells her that as long as his name is on the newspaper he will print whatever he wants.
• 1929: Yancy leaves again for new country and leaves Sabra behind again. The Oklahoma Wigwam is celebrating its 40 years in business. Sabra decided to reprint Yancey's 1907 article demanding citizenship for the Indians.
• Sabra is now in congress. The Oklahoma Progressive State Committee throws a party for Sabra and to announce a new statue being built to commemorate the Oklahoma pioneers. Sabra introduces her family Donna has married Louie, the old man who had bought the car; Cimarron who has married Ruby; and her grandchildren Feliz and Yancey Jr. Sabra then informs that Yancey is out of town but would of been proud to have been there.

• After the party, a few people come by and congratulate Sabra on achieving her accomplishment alone. Sabra is on the verge of crying.
• While Sabra is out getting a tour of a nearby oil field one of the workers says that there was an accident at one of the wells but luckily an old drifter saved them by sacrificing himself. The onlookers asks who it was the man says that it was a man they called Old Yance. Sabra runs towards the field toward the man. Yancey sees Sabra and says "Wife and Mother, stainless woman, hide me, hide me in your love" then dies in her arms.

• Back in town the statue in unveiled, it's Yancey. The End.

Review:

• A very good movie.However, fourth movie on my list and Fourth movie with not the happiest of endings. Wings: Main Character kills his best friend. The Broadway Melody: Girl's fiancee runs away with her Sister. All Quiet on the Western Front: Main guy gets killed by a sniper. Now Cimarron: Main character wife finally is reunited with her husband only seconds before his death. This movie does show just how hard it is to be married to a adventurer, time after time Sabra is left alone while Yancey out starting a new empire. Speaking of Yancey, He is a very confusing character he is seen constantly undercutting and patronizing his wife, saying such things as "Now Sabra don't worry your pretty little head with such things," but selflessly defends Dixie. Yancey also show compassion towards the Indians, allowing them to skip out on church collections and writing articles demanding that they be granted citizenship, but is first in line when the government opens Indian land for territory. African American in the movie are shown very stereotypically, Isiah is seen always smiling and incompetent (plus not being allowed in church). This movie also shows how Jewish people were treated, Sol's constant bullying and Crucifixion by Lon and his hesitation in coming to church. Overall, I say it was alright. The story was kinda confusing, I mean I'm not really sure what the plot was. It started out as a story about a man creating a new empire out of a lawless city, then morphed into a story about a woman making it without the help of her husband. It also was pretty long and dragged on at points.

Next Movie:

• The Grand Hotel