Raoul Walsh, between the Western and the Southern: Pursued (1947), Silver River (1948), Colorado Territory (1949)
This essay analyses how three films directed by Raoul Walsh and released as Westerns at the end of the forties are, in fact, steeped in the codes of “Southern” films, recalling films such as Gone with the Wind and heralding The Night of the Hunter or Walsh’s own “Southern” Band of Angels. These “Wes...
Shranjeno v:
| izdano v: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/angles, |
|---|---|
| Glavni avtor: | |
| Format: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Jezik: | Anglais |
| Izdano: |
Angles
2020
|
| Teme: | |
| Online dostop: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
| id |
openedition-oai:revues.org:angles_934 |
|---|---|
| record_format |
openedition |
| collection |
OpenEdition Journal |
| language |
Anglais |
| format |
Article ou chapitre numérique |
| building |
0/Bibliothèque numérique/ 1/Bibliothèque numérique/OpenEdition Journals/ |
| topic |
Western États-Unis Walsh Raoul Sud film genre Southern Belle film United States gender Walsh Raoul Western South Southern Belle |
| spellingShingle |
Western États-Unis Walsh Raoul Sud film genre Southern Belle film United States gender Walsh Raoul Western South Southern Belle Hatchuel, Sarah Raoul Walsh, between the Western and the Southern: Pursued (1947), Silver River (1948), Colorado Territory (1949) |
| description |
This essay analyses how three films directed by Raoul Walsh and released as Westerns at the end of the forties are, in fact, steeped in the codes of “Southern” films, recalling films such as Gone with the Wind and heralding The Night of the Hunter or Walsh’s own “Southern” Band of Angels. These “Westerns” merge classical themes of the genre (the conquest of the West, mining, railroad extension, attacks on stagecoaches, train robberies, outlaws — in a typically male world) with the themes of plantation films: nostalgia for a paradise lost, the predominance of the past, a clandestine or mixed-race identity, Gothic elements, dilapidated houses, graveyards and memento mori, and strong female characters. Pursued, located in the wild landscapes of New Mexico, is built on the hero’s quest to recover his identity, on the ghostly return of the repressed and on the recognition of the destroyed childhood home; the film re-plays the Civil War in a conflict against the Spaniards, while constructing a complex Scarlett-like female character. Silver River mixes the ruthless environment of the silver mines with more refined places such as steam boats, game houses and ballrooms; the character of Georgia, with a first name that connotes the South, represents a blend of the Southern Belle and Calamity Jane. Finally, Colorado Territory presents outlaw Wes McQueen as a runaway slave, emphasizes the uprooting of the Winslows after their departure from the Deep South to settle in the Far West, and dramatizes the direct opposition between two women — the Southern Belle, Julie Ann, and the Indian half-blood, Colorado, whose names assert their geographical origins. The meeting of the Western and the Southern seems to give rise to an intense confrontation between a male-coded world and a female-coded world, in a war of the sexes that challenges filmic and social norms. |
| author |
Hatchuel, Sarah |
| author_facet |
Hatchuel, Sarah |
| author_sort |
Hatchuel, Sarah |
| title |
Raoul Walsh, between the Western and the Southern: Pursued (1947), Silver River (1948), Colorado Territory (1949) |
| title_short |
Raoul Walsh, between the Western and the Southern: Pursued (1947), Silver River (1948), Colorado Territory (1949) |
| title_full |
Raoul Walsh, between the Western and the Southern: Pursued (1947), Silver River (1948), Colorado Territory (1949) |
| title_fullStr |
Raoul Walsh, between the Western and the Southern: Pursued (1947), Silver River (1948), Colorado Territory (1949) |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Raoul Walsh, between the Western and the Southern: Pursued (1947), Silver River (1948), Colorado Territory (1949) |
| title_sort |
raoul walsh, between the western and the southern: pursued (1947), silver river (1948), colorado territory (1949) |
| publisher |
Angles |
| publishDate |
2020 |
| container_title |
URI:https://journals.openedition.org/angles |
| url |
https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://doi.org/10.4000/angles.934 https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://journals.openedition.org/angles/934 |
| _version_ |
1877293948253241344 |
| spelling |
openedition-oai:revues.org:angles_934 https://doi.org/10.4000/angles.934 urn:doi:10.4000/angles.934 en https://journals.openedition.org/angles/934 2020-07-16T02:00:00Z info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess article info:eu-repo/semantics/article urn:handle:20.500.13089/9mz6 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Raoul Walsh, between the Western and the Southern: Pursued (1947), Silver River (1948), Colorado Territory (1949) Angles Société des Anglicistes de l'Enseignement Supérieur info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/2274-2042 URI:https://journals.openedition.org/angles Hatchuel, Sarah Western États-Unis Walsh Raoul Sud film genre Southern Belle film United States gender Walsh Raoul Western South Southern Belle This essay analyses how three films directed by Raoul Walsh and released as Westerns at the end of the forties are, in fact, steeped in the codes of “Southern” films, recalling films such as Gone with the Wind and heralding The Night of the Hunter or Walsh’s own “Southern” Band of Angels. These “Westerns” merge classical themes of the genre (the conquest of the West, mining, railroad extension, attacks on stagecoaches, train robberies, outlaws — in a typically male world) with the themes of plantation films: nostalgia for a paradise lost, the predominance of the past, a clandestine or mixed-race identity, Gothic elements, dilapidated houses, graveyards and memento mori, and strong female characters. Pursued, located in the wild landscapes of New Mexico, is built on the hero’s quest to recover his identity, on the ghostly return of the repressed and on the recognition of the destroyed childhood home; the film re-plays the Civil War in a conflict against the Spaniards, while constructing a complex Scarlett-like female character. Silver River mixes the ruthless environment of the silver mines with more refined places such as steam boats, game houses and ballrooms; the character of Georgia, with a first name that connotes the South, represents a blend of the Southern Belle and Calamity Jane. Finally, Colorado Territory presents outlaw Wes McQueen as a runaway slave, emphasizes the uprooting of the Winslows after their departure from the Deep South to settle in the Far West, and dramatizes the direct opposition between two women — the Southern Belle, Julie Ann, and the Indian half-blood, Colorado, whose names assert their geographical origins. The meeting of the Western and the Southern seems to give rise to an intense confrontation between a male-coded world and a female-coded world, in a war of the sexes that challenges filmic and social norms. Cet article étudie comment trois films de Raoul Walsh tournés à la fin des années 40 et présentés comme des Westerns sont, en fait, pétris de codes issus des « Southerns », rappelant des films comme Autant en emporte le vent et annonçant La Nuit du chasseur ou le propre « Southern » de Walsh, L’Esclave libre. Ces « Westerns » mêlent les thématiques classiques du genre (conquête de l’Ouest, développement des mines ou du train, attaques de diligence, univers masculin, Indiens, hors-la-loi) aux thématiques des films de plantations : sentiment de nostalgie par rapport à un paradis perdu, prégnance du passé, identité secrète ou métissée, éléments gothiques, bâtisses délabrées, tombes et memento mori, personnage(s) féminin(s) fort(s). La Vallée de la peur, situé dans les paysages sauvages du Nouveau Mexique, est construit sur le mode de la quête identitaire, le retour fantomatique du refoulé et la reconnaissance des lieux détruits de l’enfance ; le film rejoue la guerre de Sécession dans un conflit avec les Espagnols, avec un personnage de femme « à la Scarlett ». La Rivière d’argent mêle l’environnement brutal des mines d’argent et celui, plus raffiné, des bateaux à aube, maisons de jeux, soirées et bals ; le personnage de Georgia, dont le prénom évoque le Sud, est un mélange de Southern belle et de Calamity Jane. Enfin, La Fille du désert identifie le hors-la-loi Wes McQueen à un esclave en fuite, insiste sur le déracinement des Winslow venus du Deep South pour s’installer dans le Far West, et présente l’opposition de la Southern belle, Julie Ann, et de la métisse indienne, Colorado, dont les noms affirment l’origine géographique. La rencontre du Western et du Southern semble toujours donner lieu à une confrontation particulièrement intense entre l’univers (codé comme) masculin et l’univers (codé comme) féminin, à une guerre des sexes et à une remise en cause des codes sociaux. |