Lure of the Wilderness

As ever, the presence of Walter Brennan in a film can be relied upon to liven it up a bit. That said, he needs to pull out all the stops to keep this rather plodding bayou adventure alive. "Ben" (Jeffrey Hunter) is out chasing his dog through the swamp one day when he alights on the camp of two wanted fugitives. Initially tied to a tree, he convinces "Jim" (Brennan) and his daughter "Laurie" (Jean Peters) the he means them no harm. Time soon convinces them that they can trust him, and that he might be able to help them engage a lawyer to prove that they did not commit the crime from which they are hiding. Arriving back in town armed with a great many otter pelts, suspicions are raised and shortly the townsfolk cotton on demanding that he take them to their hideout. Can he manage to keep them safe from the murderous hands of "Longden" (Jack Elam) et al? It also features a rather silly love-triangle between "Ben", long-term girlfriend "Noreen" (Constance Smith) and the far more tomboyish "Laurie" which does rather afford Hunter an opportunity to flail about like a fish out of water, and Elam was always competent as a baddie - but the thrust of the story is all pretty lightweight. The photography is fine, as is the pace, and the ensemble here do just enough to pass ninety minutes amidst a wilderness that at least looked like it was real. No, it's hardly a film you will remember, but it's still quite watchable.