User Reviews

The Brothers Canfield, Randolph Scott, Peter Thompson, Jerome Courtland, and John Archer; are all Confederate veterans who get into a brawl with some Union soldiers who were drunk and started it. One of the Union men is killed. The Canfields flee via the Santa Fe railroad going west. Randolph Scott stays to work for the railroad, the other brothers decide to become outlaws for real.

For Randolph Scott, Santa Fe is an interesting blend of two of his previous pre-World War II films The Texans and Western Union. In both he's involved in a great enterprise, a cattle drive in The Texans and building the telegraph in Western Union. In The Texans he's a returning Confederate veteran and in Western Union his conflict is with his brother.

Santa Fe is a good action packed western, plenty of gun-play by a cast of veterans of many a western. Scott is his usual tight-lipped self. The part is a bit offbeat for him. Randolph Scott is usually a driven man with a mission and sometimes can be ruthless. His Britt Canfield here is a man of honor and a straight arrow, the kind of part Joel McCrea would normally be cast in. But Scott does well with the role.

Olin Howland and Billy House provide some good comic relief as an engineer and his fireman. Western fans will not be disappointed.

Randolph Scott (Britt Canfield), Janis Carter (Judith Chandler), Jerome Courtland (Terry Canfield), Peter Thompson (Tom Canfield), John Archer (Clint Canfield), Warner Anderson (Dave Baxter), Roy Roberts (Cole Sanders), Billy House (Luke Plummer), Olin Howlin (Dan Dugan), Allene Roberts (Ella Sue), Jock O'Mahoney (aka Jock Mahoney) (Crake), Harry Cording (Moore Legrande), Sven Hugo Borg (Swede Swanstrom), Frank Ferguson (Marshal Bat Masterson), Irving Pichel (Harned), Harry Tyler (Rusty), Chief Thundercloud (Chief Longfeather), Paul E. Burns (Uncle Dick Wootton), Reed Howes, Charles Meredith, Paul Stanton, Richard Cramer, William Haade, Francis McDonald, Frank O'Connor, Harry Tenbrook, James Mason, Guy Wilkerson, Frank Hagney, William Tannen, James Kirkwood, Stanley Blystone, Edgar Dearing, Al Kunde, Art Loeb, Blackie Whiteford, Bud Fine, Richard Fortune, Lane Chandler, Charles Evans, Chuck Hamilton, George Sherwood, Louis Mason, Roy Butler, Ralph Sanford, William McCormack.

Director: IRVING PICHEL. Screenplay: Kenneth Gamet. Based on the 1945 book Santa Fe: The Railroad That Built an Empire by James Leslie Marshall and the story All the Brothers Were Loyal by Louis Stevens. Photography in Color by Technicolor by Charles Lawton Jr. Film editor: Gene Havlick. Art director: Walter Holscher. Music composed by Paul Sawtell. Music director: Morris W. Stoloff. Producer: Harry Joe Brown. Executive producers: Harry Joe Brown, Randolph Scott. A Scott-Brown Production. A Columbia Picture.

Copyright 13 March 1951 by Producers Actors Corp. Released by Columbia Pictures Corp. New York opening at the Palace: 3 May 1951. U.S. release: 1 April 1951. U.K. release: 1 October 1951. Australian release: 4 January 1952. 7,926 feet. 88 minutes. Censored to 7,770 feet (86 minutes) in the U.K.

SYNOPSIS: After the Civil War, the four Canfield Brothers, veterans of the Confederate Army, go West. Britt Canfield (Randolph Scott) becomes assistant to Santa Fe R.R. construction chief Dave Baxter (Warner Anderson), and falls in love with beautiful paymaster Judith Chandler (Janis Carter). Britt's brothers, Terry (Jerome Courtland), Tom (Peter Thompson) and Clint (John Archer) join an outlaw gang.

COMMENT: Randolph Scott's fans will not complain, but this agreeably photographed but laboriously routine western is not one of his more appealing outings. True, the movie packs in plenty of action, but it's rather dull in between these well-directed spurts, leaving audiences to twiddle their fingers or talk among themselves or visit the refreshment counters, while they wait, none too patiently, for the plot to gear up and the screen to light up with more fighting, shooting, stunts and thrills.

STORY BACKGROUND: On 22 December 1872, pioneering Santa Fe railroad construction crews completed laying tracks across Kansas to what they thought was the border of Colorado. Upon actual completion depended land grants from the United States government which would permit the road to continue to the Pacific Coast. They thought they had reached the Colorado line with 48 hours to spare.

That night, to the horror of the construction engineer, it was discovered that the Santa Fe's surveyor had erred by four miles. The government's surveyor insisted that the State of Colorado lay four miles beyond the end of the Santa Fe tracks. To insure completion of the road, and to avoid bankruptcy, tracks would have to be laid over those four miles within 48 hours. Since the crew had been averaging only one mile a day, the feat was thought impossible — but the railroaders set to work.

Beset by Indians, outlaws, gamblers and drunks, the crew completed the Santa Fe to Colorado by Christmas Eve, within one minute of the contract's expiration.

In the film, Randolph Scott plays the construction chief responsible for the completion of the job. For the movie, the feat was accomplished not in Kansas but in Arizona where location scenes of Santa Fe were filmed. While no government franchises were at stake, the movie railroaders hewed to a rigorous schedule, under director Irving Pichel and producer Harry Joe Brown. — Columbia Publicity.

OTHER VIEWS: Unexceptionable. — Monthly Film Bulletin.

Wonderful premise where 4 brothers, after the civil war, go different directions with the elder brother, Randolph Scott, working for the railroad and the other 3 wind up as bank robbers.

The film becomes muddled as you really don't understand the conflict between the various factions within the railroad. You also don't know how to feel about the brothers. Are they victims of circumstances? What was the fate of the surviving brothers by film's end?

Roy Roberts plays the villain here. I remember him as a hotel innkeeper who refused admission to Gregory Peck for being Jewish in "Gentleman's Agreement," and 20 years later to a black couple in "Hotel."

This is a great part for Randolph Scott. He is a real good guy here, and yet still loyal to the concept of family.

Got a 2 disc set of 6 Randolph movies and so far this is the best one. Nonstop action, and they leave it open ended. Alot of seriousness and a random Native American issue (not sure they really needed that :P ) Not often I see a conflicted Scott. This one did

Quality: 9/10 Entertainment: 8/10 Re-Playable: 6/10

B. I just watched the movie last night and it is one of Scott's best. Another poster compared him to the stoic never make a mistake type of character that was often played by a later in his career Joel McCrea ( like he was with Scott in 'Ride The High Country'), but the fact that Scott ( like his character Britt Canfield was from Virginia) spoilers ahead: What Britt is above all is a leader, which is why Dave Baxter ( Warner Anderson), hires him to work on his railroad, and eventually makes him his right hand man. The problem that Canfield ( and his brothers), face is how despised southerners were treated after the Civil War. Carpetbaggers stealing the family farm, disrespect from soldiers which is why that soldier ended up getting killed by one of the Canfield brothers, even the women he likes Judith Chandler ( Janis Carter) cannot stand him because he led a battle in which her husband died. His biggest problem was he could not get his brothers to follow him and work for the railroad, and they became outlaws. He holds himself responsible for that. As he says to his Sister In Law, Ella. "As the oldest, it's my responsibility to keep the family together."at the end he has to join a posse and try and bring them to justice. ( and hopefully save them from dying ( which does not happen))the final two scenes of the movie were interesting and neither had Scott. Dave was explaining how the Railroad would open up an Empire and how Canfield was responsible for getting it built. Then some of the men ( such as the engineers) who worked with him told Judith ( and Ella) to send him a message that they are coming to work for him. Judith says "That is a message I will deliver in person." So it ends up that even though he could not get his brothers to follow him ( because of all the hate they had inside), he ended up with people who will follow him ( because of who he was). One character I love is Ella. Normally Hollywood would make her the love interest instead of a Sister In Law. There is a scene at the end where the brothers commit a robbery and Scott goes to her home looking for them she tells Scott "I would rather have him in jail, then living an outlaw life." Then the law ( and Dave ) come in and are going to arrest She says he is innocent . They asked him where they are? He will not tell ( he wants to bring them in), she tells the Law. Her loyalty was with Britt and doing the right thing over her husband. My single favorite scene is with the Indian Chief driving the train and the smile on his face. It is rare when you see an Indian as actually happy and not because of a battle or around a woman. I also like what Britt had someone say to the chief "Someday they will name a train after you." They did the Santa Fe Railroad "Super Chief." 10/10 stars.