The Young Land
6 /10 1 Votes
3.3/5 Amazon Duration Country USA | 5.3/10 IMDb Language English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Release date May 1, 1959 Cast (Sheriff Jim Ellison), (Elena de la Madrid), (Hatfield Carnes), (Judge Millard Isham), Roberto De La Madrid (Don Roberto de la Madrid), Cliff Ketchum (Ben Stroud)Similar movies Dimitri Tiomkin composed the music for The Young Land and Last Train from Gun Hill | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Young Land is a 1959 American Western drama film directed by Ted Tetzlaff starring Patrick Wayne and Dennis Hopper. The cinematography was by Technicolor developer Winton C. Hoch and Henry Sharp. The film was distributed by Columbia Pictures Corporation.
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It is the third and final of only three films produced by Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney's C. V. Whitney Pictures; the first being The Searchers in 1956 with John Wayne and directed by John Ford, the second being The Missouri Traveler in 1958 with Brandon deWilde and Lee Marvin.
Having previously been featured in a number of his father's films, this was the 20-year-old Wayne's attempt at a leading role while he was still enrolled at Loyola Marymount University, graduating from there in 1961.
The film was scored by Dimitri Tiomkin who earned a nomination for Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Strange Are the Ways of Love" (The Young Land theme) with lyrics by Ned Washington and sung by Randy Sparks.
Plot
In 1848, after the end of the Mexican–American War and with the advent of California statehood, an American gunslinger named Hatfield Carnes (Dennis Hopper) kills a Mexican man in California. He is arrested for the murder by Jim Ellison (Patrick Wayne), a former United States marine and now sheriff with neither a gun nor a badge. Appointed by prominent local businessman and politico Don Roberto de la Madrid (Roberto de la Madrid), Ellison has designs on de la Madrid's spoiled daughter, Elena (Yvonne Craig). By-the-book Judge Millard Isham (Dan O'Herlihy) arrives in town with Deputy Marshal Ben Stroud (Cliff Ketchum) to conduct the trial. Wanted tough guy Lee Hearn (Ken Curtis) has problems of his own with the law, but is willing to help Ellison as a deputy. Carnes is then placed on trial in the new Mexican Cession territory with the Hispanic populace waiting to learn if American justice will convict Carnes.
Cast
Home media
No less than six different releases of The Young Land were produced on VHS. Similarly, several DVD versions were released over the years, mainly as an inclusion in a multiple film "western pack". Presently, The Young Land is available on Region 0 DVD through VCI Entertainment and video on demand in standard non-widescreen format.
Trivia
Roberto de la Madrid, who appeared in the film as the father of Yvonne Craig's character, was later elected governor of Baja California.
References
The Young Land WikipediaThe Young Land IMDbThe Young Land Amazon.comThe Young Land themoviedb.org