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Absolutely the worst movie.

Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

Over sixty years ago, when I first saw this movie, I recall being most impressed by the stark black-and-white photography which, to my young eyes, evoked dreams and nightmares. After re-seeing this fascinating western recently, the photography is even better to appreciate now; and, for me, it's the most appealing aspect of this production. With a multi-layered story and an elliptical plot, you must watch and listen carefully as Jeb Rand (Mitchum), in the opening sequence, narrates, in real-time or voice over, the circumstances which have caused him and his bride-to-be, Thor Callum (Wright), to be corralled by killers in an abandoned house in the boonies - the very homestead where Jeb was born and lived when he was only a toddler.This is a story of survival and growing up as Jeb is adopted into the family of Mrs Callum (Anderson) and her own children, Thor and Adam (John Rodney). It's also an account of unfulfilled vengeance as old Grant Callum (Jagger) plots and plans to rid his world of the last of the Rands - that's Jeb - even if it's the last thing he does. It's also a tale of forbidden love between old Mrs Callum (Anderson) and Jeb's father (Richardson) during the height of the longtime feud between the Callums and the Rands. And, ironically, it's also a yarn about young love between Jeb and Thor, from opposing families, who hope to end the feud that has killed so many in the past.Of course, feuds have been done in Hatfield/McCoy tangles; and this story is no Romeo and Juliet wannabe. But it is a well-constructed and entertaining drama which uses boyhood trauma as psychological underpinning to generate mystery and suspense for the viewer - all centering on: who killed Jeb's parents and why is Jeb being pursued?As Jeb, Mitchum gives a truly muted, sensitive performance, barely raising his voice even when fighting with Adam (Rodney) over property and money; or even when staring at death from the barrel of a gun. Now ... Mitchum is well known for his stoic, unflappable characters on screen, but perhaps he played the character of Jeb as psychologically damaged by his horrific boyhood? On the other hand, Teresa Wright is a feisty counterpoint to Mitchum's phlegmatic exterior, and often the calming hand and voice when Jeb and Adam had their differences. Newcomer (in 1947), John Rodney, plays brother Adam as Big Brother - domineering, confident, and aggressive when he chooses.Overshadowing all of them - even veteran Judith Anderson - is Dean Jagger as Grant Callum - a quietly and insidiously maniacal man on a mission of retribution, as he sees it; others would call it simply premeditated murder. Jagger gives one of his best performances, I think, as the man who connives with, deceives, and persuades others to follow him, in his quest for revenge. I rate his performance as the best in this movie.It's the photography by James Wong Howe, though, which brings this production into the realm of great with a continuous montage of the deepest black mixed with multi shades of gray to blinding white. Memorable sequences include Jeb returning to the Callum ranch while being stalked by a silhouette holding a rifle; when Jeb eludes killers who have surrounded the Callum home at night; when Jeb's being pursued on horse while traversing through stark butte country; and in the final scenes, when we return to the opening sequence for full closure. For good measure, watch also for the sinister close-up shots of silver-spurred boots which continually haunt Jeb's mind. Such photography is not to be missed, in my opinion.Recommended for all. Worth every bit of eight out of ten. June 4, 2016

There were really only 2 things that this decidedly misguided Western Chick Flick had going for it that prevented me from giving it an even lower rating than 5 stars.One of Pursued's only notable assets was the casting of one of Hollywood's best cowboy/tough guys of the late 1940s, Robert Mitchum, as Jeb Rand (although I've seen Mitchum better cast in other films).And Pursued's other worthwhile bonus was the absolutely wonderful camera-work done by ace-cinematographer, James Wong Howe. Believe me, some of the dazzling shots that were taken of New Mexico's rugged, wide-open country (as well as other shots) improved this maudlin, melodramatic, little soap opera significantly and made it well worth watching right through to its painfully predictable ending.On the other hand, one of this Western's biggest and most damaging deficits was that its story was given over, far too often, to being nothing but a corny Chick Flick that dwelt on a really brain-dead romance that had literally been going on between Thorley Callum and her adopted brother, Jeb, for near 20 years now. (Spare me!) I found that one of the principal problems with this less-than-fiery love affair was the blatant miscasting of Teresa Wright as the now-grown woman, Thorley Callum.Now, I'm not saying that Wright was in any way a terrible actress. That's not the case here.It was Wright's looks that were all wrong. The truth is she was just way too plain and mousy-looking (and sans any sexual appeal, whatsoever) to be at all convincing as the sort of woman whom a man (in his right mind, of course) would be willing to die for.And, besides the above complaint - The other aspect of Pursued that lost it some considerable points was the "big secret" behind Grant Callum's senseless, 20-year pursuit of Jeb Rand. This apparent revelation comes as no surprise at all to the viewer which causes its intended impact to fall flat on its face at the big climatic showdown when all of the facts are finally brought to light.All-in-all - I would never recommend this disappointing Western to anyone who, like myself, is a staunch fan of 1940's cowboy flicks. Regardless of its obvious big budget, when it comes to worthwhile "Old West" drama, there are certainly plenty of very entertaining B-Westerns out there that surpass Pursued by a literal country mile.

This brooding Western melodrama introduced Sigmund Freud to the wild frontier. Young Robert Mitchum, looking very much the leading man with his dimpled chin and enigmatic smile, plays a troubled, nightmare-plagued orphan raised from early childhood on the secluded ranch of a stern but loving widow. His sister loves him; his brother hates him; and his foster mother tries in vain to shield him from the dark secrets of his past, and from a one-armed gunman who will stop at nothing to see him dead. What sounds in outline like a pretentious hybrid of mismatched genres is packed with improbable (but entertaining) incident, and was photographed in menacing high-contrast black and white by ace cinematographer James Wong Howe.

Moody film noir from director Raoul Walsh has young boy left orphaned by a bloodthirsty band of killers, who dog the boy's trail even after he grows up into Robert Mitchum (seems to me that's the point where they might have given up stalking him). Mitchum smolders, as usual, though his character here is just a thumbnail sketch, and the melodrama inherent in this scenario is far beneath him. Judith Anderson fares a bit better playing the boy's elderly but wise guardian (a clichéd part, but invested with a salty kick by the actress). Lackluster film co-starring Teresa Wright and Dean Jagger just doesn't hold much interest, despite good cinematography by James Wong Howe and an atmospheric score by Max Steiner, top talents all around. *1/2 from ****