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The cabin is visited by the free-spirited guitar playing Indian scout and hunter Jim Fairways (Robert Mitchum), a longtime friend of Big Davey's and a former rival for Susan's affection. The friendly carefree bachelor Jim flirts with Rachel, brings a joy to the surroundings by his lively singing (he delightfully belts out the folk song, "O-he, O-hi, O-ho") and makes Big Davey a jealous man. Jim's actions make Big Davey and Davey see how much Rachel means to them and that they are not willing to let her go when Jim asks to buy her for his wife. What follows is a Shawnee Indian attack on Big Davey's homestead and some heroics on the part of Rachel and Big Davie to come safely out of the raid and thereby cement their marriage.
In the meantime, Jim goes with the stockade men to pursue the Indians in the woods.The leisurely told cornball tale of frontier love makes for a pleasant and unassuming film. Rising star Mitchum got sudden notoriety after his Hollywood arrest for possession of marijuana and RKO, after some deliberation, rushed the film to a theater release to make hay out of the publicity for someone who already had a few films in the can. The strategy proved a good one, as the film got favorable reviews and did very well at the box office--thereby, probably, saving Mitchum's acting career.
Reviewed on 11/9/2008 - Grade:B
