片名：Cimarron
中文：壮志千秋
出品：美国雷华影片公司出品
年份：1931
导演：维尔斯利·鲁格尔斯
编剧：霍华德．艾斯特布鲁克
男主角：理查德·狄克西
主演：艾琳·邓恩 、小威廉·科利尔 、罗斯科·阿蒂斯
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剧情简介：
在美国西部开拓时期主人公辛马龙携妻从东部来到俄克纳马拉。在土地肥沃矿业丰富的大草原上定居，他们克服重重困难改善了生存环境。但是也因侵犯了牧场主的利益而经常发生纠纷和格斗，强盗土匪的不断袭扰也使他们寝食不安。辛马龙见义勇为劫富济贪，尤其同情当地印第安人的悲惨遭遇。为了维护东部移民和印第安人的社会权益，他组织亲友开发油田，并办起声张正义扬善惩恶的报纸。这一切使敌对势力对辛马龙更加仇视，不幸的是在一次油田失火事故中辛马龙的血肉之躯和他毕生为之奋斗的“西部理想”都化为灰烬。
影片以辽阔无艰的俄克纳马拉大草原为背景，通过辛马龙的奋斗生涯展示了印第安文化和西部的变迁，赞扬了主人公的正义感和献身品德褒扬了西部开发精神。
User Comments From IMDB:
Fans of James Dean may watch this movie and think "This seems a bit familiar somehow." Well, "Cimarron" was quite literally cut from the same cloth as the 1956 epic movie "Giant". Both movies are based upon novels by Edna Ferber. Both movies are about families settling in hostile territory. Both movies speak of the rights of minorities (Native Americans and Mexicans, respectively). Both movies address how the landscape changes after the discovery of oil. And both movies show how a person's perception of a certain race (Sabra toward Indians in "Cimarron", and Bick toward Mexicans in "Giant") change over time. But, if you ask me, "Giant" is the better of the two films.
One of the things about this movie that I had heard before seeing it was that it was "horrifically racist." True, there are pervasive racial stereotypes throughout the film, but I think that many people who watch old movies without foreknowledge of the history of film fail to realize that it was a reflection of the times and how people perceived others. "The Jazz Singer" (1926) is regarded as a landmark movie, and it is a classic that people have enjoyed for years. But it, too, has racial stereotypes; Al Jolson sings onstage in blackface, but not for the reasons you may think. In the days of Vaudeville, Blacks weren't permitted to be stage performers, so white people would put on blackface makeup instead. Was this wrong? Yes. But I digress...
The story of "Cimarron" seemed somewhat convoluted to me, as it not quite successfully captured the spirit of Ferber's novel, but it does redeem itself, in that Yancey Cravat (Richard Dix) treated both the Indians and his houseboy, Isaiah (Eugene Jackson), with dignity and respect: At the town's first religious service, in which Yancey gave the sermon, he took up a collection, while at the same time saying the Indians in attendance need not contribute because their land was taken by the White Man; meanwhile, Yancey had publicly given Isaiah his sidearm, so that he may stand guard at home, something unheard of in the late 1800s! And Sabra (Irene Dunn), who did carry prejudices against Indians (she even called them "dirty" after one gave their son a gift), changed her perception of them by the end of the movie, to the point that she, too, became an outspoken advocate of Indians' rights.
The performances in this movie are mixed. Irene Dunn does a fine job here, as does Estelle Taylor, who played the local madam, Dixie Lee. But in my opinion, Richard Dix's performance was too passionate, to the point that he overacted. I could not help but think that William Shatner took a cue from Richard Dix when he played Captain Kirk on "Star Trek". "Cimarron" is not a standout film, but if you like old movies, then I would recommend it. Otherwise, stick to "Giant"; it has a better story, a better cast, and much better acting.
