For the Boys Blogathon

Participating blogs:
As Time Goes By
Backlots
Bette’s Classic Movie Blog
Blame Mame
Comet Over Hollywood
Dear Mr. Gable
Frankly, My Dear
Hollywood Revue, The
Jeremy Gurto
lilliangish.net
Most Beautiful Fraud in the World, The
Noir and Chick Flicks
Pussy Goes Grr
Sinamatic Salve-ation
Sittin’ on a Backyard Fence
Tales of the Easily Distracted
True Classics
Undy a Hundy

What I think men most like about the western/film noir actor Robert Mitchum, is how he swaggered through the wildness of his youth and became very independent man. Without a doubt, one of Mr. Mitchum's best films is also his favorite performance, The Night of the Hunter (1955). His performance as Reverend Harry Powell, is considered by many to be one of the most suspenseful of his career.

The film begins when family man Ben Harper, is sentenced to hang for his part in a robbery in which two men were killed. Before he is caught he hides the stolen money, telling only his son John, where the money is.

Reverend Harry Powell, a serial killer and posing as preacher with the two words "LOVE" and "HATE" tattooed across his knuckles, shares a prison cell with Harper. While Harper sleeping, Powell over hears him say: "And a little child shall lead them."

Powell, now believes that Harper's children, are the only ones who know the secret of where the money is and to win their trust, marries their mother, Willa. Powell, asks the children about the money and John becomes suspicious of Powell and does not trust him. Willa, overhears her new husband questioning the children and now that she knows the truth, he kills her.

After Powell dumps her body, you see a beautiful/horrific under water scene of her sitting in the car at the bottom of the pond. He learns where the money is and the children escape down the river with the money. The river scene is one of many moments of pure beauty and the music keeps you drifting along.



 They find safety with an eccentric old woman named, Rachel Cooper. Powell, eventually catches up with them, but Rachel knows that he is evil and takes matters into her own hands.

The cat and mouse game, between Reverend Harry Powell and young John, will keep you sitting on the edge of your seat.

Great On Screen Couples: Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell.

This dynamite pair only made two films together, 1951's His Kind Of Woman and 1952's Macao, but they are regarded as one of Hollywood's premiere screen couples. Thanks to Howard Hughes, the pair joined forces for the film noir His Kind Of Woman and generated undeniable screen chemistry. Actually the duo would have made three films together when Hughes considered casting Russell opposite Mitchum for 1949's The Big Steal. This film was rushed into production after Mitchum's arrest for smoking marijuana. Hughes didn't want to risk teaming Russell with him, fearing it would taint her career. Instead, Hughes gave the role to Jane Greer, his former flame he wanted to punish for having rejected him. Regardless, we have two solid films with the pair definitely in their element.

His Kind Of Woman had gambler Dan Milner (Mitchum) in Mexico and comes across a gangster (Raymond Burr) who is trying to get back into America after being deported and a lovely singer named Lenore (Russell). There are twists and turns aplenty in this entertaining film.

Russell's and Mitchum's second film Macao has Mitchum as a man on the run trying to redeem himself by capturing an international crime lord. Russell is cast once again as a singer and has a grand time delivering her lines with spunk and sass. Macao also co-starred Gloria Grahame. It's a shame this duo only made these two films together as you can tell they had a great connection and worked well with one another. They made their mark as one of cinema's sexiest teams.

Happy Birthday: Robert Mitchum!

Robert Mitchum, began acting in a Long Beach, California, amateur theater company. Where he performed in small roles in films. In 1945, he was cast as Lt. Walker in Story of G.I. Joe (1945) and received an Oscar nomination as Best Supporting Actor. He quickly became an icon of 1940s film noir, though equally performed well in westerns and romantic dramas. In the 1950s, his brief prison term for smoking marijuana in 1949, seemed to help rather than hurt his "bad boy" image. He is well known for his performance in the film, The Night of the Hunter (1955). Crime drama. Director: Charles Laughton. Cast: Robert Mitchum and Shelley Winters. The film is based on the true story and 1953 novel of the same name by Davis Grubb, adapted for the screen by James Agee and Laughton.

The film is set in West Virginia in the 1930s. Ben Harper is sentenced to hang for the robbery in which two men were killed. Before he is caught he hides the stolen money, trusting it to his son John. Reverend Harry Powell, a serial killer and self-called preacher with the words "LOVE" and "HATE" tattooed on his right and left hands, shares a prison cell with Harper. He tries to get Harper to tell him where he hid the money before his execution, but the only clue he gets is a Bible verse Harper says in his sleep: "And a little child shall lead them."

Believing that Harper told his children the secret, Powell marries Harper's widow, Willa. One night Willa overhears her husband questioning the children and she realizes the truth. Will she be able to protect her children from the so called... Reverend Harry Powell?


For me Night of the Hunter is one of the scariest films ever made. Mitchum gives an excellent performance. The suspense comes from the performance of the characters. Although, the film is warm and charming in parts. You'll remember this film for a long time.

Mitchum began performing on television in the 1980s, with "The Winds of War" (1983) and "War and Remembrance" (1988). His sons James Mitchum and Christopher Mitchum are actors, as is his grandson Bentley Mitchum. His last film was James Dean: Race with Destiny (1997) (TV).