Two love interests - neither ride into the sunset with John Cord (McCrea).
At the end of the movie, John Cord leaves the cattle drive before the destination is reached to avoid first choice between romances, to avoid a partnership offer where he would run a ranch and commit adultery daily in front of a blind husband, Ralph Hamilton (Don Haggerty).
One love interest was too young and the director makes that clear in the close ups as one can see the withered face of John Cord in the same angle against a youthful face of Sandy Jeffrey (Gloria Talbot). This interest was only a one way interest - from Sandy to Cord.
The other love interest was two ways between Cord and Janice Hamilton (Phyllis Coates). Old flames are heated back up. Janice, in the night, visits Cord telling him she should not have come on the cattle drive as she has feelings. They lean close and the scene cuts away to next day. It doesn't take much imagination to get the details of what happened the night before when Janice tells Cord the next day you've been avoiding me - his guilt of what happened between them in the dark - followed by a question from Janice of when are we going to tell my husband.
When the blind man, Ralph Hamilton, offers Cord to co-run the ranch with his brother and that he has things he does not deserve, that he'll keep on going past the for, Cord knows then that the blind man knows.
Cord decides to leave the cattle drive a few days before the fort. The competition for cattle eliminated, the water found for cattle and people; the town of Hamiltonville saved, and the truth in what really happened in Hamiltoville 5 years ago that sent Cord to prison for no reason has set Cord free.
Instead of breaking up a marriage, perhaps seen as taking advantage of a blind man, and instead of crushing a young girls heart and dreams, Cord takes off early to avoid both situations. He tells the blind man that he'll tell him later where to send his pay. A man bent on revenge succumbs to doing the best - that's the moral here.
At the end of the movie, John Cord leaves the cattle drive before the destination is reached to avoid first choice between romances, to avoid a partnership offer where he would run a ranch and commit adultery daily in front of a blind husband, Ralph Hamilton (Don Haggerty).
One love interest was too young and the director makes that clear in the close ups as one can see the withered face of John Cord in the same angle against a youthful face of Sandy Jeffrey (Gloria Talbot). This interest was only a one way interest - from Sandy to Cord.
The other love interest was two ways between Cord and Janice Hamilton (Phyllis Coates). Old flames are heated back up. Janice, in the night, visits Cord telling him she should not have come on the cattle drive as she has feelings. They lean close and the scene cuts away to next day. It doesn't take much imagination to get the details of what happened the night before when Janice tells Cord the next day you've been avoiding me - his guilt of what happened between them in the dark - followed by a question from Janice of when are we going to tell my husband.
When the blind man, Ralph Hamilton, offers Cord to co-run the ranch with his brother and that he has things he does not deserve, that he'll keep on going past the for, Cord knows then that the blind man knows.
Cord decides to leave the cattle drive a few days before the fort. The competition for cattle eliminated, the water found for cattle and people; the town of Hamiltonville saved, and the truth in what really happened in Hamiltoville 5 years ago that sent Cord to prison for no reason has set Cord free.
Instead of breaking up a marriage, perhaps seen as taking advantage of a blind man, and instead of crushing a young girls heart and dreams, Cord takes off early to avoid both situations. He tells the blind man that he'll tell him later where to send his pay. A man bent on revenge succumbs to doing the best - that's the moral here.