Rachel and the Stranger (4 stars)

Rachel and the Stranger, from 1948, is a sweet little film starring Loretta Young, William Holden, and Robert Mitchum.  It's a film that fits into a number of genre...it's a bit of a romantic drama...there are some comedic moments...it's also a mild Western.  The setting is on the frontier, sometime in what I would guess is the late 1700's...a time when Shawnee Indian uprisings were common and when indentured servanthood was practiced.

Dave Harvey's (William Holden) wife has recently died, leaving him alone to raise their young son. Having a tough time trying to clear and farm his land, keep up his cabin, and raise the boy the way his late wife would have wanted, Dave dons his Sunday finest and heads to town to get himself a wife.  When the local parson tells Dave about a bondwoman in need of a new home, Dave thinks she would be perfect---he could have someone to cook and clean and school his son, but he wouldn't have to get married.  The parson, however, doesn't see it that way, telling Dave that it would be improper for them to live together without the legality of marriage. So, in short order, Dave marries the bondwoman, Rachel (Loretta Young); however, it's an uncomfortable marriage right from the start...Rachel calls Dave "Mr. Harvey," Dave is cold to Rachel, treating her like nothing more than a servant, and young Davey is resentful of another woman trying to mother him.  Meant to be a marriage in name only, Rachel is given the cabin's only bedroom, while Dave sleeps in the main room.

Though Rachel longs for Dave's love, Dave isn't quite ready to fall in love again.  He's content to let things go on as they are...that is until his guitar-playing friend, Jim Fairways (Robert Mitchum), shows up for an extended visit.  Jim is kind and friendly to Rachel, never treating her like a second-class citizen.  After noticing that Dave doesn't treat Rachel as a man ought to treat a wife, Jim wants Rachel for himself.  He tells Dave that he'll buy out Rachel's bond and then marry her himself.  Suddenly seeing Rachel in a new light, Dave begins to get jealous.

Will love dawn for Rachel and Dave?  Or will Rachel take Jim up on his offer of marriage?  And what about the warring Shawnee?  These are the questions that will play out in the balance of this wonderful film.



Rachel and the Stranger is not out on DVD; however, it is on VHS.  In fact, that is how I first saw it about four years ago (when I had a working VHS player).  I tracked it down through the public library's inter-library loan system.  However, TCM does have it on the schedule for January 6, 2012, at 4:45 p.m., so if you don't have a VHS player or can't track the film down, you can always catch it then.  I do hope you get a chance to see it, though, as it is a sweet film with a great cast.

Happy viewing!!!