description Colorado Territory Overview
Colorado Territory is a 1949 Western directed by Raoul Walsh, notable as his frontier remake of High Sierra with Joel McCrea as the outlaw lead.
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Colorado Territory ranks #7 of 48 in the Western Film ranking, behind Sweet Country, ahead of Day of the Outlaw.
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How is Colorado Territory connected to High Sierra?
Raoul Walsh directed both films, adapting the same underlying W. R. Burnett story into different genres. High Sierra is a 1941 gangster film with Humphrey Bogart, while Colorado Territory moves the doomed-outlaw narrative to the Old West.
Who does Joel McCrea play in Colorado Territory?
McCrea plays Wes McQueen, an outlaw broken out of jail to participate in a final train robbery. His attempt to escape criminal life becomes entangled with Colorado Carson, played by Virginia Mayo.
Where was Colorado Territory filmed?
The film makes prominent use of the rugged landscapes around Gallup, New Mexico, including the abandoned settlement of Tohatchi. Those locations give the robbery and pursuit a harsher visual character than a studio-bound Western.
Does Colorado Territory have a typical heroic Western ending?
No. Wes McQueen is a fatalistic outlaw rather than a triumphant frontier hero, and his relationship with Colorado leads toward tragedy. That bleak structure reflects the film-noir roots it shares with High Sierra.
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