She should be muttering “dickheads!” under her breath.
The Civil War movie Belle Starr (1941) is a mediocre tale of the real-life Belle Starr. Portrayed here as a Southern belle of Missouri, dispossessed of her home by a childhood friend who joined the Yankees, this story ignores a number of problems, such as the fact she still have slaves after the Civil War has finished, that her slaves would much rather stay with her than enjoy freedom, and, frankly, she’s a spoiled brat with a vision of southern culture quite at odds with the fact that it was built on the backs of slaves.
She’s a fire-breathing, bullet-spitting bride of Sam Starr, the leader of the post-Civil War rebels in Missouri, but when their Army starts abusing the loyal southerners, she’s had quite enough, only to fall prey to a bounty-hunter.
There’s little to like here, although the cinematography is nice. Characters make idiotic decisions, embrace causes divorced from justice, and mouth dialog that can be a trifle clumsy. They don’t even kiss very well.
Sort of like real life.
But, unless you really are devoted to Randolph Scott or Gene Tierney, or absolutely have to see all the movies made with a character named Blue Duck in them, don’t waste your time with this clunker.
