The Sea of Grass (1947)

My Review

“The Sea of Grass” is a Western drama film about a conflict between a cattle baron and homesteaders over a grasslands area in northeast New Mexico. Director Elia Kazan (“Gentlemen’s Agreement” 1947) put together an excellent film with marvelous production values, memorable performances, and outstanding writing. The screenplay by Marguerite Roberts and Vincent Lawrence was adapted from the 1937 novel of the same name by Conrad Richter.

The stars are Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn as a married couple with significant problems. This film was the only Western of the nine films they did together. Co-stars include Robert Walker, Melvyn Douglas, Phyliss Thaxter, Edgar Buchanan, Harry Carey, Charles Trowbridge, and Russell Hicks as the Major. “The Sea of Grass” was a box office bonanza for producer Pandro S. Berman and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was filmed in California and Arizona.