Set in Oklahoma during the late 1800s, Cimarron is the story of Yancey and Sabra Cravat and his dreams of settling in a new territory. The film begins with Yancey participating in the 1893 land rush when President Harrison opened recently acquired Native American lands to any and all US citizens interested in having a homestead. Yancey has his eye on a particular plot but, due to a tricky female, loses his claim. Yancey, however, does not give up his dream of building a new society, so he returns to Witchita to pick up his wife Sabra and their four year old son Cimarron, Cim for short, and the family moves to Osage, a town that consists of saloons, gambling halls, and tents. Yancey plans to start a newspaper and to continue his fight for Native American rights. Shocked by their new home, Sabra is initially fearful but soon establishes a women's group and settles into their life in Osage.
In the first hour or so of this film, I thought I was watching Yancey's story, but during the second half, I realized that it is actually Sabra's story. Yancey has wanderlust; his adventurous nature causes him to selfishly abandon his family and seek new adventure. He only stays in Osage for four years and leaves when his daughter is toddler to head further west for another land rush. He's gone for five years, and Sabra, on her own, continues his newspaper and turns it from a weekly to a daily. Although she initially seems weak, Sabra has a quiet strength about her. She definitely fits a woman of her time period; whenever Yancey returns, she becomes obedient and sees him as the head of the household even though she's been running things just fine without him (she does love him, though, so her obedience may be connected to that). But while she fits that role, at the same time, she breaks it by running the newspaper and towards the end of her life becoming elected to be a U.S. representative for Oklahoma. Sabra is, despite her weak moments, a likable, independent female lead whereas Yancey comes off as being a selfish jerk more interested in making a name for himself than supporting his family. And when he returns, he expects everyone to be thrilled to see him, to praise him. It's incredibly obnoxious, and I wonder if that is how the role was meant to be played or just how the actor was.
I don't typically watch Westerns, but I have to say that this one worked for me. The first hour was pretty slow, but the second part picked up. The director used text screens to transition from one time period to the next and even included historical context, so at times, it felt more like I was watching historical fiction than a western. What I would have liked more knowledge of was the title of the film. The son was named Cimarron, and it's referenced as an "Indian" name in the film when Sabra's mother complains of her son-in-law who is so obsessed with "Indians" that he named his son this. Beyond this, I didn't catch much else about the name...other than seeing how fitting the name is when Cim falls in love with Ruby, a Native American girl, and decides to marry her against his mother's wishes (his father supports him). Later, Sabra accepts Ruby, which shows how she changes throughout the film.
Overall, Cimarron was a pleasant surprise.
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