release in the same year a the seminal double whammy of crossfire and out of the past and mitchum cement his burgeon reputation with his tortured performance in this brooding psychological western direct by raoul walsh . jed rand ( mitchum ) be a man torment by a childhood memory of traumatic violence that he can never fully grasp . orphan a a young boy and he be discover cower in a cellar by a strong minded cattle woman and ma callum ( judith anderson ) and who flee her homestead with young jed and her own two child in tow . she bring him up a part of her own family and intent on harbour him from the horror of his past . yet a year go by and jed restlessness and constant sense that the shadowy figure from the recess of his mind be doggedly reach after him slowly begin to consume their relationship . indeed and ma may hold the key to unlock his dark secret . jed have a strong effect on the callum family a they grow together . a deep love slowly blossom between him and his step sister and thorley ( teresa wright ) and but his step brother adam ( john rodney ) gradually begin to deeply resent his presence while something that be twist into something even dark and more hateful when jed return home a war hero . similarly and the sinister one armed figure of callum kinsman and grant ( dean jagger ) and constantly lingers on the periphery of jed life and seemingly orchestrate his enemy against him . a the secret and lie begin to chafe away at the bond between them and only the inevitable violence and conflict will bring the truth crash down upon them . tell mostly in flashback and pursue offer a twisted and noiresque vision of the west . the family turmoil play out like a dust choke greek tragedy while full of tragic unspoken truth and deep root jealousy and hatred and sibling rivalry and an almost incestuous love between the three child . the death and violence that chase jed throughout his life until his moment of revelation do not confront him head on but instead through unseen rifle fire and unexpected pot shot and shadowy figure that come to kill him in the dead of night . even jed fracture memory be convey with flash of light and incoherent background noise and a pair of clatter spur seemingly dance before the terrified child face . mitchum performance be excellent . brooding and manly and only occasionally hint at the vulnerability beneath . it almost impossible to take your eye off him at time . judith anderson and teresa wright both match him in their key scene too whilst the ever watchable dean jagger be on fine form while play it mean to the bone throughout . in fact and of the central player and only newcomer john rodney really struggle to hit the right note throughout . pursue be a fine and fine film . truly original with a tough yet poetic style and it be beautifully photograph and erotically charge and masterfully direct by the great raoul walsh . this be a must see for all mitchum fan .