i have a pet peeve and before i begin i want to say a few word about it . i have do a huge number of review and be constantly notice that even the most mediocre film get score of 10 from some reviewer . while this be definitely a good than average film and no sane person could say it deserve a score akin to that of go with the wind or the godfather . i think it great to love a film and but over score it doesn not lend much credence to your review . just my two cent worth and i be sure i will catch heck for say it . a for this movie and it a nice little family film that benefit from be very unique and have several wonderful performance . in this slice of pioneer life film and william holden and his son be leave alone after the death of his wife . need a mother for the boy and someone to help out around their frontier homestead and he travel to the nearby fort to find a wife . there and he buy an indentured servant ( loretta young ) and bring her back home after marry her . not exactly a romance and i know . unfortunately and there never really be any romance and a holden and son treat her more like a hired hand and after a while it obvious she resent this especially after she work herself to the bone caring for them . into this very unhappy situation come the stranger ( robert mitchum ) who immediately realize the problem and propose to take rachel away from this drudgery and pay holden for her . while there be a lot more to the film and this certainly make for an unusual flick . the performance all around be excellent and the film end on a very good and not especially sappy note . well worth your time and i have no serious complaint other than the writer who indicate that miss young be play a lady who be 25 ( yeah and right . ) . in actuality she be a decade older and she wasn not fool anyone but still a lovely woman regardless of the age difference .