One of the few pictures in which John Wayne plays a morally dubious character was “Trouble Along the Way,” in which he is geared in a suit and a tie.
More sentimental and conventional than most of Wayne’s vehicles of that era, “Trouble Along the Way” is a passably entertaining sports comedy, directed by the prolific Michael Curtiz (“Casablanca”) in a routine, impersonal way.
Wayne portrays a cynical college football coach Stephen (‘Steve’) Aloysius Williams. We learn that he has been fired from previous jobs for violating rules relating to players’ eligibility.
Wayne has always been good with children, which is why they are prominent in his pictures, especially when he began to age.
In this film, Wayne is a divorced father, raising an eleven-year-old tomboy named Carole, played by Sherry Jackson, who may be too bland, lacking charisma, which is most noticeable in her scenes with Wayne.
The film’s routine premise if that if he doesn’t find work soon, he’ll lose custody of his daughter.
The reliable character actor Charles Coburn plays Father Matthew William Burke, the dean of a financially distressed Catholic college in New York City. Father Matthew hires Steve to make the college’s football team competitive so that receipts from the game’s ticket sales will supply much needed funds for the college.
Donna Reed plays the kind and gentle social worker, Alice Singleton. Alice is investigating complaints of child neglect against Steve Williams, and in the process manages to soften him–and fall in love with him.
“Winning isn’t everything–it’s the only thing,” says Steve Williams, the college athletics instructor played by Wayne. Recently divorced, Williams has trouble finding a job due to his “independent” streak, his inability to get along with superiors and get orders.
We learn that Williams had used unethical methods to put the college back on its feet, faking academic grades to get good players, and even resorting to blackmail to get good playing dates. He refuses to admit to any shame, when reproached by the Father for his disreputable means.
Williams maintains a cynical view of the sports business, refusing to condemn corruption, so long as it is a useful means to win. Some critics and viewers interpreted Wayne’s attitude as a realistic commentary on the corrupt practices of the American sports establishment.
James Dean Cameo
James Dean appears as an uncredited extra in the film, during a scene in the college chapel.
Cast
John Wayne as Steve Aloysius Williams
Donna Reed as Alice Singleton
Charles Coburn as Father Burke
Tom Tully as Father Malone
Sherry Jackson as Carole Williams
Marie Windsor as Anne McCormick
Tom Helmore as Harold McCormick
Dabbs Greer as Father Mahoney
Leif Erickson as Father Provincial
Douglas Spencer as Procurator
Lester Matthews as Cardinal O’Shea
Chuck Connors as Stan Schwegler
Bill Radovich as Moose McCall
Murray Alper as bus driver
Credits
Running Time: 110 Minutes.
Directed By: Michael Curtiz
Script: Melville Shavelson and Jack Rose
Released: April 4, 1953.
DVD: May 22, 2007 (for John Wayne’s centennial)
