Trouble Along the Way

"How'd you do last season?"

"We showed up for every game."

"I'd say that was raw courage."

St. Anthony's, a small Catholic college, is on the cusp of closing due to financial problems.  Father Burke (Coburn) is reluctant to give up on the school and convinces his superiors to give the school a chance to pay off their debt in order to stay open.  While his peers believe he is getting senile, Father Burke has faith that they can save the school.  He decides to hire a professional football coach to help their team play better and bring in some revenue.

Their only hope is Steve Williams (Wayne), a disgraced former college coach.  Williams now spends his time in pools halls.  He has a young daughter, Carol (Jackson), who he is raising alone.  His selfish ex-wife, Anne (Windsor), decides to stir up trouble and tells Social Services that he is an unfit father.  Social Services sends Alice Singleton (Reed) to study the case and provide a ruling.  With no where else to turn, Williams and Carol move to St. Anthony's to coach the football team, but they need a miracle to save the school.  Can Williams keep his daughter, save the school, and get the girl?


As I have mentioned before, I grew up watching John Wayne films.  I thought I had seen most of his films, but there are still quite a few that are new to me.  I discovered this film a few years ago when I was researching my Top 10 John Wayne Films post and was intrigued... but couldn't find the film.  Since then it has move around in my Netflix queue until it finally reached the top.

Wayne is best known for his serious western roles... or his war movies.  However, he made several comedy films and proves that he is quite adapt at humor.  This film gave him the opportunity to embrace the humor and play a shadier character, and does so with success.  The cast really make the film pop.  Charles Coburn is adorable and endearing as Father Burke, with a twinkle in his eyes.  Sherry Jackson is funny and has great chemistry with her co-stars.  Marie Windsor and Tom Helmore are the right amount of smarmy, and Donna Reed is good.  And well-known character actors populate the smaller parts.

The script is entertaining and moves at a good pace. And the filmmakers left the ending ambiguous, it suggests the future, but leaves it to your imagination... which works here.  Tying up all the story lines wouldn't be as satisfying with the tone of the rest of the film.  A lesser known gem in the Duke's filmography, definitely worth the effort to find.

Trouble Along the Way (1953) 110 minutes
Director: Michael Curtiz
Starring: John Wayne as Steve Williams
Donna Reed as Alice Singleton
Charles Coburn as Father Burke
Tom Tully as Father Malone
Sherry Jackson as Carol Williams
Marie Windsor as Anne Williams McCormick
Tom Helmore as Harold McCormick
Dabbs Greer as Father Peterson
Leif Erickson as Father Provincial
Douglas Spencer as Father Procurator
Lester Matthews as Cardinal William Patrick O'Shea

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