The Sundowners (1960)

I can see why this film was nominated for best picture.  What a wonderful film!  Robert Mitchum is fantastic in it, maybe my favorite performance of his that I've seen so far.  Deborah Kerr impressed me too, although I've yet to see her in anything that she was horrible in.  Delightful and unpredictable, I'm surprised that The Sundowners isn't touted more as an American classic.  It's about a Australian family on the move with the sheep drover father loving their wandering lifestyle and his wife and son who dream of owning a farm some day and settling.   They befriend an Englishmen played with wit and charm as you'd expect from Peter Ustinov and find themselves working on a sheep ranch to make extra money.  Never boring or melodramatic, the director, Fred Zinnermann, eases the story along at a steady pace letting the characters bloom on screen.   It's a film that's aged well and I'd recommend it to anyone who is looking for a western that's not your typical western.  Grade: A