The Painted Hills (1951)
During the California Gold Rush, an aging prospector strikes a rich claim and pledges a share to the young son of his late mining partner. A greedy acquaintance murders him for the gold and tries to poison his collie, Shep — but the dog survives and trails the killer into the high country for a final reckoning.
The Painted Hills was the seventh and final Lassie feature MGM produced, with the male collie Pal — the original screen Lassie — playing the dog once more before the series moved to television. Shot in Technicolor in the Sierra Nevada, it wraps a surprisingly grim revenge plot around what was sold as wholesome family fare, and lapsed into the public domain when MGM failed to file a renewal in 1979.
Background
The Painted Hills was the seventh and last Lassie feature made by MGM, and the male collie Pal, who had played Lassie in the original films, returned for the role of the dog. It was directed by Harold F. Kress and shot in Technicolor in the Sierra Nevada, using mountain landscape to suit its Gold Rush setting. Paul Kelly is among the cast. MGM failed to file a copyright renewal in 1979, so the film fell into the public domain. It was sold as wholesome family entertainment, but its plot is considerably darker than that label suggests.
What to watch for
Watch the film’s use of the Gold Rush setting, where an aging prospector’s strike becomes the source of a murder plot. The greedy acquaintance kills him for the gold and then tries to poison his collie, Shep, but the dog survives and sets out after the killer. The Technicolor landscapes give the high-country chase a vivid look, and the revenge plot is more violent than the family-film packaging implies. At 68 minutes the film keeps its focus on the chase, and the dog’s tracking of the killer is its main source of suspense.
