Track of the Cat

Set in 1880s Northern California, director William Wellman's gripping frontier drama stars Robert Mitchum as arrogant Curt Bridges, who trains his vengeful crosshairs on a black panther after the animal kills his brother Arthur (William Hopper). But while Curt embarks on his deadly quest, his snowbound family -- ruled by an iron-willed matriarch (Beulah Bondi) -- slowly unravels back home. Teresa Wright plays Curt's spinster sister.