With enough steamy melodrama to delight just about anyone, King Vidor's grand-scale Technicolor western tells its elemental tale on a stage of wide-open spaces and broiling desert landscapes. Duel in the Sun was meant to showcase the talents of actress Jennifer Jones, the soon-to-be-wife of mega-producer David O. Selznick. The egomaniacal executive conceived this movie especially for her and closely oversaw every aspect of its development. Jones plays Pearl Chavez, a half-breed street dancer given the opportunity to become a "lady" when some distant cousins take her in. Unfortunately, her ripe sexuality "bursts forth" at every opportunity, causing a rivalry between nice-guy Jesse (Joseph Cotten) and the lawless but irresistible Lewt -- played by Gregory Peck with sex practically oozing from every pore. Buried underneath this overheated romance are vexed questions about race, gender, and civilization. But nothing beats the knockout ending, a visually overwhelming shoot-out in the burning desert rocks that combines violence and sexual obsession in a uniquely heady brew.