The star trio of THE SPOILERS (1942) Marlene Dietrich, Randolph Scoot and John Wayne were re-united for this one, but the resulting film isn't as satisfactory or as well-regarded as that brawling Western saga. However, PITTSBURGH (which, naturally, deals with the coal industry) is still quite entertaining and, indeed, somewhat better than Leonard Maltin's unflattering review would suggest he even calls it "slow" when, if anything, I'm of the opinion that the epic narrative involved (spanning several years) felt rushed in the film's standard 91-minute duration!
That said, the film has problems: for one thing, Dietrich isn't believable as a coal-miner's daughter; also, being a wartime effort, it resorts to flag-waving in order to smoothen the conflicts between the various characters. In fact, Wayne is depicted as something of a tyrant (anticipating but not matching his role in Howard Hawks' classic Western RED RIVER [1948]). Finally, reading the film's credits through, I couldn't help noticing the curious connection it has with the horror genre not only would three cast members (Louise Albritton, Frank Craven and Samuel S. Hinds) appear together again in SON OF Dracula (1943), but cinematographer Robert De Grasse later shot the Val Lewton masterpiece THE BODY SNATCHER (1945), while editor Paul Landres eventually graduated to director and helmed both THE VAMPIRE (1957) and THE RETURN OF Dracula (1958)!
That said, the film has problems: for one thing, Dietrich isn't believable as a coal-miner's daughter; also, being a wartime effort, it resorts to flag-waving in order to smoothen the conflicts between the various characters. In fact, Wayne is depicted as something of a tyrant (anticipating but not matching his role in Howard Hawks' classic Western RED RIVER [1948]). Finally, reading the film's credits through, I couldn't help noticing the curious connection it has with the horror genre not only would three cast members (Louise Albritton, Frank Craven and Samuel S. Hinds) appear together again in SON OF Dracula (1943), but cinematographer Robert De Grasse later shot the Val Lewton masterpiece THE BODY SNATCHER (1945), while editor Paul Landres eventually graduated to director and helmed both THE VAMPIRE (1957) and THE RETURN OF Dracula (1958)!