River of No Return (1954)

River of No Return is my favorite Marilyn Monroe film. Her performance in this on-the-road story of a saloon singer caught in a love triangle is a little more subtle than some of her other characters. When Monroe shares quiet moments with her young co-star (Tommy Rettig) she's at her best. There's something right about seeing Monroe smack-dab in Heartland country. She seems more natural, more herself, in blue jeans and boots compared to her iconic white dress blowing in the wind persona.

Robert Micthum is perfectly cast as the brooding, "man of the wild" that shows Monroe's character a more simple way of living. River of No Return is exactly the kind of movie that should be programmed the at TCM Film Festival.

River of No Return is available on Netflix.