Director: Robert Wise
Starring: Robert Mitchum, Barbara Bel Geddes, Robert Preston, Walter Brennan
Running Time: 88 minutes
Synopsis: Drifting cowboy and expert gunslinger Jim Garry (Robert Mitchum) is recruited by his old buddy Tate Riling (Robert Preston) to join a group of ranchers defending their territory against encroachment by cattle-baron John Lufton (Tom Tully). After tangling with Lufton's daughter Amy (Barbara Bel Geddes), Jim learns he may be on the wrong side of this conflict, and that Riling is conspiring with evil government agent Pindalest (Frank Faylen) to exploit the ranchers and buy Lufton's herd on the cheap.
What Works Well: This is a moody psychological western, enlivened by bursts of action but focusing on the gradations of grey between right and wrong. Robert Mitchum's stoic and unflappable persona is perfect for a protagonist bruised by life, establishing an unwanted reputation as a gun for hire, but still capable of being the source of light in the darkness of competing greed. He is helped by the budding love of Amy, a hard-as-nails cowgirl astute enough to see the man hiding behind cynicism. Both sides of the traditional cattlemen-versus-ranchers conflict are sympathetically portrayed, with exploitive profiteers as the real antagonists.
What Does Not Work As Well: Given the short running time, the plot is almost too rich and over-stocked with characters. One real romance, one duplicitous romance, one grieving father (Walter Brennan), a couple of hardened gunslingers, one stampede, and a prolonged siege are all somehow wedged into the drama, leaving only limited room for reflection.
Key Quote:
Jim: I've been mixed up in a lot of things, Tate, but up to now, I've never been hired for my guns.
Riling: Can you afford to be so particular?
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