"Top Westerns of the 1950's" Topic

Interesting comments by one and all regarding High Noon.

I tend to watch movies as movies. Whatever they are trying to convey as a story, do it on the screen. I never look behind the scenes (in effect). Don't care who wrote it, what sexual preference the director may have had, who was cheating on whom, etc.

I'll watch my 120 minutes (give or take) and either like the story or not. It must stand alone and be judged by what I see on the silver screen.

That said, I LOVE High Noon.

How may hundreds of westerns are out there where the baddies come to town, and a small band of good guys must fend them off. Lots. And I like those.

High Noon had none of that. The town IS clean. It's a great place to have a raise a family. And why? Because our hero was there back when it was NOT so clean, and NOT so nice. And he MADE it a place for families.

And they appreciated that … back in the day. But times have changed. And they don't want a gunfight in their town to be in the news and muddy their now clean name.

So this honor-bound man, who MADE the town what it is, can't get any help. And time runs out, and the final act plays out.

It's wonderful. A man alone, taking on the bad guys. Not because he has to, but because he feels he should.

And his tossing of the badge into the dirt at the end strikes me as a 1950's way of telling the town "F-YOU". Of course it is much more classy having him not say a word when he does it.

Now he rides off with his new wife, with nobody gunning for him. He can live out the rest of his life knowing he did the right thing. The town will live in shame. To borrow and paraphrase the bard … "those who refused to help will hold their manhood cheap when any speaks of this day".

And as the Mexican Lady (who sells off her holdings to leave) knows and says, without an honorable man around, the town will become nothing, and she no longer wants a part of it.

A perfect ending.

A different sort of western story, perfectly told, with great casting and acting and direction, probably the first use of real-time countdown to the big event on screen, etc.

I don't see blacklists or McCarthy hearings or any of the other potential (fact or fiction) back-stories. I think those of you who DON'T like this film might, if you could clear your mind of all that baggage, and just watch our heroic lawman "do the right thing" one last time.

IMHO of course.

Steve

Re: "High Noon" I guess it boils down to whether you buy the premise of an entire town too afraid to take cover and blow the bad guys to Hell. I dunno. (shrug) If I was one of them I'd help the Marshal.

Anyway, looks like we've played this one out.

My favorite western I can't find again after seeing it on Saturday afternoon tv. It was black and white, with a log fort (built in a valley surrounded by hills!) and being attacked by (Jewish-looking) Indians. Oh, and it was a musical!

As for

"It rightfully criticizes those who would sacrifice anything or anyone on the altar of peace, as well as those who want to enjoy the benefits of society without being willing to make any sacrifice or take any risk when their society needs them. One man sees his duty and does it, even when the world and logic tells him to run"

- doesn't that remind you of, say, for example, our two most recent Presidents?

>>doesn't that remind you of, say, for example, our two most recent Presidents?<<

No.

Read Mad Magazine's parody,"Hah! Noon". And comedian Bill Cosby spoofed it in one of his "pudding pops" ads

>>Read Mad Magazine's parody,"Hah! Noon"<<

The one from MAD Comics. Jack Davis art. Loved it!

I don't think anyone's yet mentioned the outstanding 'Warlock' (squeaking in from 1959): Fonda, Widmark, and Anthony "the champeen cowboy killer" Quinn all at the very top of their game.

Other than that I'll go for the sadly predictable:
– Searchers,
– Big country,
– 3:10 to Yuma,
– Seven men from now,
– all the Stewart/Mann series

Never been a big fan of 'High noon'. Aside from politics and plausibility, I can't sympathise with a chap who would spurn Katy Jurado.

>>I can believe that the folks of the town would be more than willing to turn a blind eye rather than get involved. Folks like to talk about Northfield – how other times did something like that happen?<<

Famously, Coffeyville. And between Northfield and Coffeyville you've got two towns successfully facing up to two of the most notorious outlaw gangs in history. The James-Younger gang and the Dalton gang. And in both cases the townsfolk blew the gangs away effectively and without hesitation.

Hate to exhume the High Noon fully but I agree a lot with Terrement. People didn't and still don't get involved unless they have a personal stake typically. The biggest reason for the James Gang's temporary success was the populace either was too enamored or too scared to give them away.

On another note the idea of cowardly or at least despicable townsfolk was used in 50s TV shows particularly Wanted Dead or Alive although a few Rawhide episodes were like that too. High Noon was just the first big western to use that motiff. The idea had been around for a while.

ALV

>>Hate to exhume the High Noon fully but I agree a lot with Terrement. People didn't and still don't get involved unless they have a personal stake typically.<<

I disagree completely. The sort of selfish attitude that you're talking about is a relatively modern situation in the USA. The pioneers stuck together and helped each other wherever they could as that meant protection and a thriving community in early America. If people in the 18th and 19th century thought the way you think that they did there would have been no westward expansion. Cooperation was *extremely* important, and that frequently meant protecting each other.

Now you might say that the townspeople in "High Noon" had settled in and become comfortable and wouldn't want to risk their lives, but assuming that this is the early 1870's to mid 1880's there would have been people in that town that would have been brave and very competent pioneers that risked everything to go west, and probably some that had fought in the the Civil War as well. And here's a fact that everyone seems to overlook. The story takes place in New Mexico where the citizens were still fighting the Apache. They weren't even a *state* yet, so I find it *very* hard to believe that they wouldn't support the only law around. That just doesn't make sense. Not even in fiction.

In any case, IMO, considering Carl Foreman's political affiliation and beliefs, he'd be the *last* person to do a story that's a factual representation of Americans on the frontier in the 1880's, as it would be supportive to his beliefs to think that people in out country are typically weak and selfish. I suppose that there are many that way here and now, but certainly not there and then.

I vote for THE SEARCHERS and THE LITTLE BIGHORN. The second is a tight, gritty B&W film that had every junior Western actor in Hollywood who later became a big name like Hugh O'Brian, Jim Davis, Lloyd Bridges, and a bunch more. Itwas about a patrol from the 7th who were on their way to warn Custer that Crazy Horse, Gall, Crow King and every Lakota and Cheyenne was out there waiting for him.
Count Natokina.