Stranger on Horseback

McCrea glows as the circuit judge attempting to deliver to justice the murdering son of a wealthy cattle baron. the routine tale is uplifted by a superior cast including a rare appearance by International star, the late Miroslava, John Carradine, John McIntire, Roy Roberts, and a pre-Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) Kevin McCarthy. The story moves at a rapid pace to a furious and unpredictable conclusion. This is truly a great western, and it is a shame that the only copy to make it to VHS is from film that is obviously deteriorated. C'mon Turner or AMC...this is one that deserves restoring!!!

Circuit judge rides into town and finds that a killing has taken place that no-one wants to investigate. He soon finds that the killer is the son of the local landowner who basically owns the town. The film relates the story of the judge's attempts to bring him to justice. Although this is a fairly cliched story, it is made with panache, and with a running time of a little over an hour, it does not outstay it's welcome. Miroslava, with her eastern European looks and accent, is a striking presence in the film. Her tragic death after the film was completed was a sad loss. I saw this movie on Movies4Men and wouldn't mind having a DVD of it, and having found that it is available as part of a box set called Darn Good Westerns 1 I have ordered it through amazon.

As usual, Joel McCrea is excellent in an underplayed role of dignity. The movie was filmed on magnificent locations surrounding Sedona, Arizona. Unfortunately I have only found black and white copies of this movie. To due the film justice it should be seen in color, which would greatly increase my rating for this movie.

The review by Tom Slaback (tom-374) from Prescott, AZ says that he's only seen this film in black & white and wanted to know if a color version is available. Well, I rented the DVD and it IS is color, though the DVD indicates that there is no surviving negative and the copy is not optimal. In other words, while it's in color, the colors are a bit off (everybody appears sunburned because of the over-saturation of reds) and the print is a tad fuzzy.

The film begins with a new federal circuit judge (Joel McCrea) arriving in a western town. The first thing he notices is that all the businesses in town are owned by a man named Bannerman. The second thing he notices is that the sheriff and prosecuting attorney in town are bought and paid for by Bannerman--and he and his family can pretty much do as they please. It's obvious that there will soon be a showdown between the judge and Bannerman--and it's a fairly typical sort of plot for a western.

At times the plot is a lot like a lower budget "5:10 to Yuma" as well as "High Noon"--awfully good company in which to place any film. Despite having many familiar elements, Joel McCrea is so good in the film and the movie is made economically (not just cost but a lot of bang in such a short film), it's well worth seeing.

According to the Films of Joel McCrea series book, McCrea liked so much working with Jacques Tourneur on one of his best films Stars In My Crown that he signed eagerly to do this adaption of a Louis L'Amour novel of a western circuit riding, gun toting judge. This is a man who backs up his decisions.

No one has been to this town recently when McCrea rides in and he quickly discovers the place is run top to bottom by the local Ben Cartwright played by John McIntire. McCrea discovers quickly enough that McIntire's punk son has been responsible for several non-natural deaths and no one has seen fit to prosecute. McCrea orders cynical marshal Emile Meyer to arrest Kevin McCarthy. Soon enough though it's pretty obvious that no fair trial can be obtained in McIntire's town so a change of venue is ordered. The rest of the film is McCrea, Meyer, McCarthy and a few others making the journey for said change of venue with McIntire on their heels.

Stealing every scene he's in is John Carradine playing a rather cheerfully corrupt prosecutor in McIntire's town. He reminds me so much of Cassius Starbuckle the cattleman's mouthpiece in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. His role here could be a younger version, a dress rehearsal for the John Ford classic.

Playing McIntire's niece is Czech/Mexican actress Miroslava who would do only one more film before committing suicide at the age of 30. She was one sexy alluring creature who tries her ways on McCrea. He's tempted to be sure.

Stranger On Horseback is short and taught western with maximum editing skills applied by its director. McCrea's character might well have been transferred to television for a series about a circuit riding judge. I'm surprised no one saw the possibilities.