Le Cavalier traqué

This well acted movie is better than many of the so-called "A" westerns of the period. It has humor, drama, good dialogue, and a good story. Unlike, "High Noon" to which it has been compared in a previous review, it is more believable and less melodramatic. Randolph Scott, as usual, is in peak form and Wayne Morris is very effective as the easy going deputy. He has always been a favorite of mine because of his pleasant personality and natural acting style.

The action is fast paced even though most of it take place within the town. Joe Sawyer and the other veteran stars are convincing and the story line is original. This a film that I can watch repeatedly because it really entertaining. I only wish that today's writers, and directors could or would turn out movies of this caliber with actors who act and look like real frontiersmen.

Stagecoach guard Larry Delong (Randolph Scott) is obsessed with catching criminal Dan Marady who leads a ruthless gang and killed his relatives. He falls into trap, hog-tied, and left to die in the sun. The stagecoach gets attacked and the men are killed. Larry escapes and returns to town. He is surprised to find that most of the population believe that he is part of Marady's gang and they are unwilling to listen to his warning of an imminent return of the gang to raid the town. Meanwhile, Marady's gang is infiltrating the town.

This is a great depiction of mob rule. These regular town folks may seem like cartoons but they are more real than one expects. These are men of pitchforks and torches. I love the regular people turning on the hero. As for the criminals, I expected them to be more ruthless. This is still an old fashion western which is barely more than seventy minutes. It doesn't go as dark as it could have. The last act is doing a happy Hollywood ending. The narrating is a little interesting in that it gives Larry's gunfire some inner monologue. I wouldn't mind a modern remake with a more brutal final act.

Larry DeLong(Scott) is Riding Shotgun on stagecoaches, keeping them safe. After a holdup, the town first thinks that he's a coward and then decide that he must be a part of the gang -- and they're gonna get him! Meanwhile, the real baddies are heading to town to rob the bank and only Scott can prevent that.

Not quite up to High Noon standards, but a good yarn. Randolph Scott comes through, once again!

Stage-line security guard Scott is lured away from town by a member of his arch-enemy's gang and tied up to die from exposure. Escaping, he returns to find the stage robbed and everyone thinking he's in cahoots with the villains, with no one believing him when he tells them that the robbery was a ruse to get the law out on a goose-chase so that the real deal could go down. In fact, the whole town is ready to lynch Scott!

Though some of the portrayals of the ignorant townspeople are clearly over-the-top, Riding Shotgun is a very well-made and well-paced little western that really delivers the goods in terms of action and especially suspense.

There's a great role for a young Charles Bronson, who in his western debut (excluding an episode of The Roy Rodgers Show where he plays a boxer) as a sadistic member of the outlaw gang. The scenes where he joins the lynch mob and stokes them are pretty neat.

There's also a great role for Wayne Morris, who's probably best remembered for his role as a cowardly officer in Stanley Kubrick's Paths Of Glory, as the town's remaining deputy who desperately tries to prevent needless bloodshed.

I'm glad to see that a majority of reviewers liked this film. I did, too. It's one Scott Western that's passed me by until now, though others are frequently shown on British TV.

The plot was more original than many 1950s' Westerns, and the town looked a little different to those so often seen. As has already been remarked, the townsfolk were a quirky lot, and there was some nice minor characterizations, especially the guy fondling a rope all the time.

What little love interest there was was unnecessary, doing nothing to the plot.

One might quibble at Scott's wish for a messenger to be sent to recall the posse. There wouldn't have been enough time to track it down and for it to return in time to combat the raid. And how obliging of Scott to ride so precisely under the tree that Bronson could jump on him. At least the revolvers ran out of ammunition after being fired six times, forcing their users to reload, unlike in some Westerns where they seem to have eight or more rounds in them.

I'll be happy to watch it again some time.