Shotgun

There are very few westerns that aren't built up mainly on a theme of revenge, the western avengers on films must be innumerable, and they are always bold cold-blooded heroes, and there is always some beautiful girl waiting for them. Yvonne de Carlo here though has plenty of skin on her nose, and although Sterling Hayden doesn't exactly treat her as a gentleman, she is after all a good match for him, after all the obligatory fights, fisticuffs and gunfights, including a formidable bunch of Apaches. Any western fan will buy all this and enjoy it even with relish, because of the splendid photo and equally splendid music by Carl Brandt, but it is still a rather conventional piece of routine very far from the more hardcore rough settlements of for example Sam Peckinpah. This is all right, you will enjoy the three great leading actors and their issues, you will even more enjoy the landscapes and the music, but it is hardly a film you would need to watch another time.

Sterling Hayden was a good, macho actor with a nice screen presence. Because he was so good, even a rather routine western like "Shotgun" is worth seeing.

The film begins with the Marshall being gunned down by Thompson and his gang. Their weapon...a shotgun. Deputy Marshall Clay Harden (Hayden) is all set to retire...but he cannot allow himself to leave the Marshall unavenged. So, he tracks the gang members though the Arizona countryside as he picks them off one by one. Along the way, he meets a superfluous woman, a sleazy bounty hunter and a whole lotta Apache.

The film is lovely to look at, as it's in color and the Sedona countryside is spectacular. Less spectacular is the plot, as Yvonne De Carlo's role isn't especially necessary AND some of the dialog between her and Hayden is downright silly. Also silly is the duel at the end...a bit hard to believe. But the film, on balance has a bit more to like than dislike and if you enjoy the genre, give this one a look.

By the way, this film has a rattlesnake...if you are deathly afraid of snakes, better try another movie!

A Deputy Marshal in Arizona (Sterling Hayden) goes after a ruthless killer (Guy Prescott) in the sunny wasteland, where he meets a spitfire (Yvonne De Carlo) and a suave bounty hunter (Zachary Scott).

"Shotgun" (1955) is an obscure 50's Western so my expectations weren't exactly great, but it's actually pretty unique and commendable. At first, I thought it was going to be a town-bound Western, but the movie was shot primarily in the spectacular desert wilderness of the heart of Arizona. Hayden is laconic and determined while De Carlo is spirited and beautiful; meanwhile Scott is smooth and Prescott shady.

I like the psychological examination of the characters. Although the villain is wholly corrupt, most of the others function somewhere in the grey area, which makes for interesting social dynamics. The depiction of the Apaches is thankfully believable with many of them being of Amer-Indian stock. Lastly, the showdown in the last act is well done and inventive.

The film runs 1 hour, 20 minutes, and was shot at Vasquez Rocks in the high country north of Los Angeles (the opening) but mostly in the Sedona, Arizona, area (Red Rock Crossing & Oil Creek) with town scenes done at Universal City, California.

GRADE: B.

Even if you consider only his second part of career, this western is above the average stuff from this specialist in the gender. Of course Sterling Hayden contributes more than a part in the quality of this movie. The topic. In this film, Sterling Hayden's character has his first name CLAY and this is Hayden's last name in THE KILLING. That amused me. So, back to this western, yes we have the proof that Lesley Selander could make good films when he had the budget, especially after several decades of films and hundreds of them. He had plenty of time to learn how to direct westerns. The peculiarity here is the raw brutality of several scenes, very rude, rare for this period. But Ray Enright, another western specialist from the forties, gave us this kind of feeling too with some of his films. I almost forgot to speak of Yvonne De Carlo, the underrated great actress from Hollywood whose beauty was far far beyond the roles she had in her career.

Shotgun is directed by Leslie Selander and collectively written by Clark E. Reynolds, Rory Calhoun and John C. Champion. It stars Sterling Hayden, Yvonne DeCarlo, Zachary Scott and Guy Prescott. A Technicolor production with music by Carl Brandt and cinematography by Ellsworth Fredricks.

Standard revenge themed Oater set amongst the beautiful back drop of Sedona in Arizona. Story follows a familiar trajectory. Ben Thompson (Prescott) hits town after a long stint in jail, he's after the blood of the lawmen who put him there. When tragedy strikes during this act of revenge, Marshal Clay Hardin (Hayden) sets off in pursuit. Out on the trail he will acquire companionship in the form of saddle tramp Abby (DeCarlo) and bounty hunter Reb Carlton (Scott). A pressure cooker atmosphere is generated between the three of them as we head towards the finale where the Apache join the fray and truth, justice and consequence will out.

Selander was an old pro at the Western game, unfortunately in this instance his inexperience with "tougher" themed Oaters shows. It is all very workmanlike and he fails to rein in DeCarlo's overacting and ignite a flame in Hayden who is in one of his "I'm only doing it for the money" moods. However, spurts of violence are handled efficiently enough to liven up the middle third when the picture threatens to sink into a boorish pot of beans. There's also a nice twist on the duel formula at film's end, with machismo and tricks showing a hand to reward the patient. It isn't a must see for Western fans, and frustrations reside within, but there's enough to keep it above average. Sometimes beautiful scenery and Sterling Hayden riding into an Apache camp with muscles flexed is enough to pass the time of day with. And so it proves here. 6.5/10