Smith il taciturno

In "this gun's for hire" ,Robert Preston was Veronika Lake's co-star whereas Alan Ladd was supporting.But when you see that movie today you realize that ,although the credits mention "introducing A.L." ,his part was much more "written" ,more important than that of the lead.

In "whispering Smith" ,the roles are reversed:not only Ladd plays the lead ,but he has also the part of the good guy whereas Preston is supporting and gets the role of the villain.It's a routine western with a derivative screenplay:the umpteenth story of the pretty girl who married the wrong guy and see the other one come back into her life.The talents of the actor ,with many fine supporting performances (particularly Donald Crisp and Fay Holden who sings a duet with Ladd) make the movie watchable though.

Two railroad buddies drift apart when one decides to join a local gang.

Good "buddy" western. The soft-spoken Ladd and the voluble Preston play off one another really well. Their friendship appears touchingly real, unusual for movie make-believe. Then too, the movie has a lot of colorful aspects, especially the train wreckage scene that's both well-written and well-mounted, and like no other western set-up I've seen. There's also some great Sierra scenery along with a fine supporting cast. I especially like Frank Faylen's droopy-eyed gunman and Donald Crisp's friendly bad guy. And catch the lovely Brenda Marshall, unusually soulful for a western heroine. In fact, each of the supporting players manages a distinctive personality.

Certainly, no one could ever accuse Ladd of over-acting. He was always best when asserting a kind of quiet authority as he does here. Actually, that's an effective way to compete with Preston's naturally big personality. So, when the two have a showdown, it's almost like two complementary personalities tragically splitting apart. Something should also be said of the skillfully thought-out script that manages to mesh the complex plot into a believable whole. Anyway, in my book, it's a colorfully done, generally underrated oater from Hollywood's golden period.

Agreeable Western packs drama , thrills , go riding , shootouts and some moving action sequences . Highly watchable Western in which a railway detective resolves conflicts and investigates train assaults . As the legendary railroad detective Whispering Smith (Alan Ladd) becomes convinced that old friend and colleague Murray Sinclair (Robert Preston) has united a criminal band to loot the railroad . But Murray is married to a beautiful wife , Marian Sinclair (Brenda Marshall) , who was Smith's old flame . A new Ladd thrills the Old West ! LADD'S In the West...In Two-Gun Technicolor!here is a Ladd you have always dreamed about quiet gentle-like , but the feared man on the wild frontier ¡ Afraid of nothing but the woman who loved him ¡.

This colorful as well as enjoyable picture contains action , thrills , fights , crossfire and results to be entertaining , being a decent oater . Well crafted and sweeping Western with interesting screenplay , brilliant cinematography and breathtaking production design . Finely starred by Alan Ladd who gives a nice acting in one of his first roles as starring . After a string of bit parts in "B" pictures and an unbilled part in Orson Welles' classic Kane Citizen (1941) he tested for This Gun for Hire (1942) late in 1941. His fourth-billed role as psychotic killer Raven made him a star. He was drafted in January 1943 and discharged in November with an ulcer and double hernia. Throughout the 1940s his tough-guy roles packed audiences into theaters and he was one of the very few males whose cover photos sold movie magazines. His career as Western starring starts in this Whispering Smith (1948) , following Branded (1951) as a captain who joins Quantrill's Confederate army , Red Mountain (1951) the historical Jim Bowie in The Iron Mistress (1952) . In the 1950s he was performing in lucrative but unrewarding films , an exception being what many regard as his greatest role, Shane (1953), his tough-guy roles packed audiences into theaters and he was one of the very few males whose cover photos sold movie magazinesm. And other Western roles as a Sergeant of the brave Canadian Mounted Police in Saskatchewan (1954) , as a goverment agent againt Indians in Drum Beat (1954) , as a cattle drive guide in The big land (1957) , a family man in The proud rebel (1958) , and , furthermore , The Badlanders , Timberland , One foot in hell , among others. Ladd is nicely assisted by an awesome support cast , such as : Donald Crisp , William Demarest , Fay Holden, Murvyn Vye , Ray Teal , and Frank Faylen.

Filmed on a scale to rival the never-to-be-forgotten Union Pacific , including portentous cinematography in Technicolor by Ray Rennahan , shot on location in Sierra Railroad, Jamestown,Cornell Road, Agoura, Paramount Ranch, California . As well as rousing and moving musical score by Adolph Deutsch. The motion picture was directed in sure visual eye by Leslie Fenton . He was a good actor and occassionally filmmaker , including some Westerns such as : The Redhead and the Cowboy , Three Texans ,The Man from Dakota and this Whispering Smith . Rating : 6.5/10. Wellworth watching .

Whispering Smith is directed by Leslie Fenton and co-adapted to screenplay by Frank Butler and Karl Kamb from Frank H. Spearman's novel. It stars Alan Ladd, Robert Preston, Brenda Marshall, Donald Crisp, William Demarest and Frank Faylen. Music is by Adolph Deutsch and cinematography by Ray Rennahan.

Famed railroad detective Whispering Smith (Ladd) becomes conflicted when his latest case pits him up against one of his best pals.

It's somewhat surprising to find Whispering Smith is not more well known, given that it's Ladd's first full length Western feature and that it's really rather good. With its opening scene of Ladd riding towards camera, with glorious landscape in the background, and the thematics of how Smith operates around women and children, this signposts towards Shane five years down the line. In fact this very much works as a tasty appetiser for that superb 1953 picture.

Ladd cuts a fine figure as Smith, giving him the right amount of calm toughness so as to not over play the role, and Preston is on fine form, very ebullient and able to act heaps with only his eyes. Marshall on the surface doesn't impact greatly, in what is a key role, but the character is very shrewdly written and sits in the story as more than a token. The villains headed by Crisp are not very inspiring, while Faylen looks laughably out of place with a blonde wig!, but with Preston erring on the side of badness the good versus bad axis of plotting thrives well enough.

Pic is filled with a number of shoot-outs, banditry and awesome locomotive action, all set to the backdrop of beautiful - Technicolor enhanced - California locales. The running theme of railroad progression in the West is interestingly written, managing to not take sides and let the viewer enjoy both sides of the coin, though a moral equation that Smith ultimately arrives at doesn't quite add up. Add in Fenton's unfussy direction, Rennahan's location photography (see also night sequences) and Deutsch's pleasingly compliant score, and Western fans are good to go.

This doesn't pull up any tress or have the psychological savvy of what many Oaters of the next decade would explore, but it's very well mounted and engages from the get go. 7/10

One of Alan Ladd's first starring films is this entertaining detective western as a railroad investigator assigned to solve the mystery of a rash of train robberies. The detective investigates an old friend whose fine ranch and well-to-do lifestyle are not in accord with his workman's salary, which is the main plot angle. The picture is more of a mystery than a typical western and Ladd's inclination to underplay his scenes gives his character credibility. Ladd's deceptively easygoing portrayals in westerns made him one of the most popular actors of his time. Robert Preston is also good in a role that he seemed to relish, an ethically-compromised man who knew right from wrong but did the devil's work because he thought he could get away with it. Brenda Marshall is lovely as a married woman who still carries a torch for her one-time suitor. The cast is good, as is Ray Rennahan's camera work and Adolph Deutch's music accompaniment.