What this taut, tense and very-well-acted psychological western drama lacks in subtlety, it makes up in voltage, I suggest. The director, Jack Arnold, is noted for his making something engrossing out of low-grade horror material ("Creature From the Black Lagoon"); here he has first-rate supporting actors, a good setting and an interesting story to work with. The script was supplied with story by Howard Amacker and screenplay by Gene L. Coon. Con, later a contributor to "Star trek" followed a pattern in his writing; he introduced a false premise on the part of the central character and then let him find out his mistake as the action progressed; such a premise can lead to "discovery' that take the viewer along, or to a script where a false set of values are imposed onto existing materials. Here the formula work rather well, as most viewers of the film have noted. In this plot line, the ethical central character is a doctor, played by Charles Drake. To his town there comes a man called Gant. he is recognized as a famous hired gun; his pattern is to goad a man into drawing on him, outdraw him legally, then having done his job, to ride away and collect his "bounty' on a desired death. The man who recognizes him, and many others, begin to fear as the quiet, soft-spoken Gant waits and says nothing about his target, that the gunman is after them. The town's sheriff tells the townsmen he cannot go after Gant, since the man's neither wanted nor doing anything wrong. The Doctor befriends Gant, underplayed with some skill by Audie Murphy, who calls him "the only other honest man in town"; Gant expresses his admiration to the Doctor's girl, sultry Joan Evans, as well. But the tension undermines the shell of appearance and the questionable courage of several in town. the town's banker, Whitner Bissell, after a mine and worried the cheated owner has hired Gant, takes a gun, and failing in nerve tower's shoot Gant kills himself. Warren Stevens, who took Gant's wife Virginia Grey away, nerves himself up even though he is a coward to face Gant, then runs away, taking Grey with him, as he always does. The rancher cheated of the mine, John Alderson, fears the banker has hired Gant to finish his theft and organizes a vigilante group. Gant faces them down, outdraws brave Sheriff Willis Bouchey, and goes back to his vigil. Others in town including Dutch, played by Simon Scott and the banker's partner Karl Swenson now begin worrying also; only the blacksmith, the Doctor's father R.G. Springsteen and the town character, Hank Patterson, and the storekeeper Russ bender remained unaffected. At last Gant zeroes in on his man, a retired Judge, Evans' father Edgar Stehli; his method is simple. Evans' visits him in his room to ask him to leave; he tears her blouse, and takes the piece of cloth to the Judge. The Judge is outraged, and despite the fact he is dying and crippled, tries to shoot Gant. The gunman evades him, and leaves him alive. As he departs, he is met by the blacksmith and Drake; thinking he has killed the Judge, Drake throws a weapon at his arm, crippling him. Gant accepts his fate, and rides off, leaving the town wondering who is the honest man, and who is the killer. The film's features cinematography by Harold Lipstein,costumes by the great Bill Thomas, music by Herman Stein, art direction by legendary Alexander Golitzen and Robert Emmett Smith, sets by Theodore Driscoll and Russel A Gausman and makeup by Bud Westmore. This is a powerful and meaningful film that almost works perfectly. Drake and Scott, Bissell and Grey and Stevens are particularly fine; Evans is beautiful and effective as the Doctor's girl, and Springsteen is powerful as his father, as are excellent actors Bouchey and Bissell. As the Judge Stehli is intelligent and moving as always. This is a film that has been a pattern for many psychological westerns to follow, including the Clint Eastwood "man with no name" series. Not to be missed.
