Il giorno della vendetta

A snot nosed punk, after raping and murdering a marshall's wife, is trailed home by the vengeful lawman. The entire town of Gun Hill refuses to aid the marshall in any way due to fear of, or loyalty to, the rapist's father who controls the whole town. A standoff ensues in the form of a 'waiting war'; waiting on the 9 o'clock train out of town: the marshall either dead or with his prisoner, himself the victim of his overindulgent yet brutal father. Excellent western with loads of blazing 6 guns and hot lead.

This movie took me by surprise as one of the more effective revenge capers I've seen in quite awhile. It's really much more than a simple revenge movie, but it opens with an offense so outrageous, one could never rest without seeing the scoundrel put to justice. That seems like a very unlikely prospect for most of the film's running length.

The central theme is the classic Western notion of one man representing pure good stubbornly standing fast against overwhelming odds. Last Train combines the brainy suspense of 3:10 to Yuma and the provocative paranoia of High Noon, with a healthy serving of melodrama.

Kirk Douglas may not be as prominent as John Wayne or Clint Eastwood but his work here equals their best. He is extremely grim and convincing as the mightily offended protagonist. Anthony Quinn maintains his usual formidable presence as the heavyweight opponent.

If you're exploring the great Westerns or just looking for a good suspense thriller, this one is excellent.

Some say Rio Bravo, some the Searchers, some Shane for some reason. Everyone has an opinion about what the greatest 'classic' western (before the '60s when Leone and Peckinpah broke the old myths) is. I would have said High Noon for a while ago. Then I was home last evening, at a very cold and snowy winter day. I thought to look at a movie from TV and didn't care much what they were showing. It happened to be this masterpiece. And I was awe-struck.

The story tells about a sheriff (Kirk Douglas), whose Indian wife and a mother to his child is raped and murdered. He goes on to find the men who did it to the town of Gun Hill and finds out that the other of the men is the son of his old friend (Anthony Quinn). He has in time become the most powerful man of Gun Hill and won't let his son to be taken to the court for his actions.

This is a quite daring one for a fifties western. There's some blood and nudity here. And most of all, the sides aren't black and white, but rather shades of gray. The movie's most potent message is that you can't take a life, even a criminal, because there will be people who were close to him and his death will hurt them worse. Every life is valuable.

Kirk Douglas is good in the lead role. He bottles most of his emotions in, as probably anyone in his situation would. Better is Anthony Quinn, who essentially has to decide between his son and his best friend. He portrays anger, fear, anxiety and hopelessness great.

This became my favorite classic western. it's not Once Upon a Time in the West, but I loved to see so mature themes in such an old movie. It looks great too, they had wonderful set builders then.

***** The Best Part: The showdown at the Gun Hill railway station

I just saw this film recently on cable and was reminded of how well made it was. I'm a fan of the late director John Sturges' work and I own both "The Magnificent Seven" & "The Great Escape" on DVD. "Last Train from Gun Hill" does'nt get the same mention along with the well deserved recognition of these other films of the director. I'd rank it among the best classic westerns of the 50's & 60's period of great Hollywood movies. The story benefits from starring two great actors in Kirk Douglas and the late Anthony Quinn. Earl Holliman showed great promise in an early role as the spoiled rotten son of Mr. Belden. I'm surprised that he did not become a bigger star as a character actor throughout his career. And the late Carolyn Jones turned in a strong performance too as Linda. Definitely up there in the same ranking of great classic westerns and one of the best efforts of John Sturges. I will buy this DVD as well to add to my movie library! Lorenzo the tbirdman

John Sturges a number of the best movies ever made - The Great Escape, The Gunfight at O.K. Corral, the Magnificent Seven, and here is a great movie he made that doesn't get mentioned with the all-time greats as it should.

Kirk Douglas is outstanding as the uncompromising sheriff on a mission of revenge when his Native American wife is killed by the spoiled son of a lifelong friend. Anthony Quinn is excellent as the hardbitten rancher who respects Douglas' character more than anybody (and whose life he saved in their youth), but who behaves one as a protective father, and two as a man who is rich and powerful, and used to getting what he wants. Carolyn Jones is also great as a woman caught in the middle of the two men.

No cop-outs, no easily resolutions. Just a great movie with a great cast.