Sangue de Pistoleiro

Rancher and old school westerner Lee Hackett is determined to mould his two sons in his own tough gun-fighting image. Something that backfires when his eldest boy, Ed, becomes a murderer.

Gunman's Walk on plot synopsis and summaries sounds like your standard B Western fare, and certainly the theme of parental influence is nothing new. But Phil Karlson's film, adapted from Ric Hardman's story, has many things going for it to keep it from being mundane and used solely as a time filler. It fuses together multiple issues, parenting, prejudice and ignorance during a time of change in the old Wild West, it's central character, Lee Hackett (Van Heflin), is seen as the link between old and new.

He has primarily lived his life as a shooter and killer of Indians, something that he is not totally committed to shaking off, but here he is now, a most respected and feared member of the community, faced with his two sons both taking different paths. One, Ed (Tab Hunter), is full of bile and gun slinging machismo, represents the old West. The other, Davy (James Darren), doesn't need a gun to feel like a man, his affection for half Indian Clee Chouard (Kathryn Grant) clearly gives a point of reference to the new West. It gives us two sides of the coin with one Lee Hackett perched firmly on the fence, to which Van Heflin gives an emotionally driven standout performance.

I wouldn't say that Gunman's Walk is undervalued as such (its director most definitely is though), it's possibly more like it's been tarred with that old saying brush called "B Western", a saying that unfortunately some use as being derogatory. Whilst if the truth be told the support to Heflin is rather flat (both Hunter & Darren are average at best). But some average support acting can't stop Gunman's Walk from being an intelligent and potent genre piece. I mean if only for Heflin and the catchy central song, "I'm A Runaway", then you should see this, but as it is, if you give it your undivided attention you hopefully will find it's really rather good and clever. 7/10

The plot seemed quite fresh (even after my second viewing), though on analysis it includes familiar themes: tension between brothers, conflict between son and father leading to tragedy. A lot of this is down to the way it portrays the steady - not to say rapid - deterioration of the elder son so that he becomes a murderer; Tab Hunter deserves a lot of credit for this; at first he seems to be just a bit of a tearaway, but at the end he looks really vicious.

I like Van Heflin. He was great as the tortured Athos in "The Three Musketeers" and the decent homesteaders in "Shane" and "3.10 to Yuma", but I'm not sure that he carries off being the tough patriarch who won the country from the Indians.

Viewing the film in the political correctness of 2007, I blinked at the verbal racial abuse inflicted on the native Americans; two days later, I'm still trying to think of another 1950s Western where it was so overt. (I'm talking of verbal abuse, rather than cowboys killing lots of Indians.) The film proceeds at a pleasing rate, except for the somewhat overlong shooting-at-bottles scene very early on.

I don't know if "I'm a Runaway" was ever a "proper" song, but it was quite catching, even when sung by Hunter, and for once I didn't object to a musical interlude in an action film.

"Gunman's Walk" is not only outstanding on the entertainment level, it also presents what could be clichéd material in a superbly directed and written comment on many issues.

The story is an action Western first. Van Heflin, easily one of the greatest of all Western actors, plays a rugged Western hero of the old pioneer days, who participated in many wars against the Native American. Unlike the more sugar coated stories of many Westerns, he is not forgiving of his enemy, and his character is still much the same man when he enters a new era. Heflin's character is now a big man in his territory, respected and feared by all.

Heflin gives this character an incredible likability, which in retrospect, makes him even scarier. It is easy to compare this man with Anthony Quinn in "Last Train to Gun Hill", another impressive performance by another great actor. Except this man is much friendlier and less menacing, yet he commands the respect for his abilities with guns, fists, and bravery.

Heflin now has a big ranch and two sons. The older one, Tab Hunter, wants to be the big hero his father was, but lives in an era when the Native American is not at war with them. In fact, Ed Platt plays an Indian agent who tries to protect the native population from Hunter's outbursts, to no avail. The younger son, James Darren, is perfectly cast as the dove of the family, who abhors violence. To make matters worse, he is attracted to a beautiful Native American girl, which puts him as the one bearing the brunt of suffering in the middle from both sides. Heflin is going along with the times, but not by conventional means. He hangs on to his valor by recalling his feats in the past. Hunter constantly hears the exploits with other older men in the saloon, speaking as if they were in Floyd's Mayberry RFD barber shop.

This film does an excellent job on hitting this theatrical drama of life. Like Opie in the barber shop, the oldest son is fascinated by the stories and the world that existed before he was born. The younger brother played by Darren, envisions the Indians as a necessary part of this existence.

Exploits against the native Americans that aren't allowed any more, but Hunter wants to have such stories told about him some day. Heflin's character hasn't moved with the times. He simply laughs at them. He raises his sons to be fighters and the end result is that the oldest son steps way over any civilized line. The climax is not exactly hidden. We know that Heflin must confront himself, and he does this by confronting his sons. One he admires, and the other he disowns midway through the movie. By the end, he realizes his mistake. But all through the movie, characters remind us that Hunter isn't the one who caused it all. It is actually Heflin. Yet Heflin's performance is so great that instead of seeing him for the evil man he is, we pity him, and don't blame him. Much like the crafty Fred March in "Hombre", one of the evilest men in Westerns, yet able to snake oil his way through it. Heflin's attitude and character is in the oldest son, and he was responsible. In the end, Heflin admits this, and we forgive him at first, when we see him break down.

However, this movie requires much thought. It gives a very frightening picture of the truth about prejudice, and about the evil that is allowed to pass on through cultures and generations, and the way it is done. It is a movie we should watch and learn from, and it is done in a very sneaky way. A must see movie.

Director Phil Karlson is known more for his tough, gritty, violent crime dramas ("99 River Street," "The Phenix City Story," among others) than horse operas, but this tight little western is reminiscent of the best of Karlson's urban thrillers. Tab Hunter is excellent as the spoiled, egomaniacal, homicidal son of a wealthy rancher, who believes that his family's riches and position are pretty much a blank check that enables him to do whatever he wants to whoever he wants, including murder, because he knows that his father's influence will get him out of trouble. Hunter's tightly wound, controlled performance is a real eye-opener for those who always thought of him as just another pretty boy teen idol who couldn't act (i.e., Ricky Nelson, Fabian, etc.). This is by far Hunter's best work. You can see his internal spring winding tighter and tighter as he pushes the envelope further and further until it's just a matter of time before he explodes. Van Heflin is solid as his father, who's too busy building and maintaining an empire and can't, or won't, see the evil that manifests itself in his son, and veteran character actor Robert F. Simon is very good as the town sheriff and Heflin's friend, who realizes that he's given Hunter one too many breaks and is torn between his obligations to his friend and his duty as a lawman. Mickey Shaughnessy, who often played oafish drunks, dimwitted gangsters or other types of comic relief, strikes just the right note as a sympathetic deputy who doesn't think that Hunter is really as bad as his reputation. Karlson directs with his usual energy, marked by his trademark quick, explosive bursts of action. An intriguing film, despite its potboiler title, and worth a look for Hunter's fine performance and Karlson's vigorous direction.

I just saw this, for the first time, on TCM (July 2019) . It's an amazing film experience. I'm not a fan of westerns, by and large. This is one I can recommend. The storytelling engages the timeless themes of fathers and sons, and does so in a way that touches your heart directly enough that you can overlook the one or two fairly obvious scenes.

Tab Hunter was the real deal. :)