Ghost Town

Very few reviews for this cowboy and indians film so perhaps they are so far out of fashion these days that few people bother to watch one, especially old ones not in colour. As usual in cowboy films the indians do the usual riding past several times to allow a few of the palefaces to shoot some of them. I wondered where I had seen John Smith before, he had been in many episodes of Laramie. Not too bad with a few twists and turns and good acting all round and well filmed. Probably worth a watch for lovers of vintage cowboy and indians films. It was clear early on how it would go for the preacher character.

A stage headed West with a group of passengers (Barbara, a young woman going to meet her fiancée; Rev. Wheedle, a minister who believes the settlers should make friends with the Indians; Doc, a drunken doctor; and Conroy, a well-dressed "gentleman" with a sly and cynical tone) is attacked by Cheyenne Indians, and takes refuge in a nearby ghost town.

Disparate Stagecoach passengers hole up in a ghost town. Very much a familiar tread, however this low budget western is above average with some interesting and flawed characters, great cinematography, and some nifty action. Shadows slanting across faces and lingering shots of the abandoned town create a mood- the ghost town is quite eerie. It can be a bit talky, however the dialogue is quite intelligent, and a sympathetic view of the Natives are shown. Marian Carr's character- a prim and proper woman who is Smith's girl - is quite a surprise. Her change of character added a neat twist.

Is Ghost Town Shane, or The Magnificent Seven? No not even close. It is a B Movie with B level or lower ranked actors ( Kent Smith being the most famous). But for what it is, it is well above average. Why? It is not predictable. It is about stagecoach passengers ( and others ( a cowboy his sidekick, an Indian woman and her father)) are stranded in a ghost town under attack by Indians. What makes it work is the unpredictability of who will live and who will die, and even at the end there is a surprise in store. I will not spoil that information, and ruin the movie. 8/10 stars.

Ghost Town is a B western released in 1956 starring Kent Taylor (Conroy) John Smith (Duff) Marian Carr (Barbara) William Phillips (Crusty) and Serena Sande (Maureen).

It follows a group of western stagecoach travelers trying to get to the next stage depot but having the misfortune of coming across first a depot, then a town left deserted after a Native American (Indian) raid.

Duff and Crusty have mined some gold and meet Barbara (Duff's fiance) on the west bound stage.

Conroy, a doctor (John Doucette) and a Rev. (Gilman Rankin) are also stage passengers after being joined by an army sgt. ( Joel Ashley) and his son (Gary Murray) it's decided to avoid the attacking natives and head to another army post. They instead get chased into an abandoned town, hence the title.

Heading off several attacks, with no food, little water and dwindling ammo, character flaws are laid bare as tensions mount. Not helping matters is when Duff finds a native american maiden Serena Sande and an aging chief hiding in a barn.

There are a few plot twists as the attacking Natives are willing to make a trade to spare them and a few trapped characters real motives come to light.

Not a classic, but it will hold your interest for it's 77 minute running time.

This movie was shown on TCM and I am fortunate to have got to watch it even though I did miss the first first few minutes. The movie is 77 min long and was not made at too much of an expense. This was common in the 1950s when these type of movies were made to be shown as part of double features that were popular on Saturdays at that time. Usually one of the movies of a double feature was a western so no doubt this was what this western movie was for. However, you make 100s of these type of movies you are bound to have a few gems and this one is one of them. It is not a great movie classic but it is a good movie that the entire family can enjoy. The movie involves stagecoach passengers having to hold up against an Indian attack in a ghost town and the stress brings out flaws in some of them. It is a good psychological western but it also has enough action and suspense to satisfy the typical western fan. It was a TCM premier the other day so it is very likely we will get some more chances to see it again sometime in the future. And that parting shot at the end is fantastic.