Tension à Rock-City

Tension At Table Rock casts Richard Egan as a misunderstood gunman who gets a phony reputation as a backshooting coward because he outdrew the wanted Paul Richards and Richard's girlfriend Angie Dickinson who was the only witness told a false tale.

Now having to operate under an assumed name, Egan falls in with orphan Billy Chapin after he eliminates those who killed Chapin's father Joe DeSantis and made him an orphan. He delivers young Billy to the town of Table Rock where his aunt and uncle live and uncle Cameron Mitchell is a much put upon sheriff.

After this the film does run along the established plot lines of Shane somewhat. Mitchell makes a Faustian bargain with trail boss John Dehner to not tear up the town too much mainly because he got beaten really badly by a whole bunch of Dehner's trailhands on the previous drive. But when one of them shoots down an unarmed farmer and then tries to get away with it Egan gets into action.

Dorothy Malone is in Tension At Table Rock as well. 1956 was the same year Malone got her career Oscar winning role for Written On The Wind. The sexual tension between the stranger Egan and her is unmistakable and it's where people draw comparisons between Tension At Table Rock and Shane.

Though she's on only briefly in the beginning Angie Dickinson really does shine in the part of a woman who gets vengeance for her man. Another really good performance is that of Edward Andrews the saloon owner who could care less if the drunken trailhands shoot up the town and kill a few people as long as they drink in his saloon and his profits don't get cut into.

Towards the end of that studio's existence RKO was getting into some serious adult B westerns as was its competitor Republic, the stuff that would later be a staple for fifties and sixties television. Tension At Table Rock is a good example of the adult type westerns that would later be found on television.

I had never seen nor heard of this movie, though it was made in the year of my birth. Typical of many westerns of that era, with some stolen themes, mostly from 'Shane', such as the subtle interest between the stranger and his new friends stay at home wife, and the brewing battle that you just knew the stranger would reluctantly join, it still had many twists and turns that were not given away. Egen was likable, but could have used a little more character development. However, his quiet acting approach mostly seemed to work well with the movie, and there was just enough action to let you know that this gunman knew his trade, and make you eagerly await the next show down. Dorothy Malone was fine, but she looked like she had spent all day at the beach, and was ready for a night out. She could have looked a little more 'frontierish'. The most interesting part of the movie was the friendship between our hero, and the gunman sent to kill him, a great touch. The music was very haunting throughout, and added to make this movie a hidden gem. Very enjoyable movie.

Needing a break from his gunfighter western ways, rugged Richard Egan (as Wes Tancred) decides to take on a tamer identity (as "John Bailey"). In this guise, Mr. Egan finds honest work, but immediate tragedy. He hooks up with blue-eyed Billy Chapin (as Jody Burrows), after gunmen kill the cute boy's paw. Delivering the lad to relatives, sharply outfitted Dorothy Malone (as Lorna) and sheriff husband Cameron Mitchell (as Fred Miller), leads "Rifleman" Egan from "Shane" to "High Noon" territory. Angie Dickinson and DeForest Kelly have bang-up roles. With Charles Marque Warren at the reigns, "Tension at Table Rock" knows its turf.

****** Tension at Table Rock (10/3/56) Charles Marque Warren ~ Richard Egan, Dorothy Malone, Cameron Mitchell, Billy Chapin

This superb '50s western is what I term a "minor masterpiece". By that I do not mean that it is inferior, rather that its "B" status will inevitably always relegate it to side discussions when the "big" westerns are brought up. But a very convincing argument can be made that this, and many other '50s "B" westerns-including in my view almost all of the Audie Murphy ones-are the absolute pinnacle of the genre.

Other reviewers have given good accounts of the plot so I will instead mention: the marvellous cast (DeForrest Kelly was underused as a westerner-marvel at his performance); the tension that I think is due to the modest running time and the quick, simple scenes that just flow so naturally; great, bright colour (I loathe the dark modern movies); a second-to-none score from an age when there were great film composers; all the essential elements are here-the boy, the tortured hero, believable domestic tensions, the baddies-you just care about these characters.

Every time this appears on British TV I seem to watch it afresh and discover more subtleties.

Minor masterpieces are not that much more common than major ones. Do not miss this movie.

Good western featuring a reticent gunslinger and a lawman who has lost his nerve who must go up against a group of thugs who want to let off steam in their town. Egan was well cast as the gunman who was short on talk and long on slinging lead when the chips were down.