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IMDbPro

La peine du talion

Original title: The Man from Colorado
  • 1948
  • Approved
  • 1h 40m
IMDb RATING
6.6/10
2.1K
YOUR RATING
William Holden, Glenn Ford, and Ellen Drew in La peine du talion (1948)
The Man From Colorado: It's Finally Over
Play clip1:52
Watch The Man From Colorado: It's Finally Over
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Classical WesternLegal DramaPeriod DramaTragic RomanceRomanceWestern

At the end of the Civil War, two friends return home to Colorado and one of them has changed and is violent and erratic.At the end of the Civil War, two friends return home to Colorado and one of them has changed and is violent and erratic.At the end of the Civil War, two friends return home to Colorado and one of them has changed and is violent and erratic.

  • Director
    • Henry Levin
  • Writers
    • Robert Hardy Andrews
    • Ben Maddow
    • Borden Chase
  • Stars
    • Glenn Ford
    • William Holden
    • Ellen Drew
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.6/10
    2.1K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Henry Levin
    • Writers
      • Robert Hardy Andrews
      • Ben Maddow
      • Borden Chase
    • Stars
      • Glenn Ford
      • William Holden
      • Ellen Drew
    • 36User reviews
    • 10Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination total

    Videos1

    The Man From Colorado: It's Finally Over
    Clip 1:52
    The Man From Colorado: It's Finally Over

    Photos97

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    Top cast59

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    Glenn Ford
    Glenn Ford
    • Owen Devereaux
    William Holden
    William Holden
    • Del Stewart
    Ellen Drew
    Ellen Drew
    • Caroline Emmet
    Ray Collins
    Ray Collins
    • Big Ed Carter
    Edgar Buchanan
    Edgar Buchanan
    • Doc Merriam
    Jerome Courtland
    Jerome Courtland
    • Johnny Howard
    James Millican
    James Millican
    • Sgt. Jericho Howard
    Jim Bannon
    Jim Bannon
    • Nagel
    William 'Bill' Phillips
    William 'Bill' Phillips
    • York
    • (as Wm. 'Bill' Phillips)
    Stanley Andrews
    Stanley Andrews
    • Roger MacDonald
    • (uncredited)
    Emile Avery
    • Townsman
    • (uncredited)
    Walter Bacon
    • Townsman
    • (uncredited)
    Walter Baldwin
    Walter Baldwin
    • Tom Barton
    • (uncredited)
    Symona Boniface
    Symona Boniface
    • Matron
    • (uncredited)
    Chet Brandenburg
    Chet Brandenburg
    • Party Guest
    • (uncredited)
    James Bush
    James Bush
    • Cpl. Dixon
    • (uncredited)
    Nora Bush
    • Townswoman
    • (uncredited)
    Boyd Cabeen
    • Townsman
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Henry Levin
    • Writers
      • Robert Hardy Andrews
      • Ben Maddow
      • Borden Chase
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews36

    6.62.1K
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    Featured reviews

    8hitchcockthelegend

    War can do strange things to a man.

    The end of the Civil War is nigh and one last pocket of Confederate resistance is holed up at Jacob's Gorge. Knowing their time is up they hoist the white flag in surrender. Union Colonel Owen Devereaux sees the white flag but orders the attack anyway. Returning home with his friend and colleague, Capt. Del Stewart, Devereaux grows ever more erratic by the day, his friends, his loves and all who cross him, are sure to pay if they can't rein in his madness.

    Starring Glenn Ford as Devereaux and William Holden as Stewart, directed by Henry Levin, The Man from Colorado, from a story by Borden Chase, is an intriguing psychological Western. The story follows the theme of a man ravaged by war and his inability to let go of the anger and mistrust gnawing away at him. Perfectly essayed by Ford as Devereaux (great to see him donning some bad guy boots), the film is rather grim in context. Light on action (no bad thing here at all) it's with the dialogue driven characters that Levin's film really triumphs. Having both become lawmen, it would have been easy for all to just play out a standard oater as the two friends are driven apart by not only their different levels of sanity (Holden's Stewart is an excellent counter point to Ford's blood thirst), but also the love of a good woman (Ellen Drew's petite Caroline Emmet). However, Chase's story has other elements to keep it from ever being formulaic. There's a deep political thread involving power and those entrusted with it, while the treatment of returning soldiers is firmly given prominence. Here the "boys" return after 3 years of being knee deep in blood and bone, to find that their claims are no longer valid. Snaffled by a greedy corporate type, thus as the "boys" look to the law for help?...

    As a story it has substance of depth, how nice to also find that there are smart technical aspects to harness the screenplay. The Simi Valley location work is fabulous, most appealing. William E. Snyder's cinematography work is top draw, arguably his best work in the Western genre. It's fair to say that even a "c" grade Western can look nice if given a good transfer, but when the Technicolor print is good, you can tell the difference big time, and this piece is first rate. The dusty orange and browns of the scenery fabulously envelopes the blue uniforms, while the green and gold glow lamps are vivid and shine bright as if extra characters in the piece. Even Ford's greying temples have a classy sheen to them, almost belying his characters anger. All Western fans simply must hone into High Definition TV because although we always knew how fabulous these pictures looked, now it's another dimension of rewards unbound.

    As the finale comes in a blaze of fire (welcome to hell!), The Man from Colorado has achieved the two essential Western requirements if it wants to be taken seriously - one is that it looks gorgeous, the other is that it has strong thematics to drive it forward - this has both. Hooray! 8/10
    7bsmith5552

    Gripping Adult Psychological Western!

    "The Man From Colorado" opens in the closing days of the American Civil War. Two life long friends, Col. Owen Deveraux (Glenn Ford) and Capt. Del Stewart (William Holden) along with their troop corner a group of tired, poorly armed Confederate soldiers. They raise a white flag of surrender but Deveraux refuses to acknowledge it (unknown to the others) and orders his troops to open fire. The Confederates are all killed except for one officer.

    Stewart senses that his friend is becoming psychotic but attributes it to the pressures of war. Later they return to their home town and are given a heroes welcome. The surviving Confederate officer confronts Deveraux who shoots him down with a wild look in his eyes. Meanwhile, big time mine boss Ed Carter (Ray Collins) and the Governor's representative (Stanley Andrews) offer Deveraux the position of Federal Judge. He accepts and appoints Stewart as Federal Marshal.

    Most of Deveraux's troops had gold mining claims prior to going off to war. During their three year absence Carter has through a legal loophole, taken over their claims. Judge Deveraux is forced to side with Carter. This causes some of the men led by Jericho Howard (James Millican) to take to the hills and rob Carter's mining company, stealing the gold they believe to be rightfully theirs.

    Jericho's kid brother Johnny (Jerome Courtland) is found with a bag of gold following a robbery during which a man was killed. Deveraux under pressure to produce the guilty parties, orders him jailed. Stewart believes in the boy's innocence and sets out to find Jericho in order to prove it. During Stewart's absence Deveraux holds a speedy trial and hangs Johnny. When Del returns he is appalled and turns in his badge and joins Jericho and his gang. This leads to further robberies until the inevitable confrontation between the two men where.............

    Glenn Ford playing against type, gives one of the best performances of his career as the psychotic Deveraux. His facial expressions of increasing madness are terrifying. Holden does his best in effectively what is a supporting role, as the good friend. Ellen Drew appears as the woman both men love but who marries Deveraux only to experience first hand, his increasing madness.

    Also in the cast are Edgar Buchanan as Doc Merriam, Jim Bannon as Carter's henchman Nagel and western regulars Ian MacDonald, Myron Healey, Denver Pyle and Ray Teal in other roles.

    Worth a look just to catch Ford's performance.
    8Mickey-2

    A psychological western based on the mental anguishes of the post-Civil War era

    "The Man From Colorado", filmed in 1948, portrays two men and how the trauma of the Civil War affected them, and those about them. Glenn Ford delivers a truly mesmerizing performance as a Civil War commander who is slowly being gripped by madness due to the violence of the War, while William Holden plays the part of a veteran of the same war, is able to cope with the aftermath, and yet, is unable to prevent his friend from sinking into degenerate madness.

    After the war has ended, both men return to the same hometown to resume their lives. Ford is appointed as a federal judge of the territory, and he, in turn, names Holden as federal marshal. Ultimately, Ford's character sinks deeper into violence and glaring errors in carrying out justice, and Holden has to try and stop his former friend.

    Don't let the age of the film deceive you, this movie does pack a message that can be applied today. An 8/10 viewing mark
    rmax304823

    Fair to middlin'

    The story is a fairly simple one. Col. Glenn Ford and Capt. Bill Holden return with a group of fellow soldiers to their home town after the Civil War has ended. Ford has been a pretty ruthless officer. The town has changed during their three-year absence. Their only source of livelihood were their gold claims, but federal laws converted those claims to private property and the mines were gobbled up by Big Ray Collins.

    Collins backs Ford for the post of federal judge, and Ford appoints his best friend Holden as chief lawman. The disappointed ex-soldiers bring their case to Judge Ford who finds in favor of Collins. Judge Ford also marries the girl, Ellen Drew, whom Holden also loves. Well, frankly, the ex-soldiers are thoroughly browned off at the loss of their claims even though Big Ray gives them jobs at a barely livable wage ("digging out our own gold") before firing them. Some of the men become bandits preying on Collins' gold. Some don't. But all of them grow to hate Judge Ford for upholding the law, even coming to his house during a birthday party and insulting him in front of his wife and his guest, the friendly doctor, Ed Buchanan. "I don't blame [Collins]," shouts one of the angry crowd, "I blame you!" Ford throws them out.

    The plot gets too complicated to describe in any detail but it can be summed up by saying that Judge Ford slugs Holden for telling him he's "sick inside" (people tell Judge Ford that he's "crazy" so often in this movie that it's no wonder he doesn't believe it). His punishments, while within the law, become outrageous. It isn't so much that he's on the side of Big Ray and the suits. It's that he's on his own trip. The movie ends happily, more or less, with Ford gone and Big Ray destroyed, and Holden riding off to Washington to see that the ex-soldiers and the rest of the town get their just due. He smiles at Allen as he boards the train and tells her, "I'll be back."

    It's been pointed out repeatedly that "adult westerns" -- that is, those appearing after everybody started watching cheap Hopalong Cassidy movies on TV -- are a chronicle of their times. {"High Noon" is the most often cited example, although nobody seems quite sure of exactly which point of view the film took.) "The Man from Colorado" is no exception. Released in 1948, it's full of references to war veterans and the problems they experience after returning to their home towns. And Glenn Ford has clearly been twisted by his wartime experiences, as have some character in other late- or post-war movies -- William Bendix in "The Blue Dahlia" or whatever it's called, who keeps hearing "monkey music" in his head, or John Garfield in "Pride of the Marines," or Brian Keith in "Five Against the House," I think it was.

    The topical references are the most interesting part of the movie, but they are grafted onto an otherwise routine plot. The movie is overorchestrated. If the characters sang their lines it would be grand opera. The wardrobe is undistinguished. The settings are cheesy. When an unjustly accused young veteran is lying against the wall of his jail cell, it looks like what it is: a plaster wall with bricks painted on it. But Makeup should get a medal. Glenn Ford has worn various dos during his career, from bookeeper to flat-top but nothing like this pompador.

    Watch it if nothing else is on.
    7bkoganbing

    Running Roughshod Over Due Process

    Back in the day William Holden and Glenn Ford both had a unique contractual arrangement with Columbia Pictures. When unknown Bill Holden was up for the lead in Golden Boy, Harry Cohn cast him in return for Paramount selling 50% of his services to Columbia. Holden served two studio masters at the time he was making The Man from Colorado and would for another decade.

    Glenn Ford was Columbia's bread and butter leading man at the time and right after The Man From Colorado, Cohn sold half of Ford's contract to MGM and Ford also had two studio masters.

    What it meant for these two was that all projects had to be cleared through both studios and that Holden and Ford if they did an outside loan out would also have to be cleared from both. Not that their respective studios didn't keep both these guys very busy.

    Holden and Ford had done a well received western, Texas, for Columbia back in 1941. Texas was a rather lighthearted film about two cowboys turning to different sides of the law in post Civil War Texas, though it did feature the death of one of them.

    The Man from Colorado is also a story about the activities of Union Army war veterans. But The Man from Colorado doesn't have any light moments whatsoever. It's pretty grim tale about one of them developing a real taste for sadism and killing as a result of the war.

    Ford's the sadist here, it's one of the few villain parts he ever did and it works I think because he is so against type. He did very few parts like this, Lust for Gold is another, but his public wouldn't accept him in these roles.

    Some of the town businessmen led by Ray Collins just look at the war record and decide Ford would make one fine federal judge. A real law and order type. They get a lot more than they bargain for.

    In Texas Holden had the showier role of the young cowboy who take the outlaw route. Here however he's the best friend who stands by his former commanding officer even though he both sees the man has issues and Holden loses Ellen Drew to Ford. Holden takes the outlaw path after giving up his marshal's job when Ford starts running roughshod over due process.

    The other really standout performance in this film is that of James Milliken who plays one of Ford's former soldiers who turns outlaw and in fact humiliates him in one of the few funny moments in The Man From Colorado. Ford conceives a burning hate for him that results in tragedy all around.

    Ford and Holden were considering another joint project in 1981 when Holden died. I would like to have seen that one come to pass.

    Try to see The Man From Colorado back to back with Texas.

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Columbia Pictures spent quite a bit on The Man in Colorado. At one point, the crew dynamited the side of a 1500-foot mountain in California's San Fernando Valley in order to create a deep gorge as called for by the script. And the western town they constructed was one of the largest location sets ever built by Columbia up to that time. During filming of a massive fire scene at the end, however, the set caught fire uncontrollably, and Holden and Ford tried to actually fight the fire until firemen could arrive. "Dad came away coated in black soot, with burns to his arms and hands," Ford's son Peter later wrote.
    • Goofs
      Many of the men are wearing trousers with belt loops and belts. Belt loops were not added to men's trousers until the 20th century.
    • Quotes

      Owen Devereaux: [voiceover as he writes in his diary] I killed a hundred men today. I didn't want to. I couldn't help myself. What's wrong with me? I'm afraid... afraid I'm going crazy.

    • Crazy credits
      Opening credits are listed in the pages of a book being turned by a hand.
    • Connections
      Featured in La levée des Tomahawks (1952)
    • Soundtracks
      When Johnny Comes Marching Home
      (uncredited)

      Written by Louis Lambert (pseudonym for Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore)

      Played at the homecoming

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    FAQ18

    • How long is The Man from Colorado?Powered by Alexa
    • JAMES MILLICAN

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 1948 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • The Man from Colorado
    • Filming locations
      • Corriganville, Ray Corrigan Ranch, Simi Valley, California, USA
    • Production company
      • Columbia Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $1,000,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 40m(100 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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