Le justicier de l'Ouest

THE GUN HAWK was advertised in theaters as a typical action packed shoot em up western, which must have disappointed the drive-in fans who were expecting that. What they saw instead was a thoughtful, superbly acted character study written by Jo Heims, who would later write PLAY MISTY FOR ME for Clint Eastwood. Rory Calhoun and Rod Cameron both prove they are excellent actors, bring nuanced performances to roles similar to those they had both played in countless B westerns. Rod Lauren, Ruta Lee, and Morgan Woodward provide excellent support. I think this movie got lost in the era between the 50's B westerns and the 60's spaghetti westerns, neither of which does it fit comfortably in, which is a shame. Highly recommended!

This B Western is surprisingly not too bad. Some half way decent acting, a few laughs, a fair story plot, some action and of course the very beautiful Ruta Lee. This movie develops the characters pretty well and there is definitely some interest in how they interact and how things will work out in the end. Rory Calhoun is always likeable despite his only ordinary acting ability. He somewhat sleep walks through most scenes and is mostly devoid of emotion, yet somehow he manages to make his role interesting. . Rod Lauren steals the movie as a young, upstart with a good heart. In a somewhat weird scene, Lauren jokes about jumping out a window or shooting himself. Some 20 years later, he committed suicide after being a suspect in his wife's brutal murder. Not the greatest movie, but good for a stormy, rainy night or a boring Sunday afternoon.

Reb Roan is released by Sheriff Ben Corey after a night in the drunk tank. Corey would like to reform him, but he's not willing. Gunslinger Blaine Madden (Rory Calhoun) returns to town after three years. The Sully brothers grab his drunken father and force him into an unfair gunfight. The brothers kill his father and he's looking for revenge. Ben insists that he should move on. Sanctuary is a hideaway settlement where all gunmen are honor-bound to not kill each other.

This starts with an interesting premise. In modern terms, this is Hotel Artemis. The movie seems to set up for some great action, but the story goes a different way. It wants to do something philosophical and the movie stalls out in the middle. I do appreciate where it goes. It's just not what I wanted.

A gunslinger, chased by lawmen for a killing, makes his way to an outlaw hideout called Sanctuary. Along the way he teams up with a young punk who has a yearning for "a good fight and a bad woman". The law tries to take the gunman out of the compound but things took another turn. Average western.

Two veterans of the B western movie genre Rory Calhoun and Rod Cameron team up for The Gun Hawk. Cameron plays an upright sheriff who saw some promise in Rory Calhoun and wanted to make him his deputy. But Calhoun preferred the dark side and became a notorious gunfighter.

Calhoun is back in Cameron's town for some personal business. But a gunfight that resulted in the accidental killing of his father sends Calhoun on a vengeance quest rather than let the sheriff handle it. He kills the two shooters and now has Cameron and his deputy Morgan Woodward after him. Cameron wounds him in the right arm, Calhoun's shooting arm.

But Calhoun has another scheme in mind. He's the kingpin in a town called Sanctuary, an outlaw town. Calhoun's also got his girl friend Ruta Lee there as well. He'll need her presence as his gun hand is out of commission.

Both Cameron and Calhoun are shown to good advantage, Calhoun having the more complex part in The Gun Hawk. Also look for a nice performance by Rod Lauren as a young kid who both Calhoun and Cameron are courting. Yet another young man of promise.

Definitely a must for fans of the B western.