Review 162
High Noon (1952)
It feels like the sun was setting at 16:00 only a month ago, and suddenly it's almost summer. Okay, granted, the summer solstice is still over a month away, but nonetheless, it's feeling pretty warm where I live, especially around noon time. Yeah? See what I did there? Today we're talking about Fred Zinnemann's High Noon starring Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Lloyd Bridges, and Katy Jurado. Let's jump into this review!
Marshall Will Kane (Gary Cooper) has just married Amy Fowler (Grace Kelly), has given in his badge until the new marshall arrives tomorrow, and about to embark on his honeymoon when news spreads that Frank Miller (Ian MacDonald), an outlaw stopped by Kane only to be released after a close-call on execution, is coming back to town. While the town encourages Kane to leave and escape the madman, Kane decides to stay and take care of the man once responsible for bringing the town to near ruin. But the question is, will anyone be willing to help him in his conquest?
Like Sexy Beast, High Noon mostly centres around the pre-fight rather than the fight itself. Kind of interesting that I'm reviewing two similar films one after another... Anyway, this already makes it an interesting piece of cinema again since, well, every cowboy movie is about fighting the bad guys, right? And High Noon definitely makes it interesting.
The reality is, High Noon is a film about a man trying to get others to help him, but no one wants to get their hands dirty. No one wants to die in order to protect their town. Prior to Kane, Hadleyville was overrun by crime and prostitution. He was the one who came in and helped clean up the town, which included sending Frank Miller to hang. However, not everyone was happy about this, particularly the barman and manager of the hotel, who saw healthy profits when the town was run by outlaws. But it's not like the women and family men are all ready to help out Kane. They believe that the bad blood between Miller and Kane will only cause more trouble than is worth and it would be best to wait for the new marshall as opposed to fighting now. Meanwhile, Kane is constantly encouraged to leave and forget about Miller, but he cannot, even with the angry opposition from his new wife. I'd have to say that Katy Jurado's comment sums up the film's message pretty well: "It takes more than broad shoulders to make a man." I guess I could voice my opinion on this issue, but let's just say I agree with this strongly. There's a reason why men will go into high-risk jobs, and the ones who aren't gonna stand up for a country, well, they're gonna make the country fall.
I guess there's not much I have to say about the film without giving it away... I really liked it and thought it did something different. My only beef was that I was surprised that no one was willing to help out Kane, something pretty odd in my opinion, but I also get that the film wanted to give that added suspense. The acting was also great, and it progressed well, with the time of the film following with the time of the arrival of Frank Miller, which was pretty cool, I gotta say.
High Noon is an interesting Western that you should definitely give a try. It isn't all bang bang, but rather, examines the hardship of a man trying to get others to help themselves. It also stars Lee Van Cleef in his first role ever! He doesn't talk at all, but it's okay, I enjoyed seeing him, hehe. Happy viewing, folks!
