The Stranger Wore a Gun (1953)

A former spy moves to Arizona to join a gold robbery, but when he gets there decides that its not for him and tries to change his life.

Director:

André De Toth

Writers:

Kenneth Gamet (screenplay), John W. Cunningham (story)

Stars:

Randolph Scott, Claire Trevor, Joan Weldon

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Randolph Scott	...	Jeff Travis
Claire Trevor	...	Josie Sullivan
Joan Weldon	...	Shelby Conroy
George Macready	...	Jules Mourret
Alfonso Bedoya	...	Degas
Lee Marvin	...	Dan Kurth
Ernest Borgnine	...	Bull Slager
Pierre Watkin	...	Jason Conroy
Joseph Vitale	...	Shorty
Clem Bevans	...	Jim Martin

Storyline

Having been a spy for Quantrill's raiders during the Civil War, Jeff Travis thinking himself a wanted man, flees to Prescott Arizona where he runs into Jules Mourret who knows of his past. He takes a job on the stage line that Mourret is trying to steal gold from. When Mourret's men kill a friend of his he sets out to get Mourret and his men. When his plan to have another gang get Mourret fails, he has to go after them himself.

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Plot Keywords:

spy | robbery | raider | explosion | terrorism | 

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Taglines:

THE SCREEN'S GREATEST OUTDOOR STAR (original poster-all caps)

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 April 1954 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Der schweigsame Fremde

Filming Locations:

Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Scott-Brown Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Originally photographed in 3-D but often only exhibited in flat prints after its initial first and second run engagements.

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Goofs

When Travis arrives in Prescott, power lines are visible in the background.

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Quotes

Shelby Conroy: This town is a disgrace to everyone in it.

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Connections

Referenced in The Fifties (1997)

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Soundtracks

"Oh Dem Golden Slippers"
Written by James Allen Bland
Heard as a theme

User Reviews

Interesting offbeat Western.

There are quite a few surprises in this film. First of all, it keeps you guessing especially as regards Randolph Scott's character, whose motivation is difficult to discern. It's hard to tell if he's a bad guy or a good guy sometimes, as he manipulates two different gangs of unsavory characters. This does not anticipate Yojimbo or A Fisftful of Dollars. Both of those films, plus this film, all derive somewhat from The Glass Key, which was filmed twice before The Stranger Wore A Gun was released in 1953. (In 1935 with George Raft and 1942 with Alan Ladd.)Those films were based on Dashiell Hammett's novel of 1931. In any case, this film has its own tale to tell, and the performances of Scott, Lee Marvin and Ernest Borgnine are solid. The film suffers somewhat from the 3-D effects which are kind of lame in the 2-D format we have to suffer on our TV sets. People who don't remember the 3-D craze will probably think the director was weird. All in all, the film's offbeat style and great ensemble cast make this well worth watching a time or two. It is by no means an ordinary run-of-the-mill Western.