Horizons West (1952)

Two brothers end up on opposite sides of the law in post-Civil War Texas.

Director:

Budd Boetticher

Writer:

Louis Stevens (story and screenplay)

Stars:

Robert Ryan, Julie Adams, Rock Hudson

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Ryan	...	Dan Hammond
Julie Adams	...	Lorna Hardin (as Julia Adams)
Rock Hudson	...	Neil Hammond
Judith Braun	...	Sally Eaton
John McIntire	...	Ira Hammond
Raymond Burr	...	Cord Hardin
James Arness	...	Tiny McGilligan
Dennis Weaver	...	Dandy Taylor
Frances Bavier	...	Martha Hammond
Tom Powers	...	Frank Tarleton
John Hubbard	...	Sam Hunter
Rodolfo Acosta	...	General José Escobar Lopez
Douglas Fowley	...	Ed Tompkins
Walter Reed	...	Layton
Raymond Greenleaf	...	Eli Dodson

Storyline

Home from the Civil War, young Neal Hammond is happy to return to Texas ranching, but brother Dan wants more. His attempt to enter business is thwarted when carpetbagger Cord Hardin beats and humiliates him in a poker game. So Dan forms a rustling gang and parlays his ill-gotten gains into a land empire. But among the growing opposition to his gang is the new Marshal of Austin...brother Neal.

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Taglines:

LAWLESS RUTHLESS DEFIANCE! (original print ad - all caps)

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

Robert Ryan was only two years younger than John McIntire, who played his father.

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Connections

Featured in Rock Hudson: Dark and Handsome Stranger (2010)

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Soundtracks

ALEXIS, DARLIN' OF TEXAS
Written by Inez James and Sidney Miller
Sung by Judith Braun

User Reviews

At least it's not cut-and-dried

One of a number of interesting psychological westerns from the fifties though this isn't in the same class as the later Budd Boetticher/Randolph Scott westerns, (it's let down by a poor script and poor acting). Robert Ryan and Rock Hudson play brothers returning from the Civil War to the vanquished Confederate side. Ryan goes to the bad while the mealy-mouthed Hudson stays on the side of law and order and that's basically it. But Boetticher sets up a number of interesting scenarios that make the Ryan character far from a cut-and-dried villain, (late in the film there is even a little speech as to what turned him the way he is), and the familial relationships are nicely drawn.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 October 1952 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Texas Man

Filming Locations:

Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

81 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1