Stranger on Horseback (1955)

A circuit judge in the old west attempts to bring a suspected killer to justice. The judge runs afoul of the killer's rich cattle baron father in the process.

Director:

Jacques Tourneur

Writers:

Herb Meadow (screenplay), Don Martin (screenplay)

Stars:

Joel McCrea, Miroslava, Kevin McCarthy

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Joel McCrea	...	Judge Richard 'Rick' Thorne
Miroslava	...	Amy Lee Bannerman
Kevin McCarthy	...	Tom Bannerman
John McIntire	...	Josiah Bannerman
John Carradine	...	Col. Buck Streeter
Nancy Gates	...	Caroline Webb
Emile Meyer	...	Sheriff Nat Bell
Robert Cornthwaite	...	Arnold Hammer
Jaclynne Greene	...	Paula Morrison (as Jacklyn Green)
Walter Baldwin	...	Vince Webb
Emmett Lynn	...	Barfly
Roy Roberts	...	Sam Kettering
George Keymas	...	Bannerman's Henchman

Storyline

A circuit judge in the old west attempts to bring a suspected killer to justice. The judge runs afoul of the killer's rich cattle baron father in the process.

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Plot Keywords:

killer | judge | cattle baron | justice | suspected | 

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Taglines:

Thunder in the saddle ... greased lightning with his guns ... there never rode a man to match him !

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Genres:

Romance | Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

June 1955 (UK)

Also Known As:

Einer gegen alle

Filming Locations:

Oak Creek, Sedona, Arizona, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Leonard Goldstein Productions,Robert Goldstein Productions

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Anscocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

[After water's thrown in his face.]
Thorne: Thanks, it's a hot day.
Baddie: I don't like what you said.
Thorne: I said it was a hot day.
Baddie: Well, I don't like the way you said it.

User Reviews

Stand-out , great Western well performed and stunningly directed by expert Jacques Tourneur

This excellent , meaty Western contains interesting plot ,thrills , brawls , shoot'em up and is quite entertaining . This outstanding Tourneur Western balances action , suspense and drama . During the early days when civilisation was pushing its frontiers farther and farther West, there roamed a special creed of men , neither outlaws nor officers of the law, yet more feared than either ; then there appears a circuit judge in the old west and he attempts to bring a suspected killer to justice .¨The stranger judge¨ arrives in a town and the powerful owner gives him 12 hours to live . The judge runs afoul of the killer's rich cattle baron father in the process . The judge meets a motley group of characters : ¨The wildcat¨ (Miroslava) , when she couldn't outshoot a man she used other weapons ; ¨The killer¨(Kevin McCarthy) , a kid who liked to play with lives ; ¨The land baron¨ (John McIntire) the owned the town , hardware , lock , livestock and gun barrel ; ¨The Colonel¨(John Carradine) , he liked his cigars for him and his killings done for him .

This grand Western in the tradition of ¨Red River¨ and ¨High Noon¨ contains a thought-provoking screenplay , emotion , violence , go riding , double crosses , shoot'em up and results to be quite enjoyable .It's a classic recounting about an upright man seeking justice and attempting to detain killers . The public likes big Westerns and here to satisfy them is a big adventure , starring a big box office favorites of the 50s , Joel McCrea , with the kind of high pitched excitement that pay off . The traditional story and exciting screenplay by Herb Meadow and and Don Martin based on the story written by specialist Louis L'Amour . Photographed in Ansco Color by Pathe , being necessary a good remastering because of the copy of film is worn-out . Top-notch Joel McCrea as a relentless judge who seeks justice and magnificent John McIntire as a proud baron land . Support cast is frankly excellent such as Kevin McCarthy as Tom Bannerman , John Carradine as Col. Buck Streeter , Nancy Gates as Caroline Webb and Emile Meyer as Sheriff Nat Bell .

This is another superbly powerful triumph from producers Leonard and Robert Goldstein who brought other Westerns as ¨The duel of Silver Creek¨, ¨The Battle at Apache Pass¨, ¨The Great Sioux Uprising¨, and ¨The good guys and the bad guys¨. It is probably one of the best Western in the fifties and sixties . The motion picture was compellingly directed by Jacques Tourneur . Jacques was an expert on Noir cinema such as the classic ¨Out of the past¨ , terror cinema such as ¨Cat people¨ , ¨Leopard man¨, ¨I walked with a Zombie¨, ¨Night of demon¨ and adventures as ¨Flame and the arrow¨ , ¨City under the sea¨ . In Western genre he made 5 films : The masterpiece titled ¨Canyon passage¨(1946) , ¨Star in my Crown¨(1950) also with Joel McCrea , ¨Wichita¨(1955) with Joel McCrea as Wyatt Earp formerly to OK Corral duel and ¨Great day in the morning¨ with Robert Stack dealing with facing Union and Confederation . He finally directed episodes of ¨Norhwest passage¨ (1958) titled Frontier Rangers , Fury River and Mission of danger . ¨Stranger on horseback¨ rating : Well worth watching and it will appeal to Joel McCrea fans .