A marshal tries to bring the son of an old friend, an autocratic cattle baron, to justice for his role in the rape and murder of the marshal's Native American wife.A marshal tries to bring the son of an old friend, an autocratic cattle baron, to justice for his role in the rape and murder of the marshal's Native American wife.A marshal tries to bring the son of an old friend, an autocratic cattle baron, to justice for his role in the rape and murder of the marshal's Native American wife.
- Awards
- 1 nomination
- Lee Smithers
- (as Brian Hutton)
- Craig's Man
- (uncredited)
- Salesman in Horseshoe
- (uncredited)
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
- Townsmen
- (uncredited)
- Cowboy
- (uncredited)
- Barfly
- (uncredited)
- Small Man in Horseshoe
- (uncredited)
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDuring the final shootout, Morgan was supposed to beat Smithers to the draw. However, the actor playing Smithers, Brian G. Hutton kept beating Douglas to the draw. Finally it was decided that Douglas should be holding a shotgun thereby ending that argument. Afterwards Douglas remarked "Can you imagine that upstart beating me to the draw?" Anthony Quinn said, "Don't worry about it Kirk we'll get him in the editing room."
- GoofsOn its way to Gun Hill, the train has four cars. By the time it reaches the station, there are only two, and the baggage car is a different one than before.
- Quotes
Gun Hill Sheriff Bartlett: Far as I'm concerned, you can go out on the street and get yourself killed anytime you want to, but, you know something, 40 years from now the weeds'll grow just as pretty on my grave as they will on yours. Nobody'll even remember that I was yellow and you died like a fool. That's your long view, son. Always take the long view.
Marshal Matt Morgan: I've got two warrants, and I'm gonna serve them. I'm leavin' town with two men, and the long view is this: don't try to stop me!
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Image Book (2018)
Although it's likely that Douglas and Sturges were in or made better westerns, this is the kind of work that doesn't age in much a way that cheapens the questions poised or the invigorating style. It's a fairly violent film too, with a couple of deaths by the train tracks at night all the more effective from the taunting build-up and the pay-off in one shotgun fired off, and always the threat much more tension-filled than the result. Granted, when a big fire ends up happening, it looks very much like it's on a sound-stage and without a whole lot of suspense (save for the typical but strong 'who will get the gun first' moment between the Marshall and Rick in the bedroom), but it's the ambiance of the characters, the dread over this dangerous mix of volatile father and townsman- a better than average Quinn without being too hammy- and a good man driven to vengeance in bad-ass Douglas, and the determined woman (Carolyn Jones) that makes it so compelling. There's even a slight feeling of unpredictability in the situation- in a town where reputation trumps what is good and decent, but also where emotions run high as can be, the stakes are high for chance.
By the very end it feels like it should be more formulaic, and there are bits where the dialog does come off as brawny ol' western genre jargon (look simply at some of the quotes on the IMDb page as example). But if you happen to come across it on TV one Sunday afternoon, as I did, it's worth the time to sit and get absorbed by a well done star vehicle.
- Quinoa1984
- Aug 26, 2007
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Last Train from Harper's Junction
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $2,500,000
- Runtime1 hour 35 minutes
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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