Fred-Zinnemann Movie Reviews

This movie does a great job of profiling the lives and loves of the bushman. It should be preserved in DVD.

The Sundowners clearly shows how love fits in with the Aussie's love of freedom and adventure. Hard work doesn't take anything away from their sense of humor. The land is unforgiving with its fires and droughts; and the hardships created by traveling from shed to shed are mittigated by good kinship. They love gambling and would take bets on whether or not the sun will rise the next morning if they have enough "spirits" in them. All nicely demonstrated in the movie. Their accents believeable and the music in the background is a treat!

Some films and some books just make you glad to be alive, for me The Sundowners is a lovely, life-affirming experience, beautifully acted, warmly funny and intelligent.

Everytime I see this film, the temptation to join the Carmodys is irresistible. This is not a sentimental story, but the film has a genuine warmth and exuberance as well as a young boy on the point of making his own life, working out the path he wishes to follow.

There is great love and deep affection shared by the Carmody family, a bond which is one of the few fixed points in their wandering life. This love is not saccherine romance but realistic emotion; it is not always easy, it does not prevent anger, exasperation and pain, but at the end of things their family genuinely cares for each other.

Sundowners is a film full of sunlight.

The Sundoners is probley one of Mitchum's finer performences he's probley the most under rated actor of his time. Gives a solid performance as a roving Australin sheep herder who in his own robost way tries his best to be husband an father, Deborah Kerr is excellant as the wife who binds the family together who hopes somday there roving life style will end, so they as a family can have a home to settle. This film has a litle bit of everything comic relif, drama an action with good solid back up performances of Peter Ustinov, Glynnis Johns. Again if your a Mitchum fan then buy this video,an watch an actor who style owns every scene he's in.Thank you N. Skyles

This movie does a great job of profiling the lives and loves of the bushman. It should be preserved in DVD.

The Sundowners clearly shows how love fits in with the Aussie's love of freedom and adventure. Hard work doesn't take anything away from their sense of humor. The land is unforgiving with its fires and droughts; and the hardships created by traveling from shed to shed are mittigated by good kinship. They love gambling and would take bets on whether or not the sun will rise the next morning if they have enough "spirits" in them. All nicely demonstrated in the movie. Their accents believeable and the music in the background is a treat!

Some films and some books just make you glad to be alive, for me The Sundowners is a lovely, life-affirming experience, beautifully acted, warmly funny and intelligent.

Everytime I see this film, the temptation to join the Carmodys is irresistible. This is not a sentimental story, but the film has a genuine warmth and exuberance as well as a young boy on the point of making his own life, working out the path he wishes to follow.

There is great love and deep affection shared by the Carmody family, a bond which is one of the few fixed points in their wandering life. This love is not saccherine romance but realistic emotion; it is not always easy, it does not prevent anger, exasperation and pain, but at the end of things their family genuinely cares for each other.

Sundowners is a film full of sunlight.

The Sundoners is probley one of Mitchum's finer performences he's probley the most under rated actor of his time. Gives a solid performance as a roving Australin sheep herder who in his own robost way tries his best to be husband an father, Deborah Kerr is excellant as the wife who binds the family together who hopes somday there roving life style will end, so they as a family can have a home to settle. This film has a litle bit of everything comic relif, drama an action with good solid back up performances of Peter Ustinov, Glynnis Johns. Again if your a Mitchum fan then buy this video,an watch an actor who style owns every scene he's in.Thank you N. Skyles

This movie does a great job of profiling the lives and loves of the bushman. It should be preserved in DVD.

The Sundowners clearly shows how love fits in with the Aussie's love of freedom and adventure. Hard work doesn't take anything away from their sense of humor. The land is unforgiving with its fires and droughts; and the hardships created by traveling from shed to shed are mittigated by good kinship. They love gambling and would take bets on whether or not the sun will rise the next morning if they have enough "spirits" in them. All nicely demonstrated in the movie. Their accents believeable and the music in the background is a treat!

Some films and some books just make you glad to be alive, for me The Sundowners is a lovely, life-affirming experience, beautifully acted, warmly funny and intelligent.

Everytime I see this film, the temptation to join the Carmodys is irresistible. This is not a sentimental story, but the film has a genuine warmth and exuberance as well as a young boy on the point of making his own life, working out the path he wishes to follow.

There is great love and deep affection shared by the Carmody family, a bond which is one of the few fixed points in their wandering life. This love is not saccherine romance but realistic emotion; it is not always easy, it does not prevent anger, exasperation and pain, but at the end of things their family genuinely cares for each other.

Sundowners is a film full of sunlight.

The Sundoners is probley one of Mitchum's finer performences he's probley the most under rated actor of his time. Gives a solid performance as a roving Australin sheep herder who in his own robost way tries his best to be husband an father, Deborah Kerr is excellant as the wife who binds the family together who hopes somday there roving life style will end, so they as a family can have a home to settle. This film has a litle bit of everything comic relif, drama an action with good solid back up performances of Peter Ustinov, Glynnis Johns. Again if your a Mitchum fan then buy this video,an watch an actor who style owns every scene he's in.Thank you N. Skyles

This movie does a great job of profiling the lives and loves of the bushman. It should be preserved in DVD.

The Sundowners clearly shows how love fits in with the Aussie's love of freedom and adventure. Hard work doesn't take anything away from their sense of humor. The land is unforgiving with its fires and droughts; and the hardships created by traveling from shed to shed are mittigated by good kinship. They love gambling and would take bets on whether or not the sun will rise the next morning if they have enough "spirits" in them. All nicely demonstrated in the movie. Their accents believeable and the music in the background is a treat!

Some films and some books just make you glad to be alive, for me The Sundowners is a lovely, life-affirming experience, beautifully acted, warmly funny and intelligent.

Everytime I see this film, the temptation to join the Carmodys is irresistible. This is not a sentimental story, but the film has a genuine warmth and exuberance as well as a young boy on the point of making his own life, working out the path he wishes to follow.

There is great love and deep affection shared by the Carmody family, a bond which is one of the few fixed points in their wandering life. This love is not saccherine romance but realistic emotion; it is not always easy, it does not prevent anger, exasperation and pain, but at the end of things their family genuinely cares for each other.

Sundowners is a film full of sunlight.

The Sundoners is probley one of Mitchum's finer performences he's probley the most under rated actor of his time. Gives a solid performance as a roving Australin sheep herder who in his own robost way tries his best to be husband an father, Deborah Kerr is excellant as the wife who binds the family together who hopes somday there roving life style will end, so they as a family can have a home to settle. This film has a litle bit of everything comic relif, drama an action with good solid back up performances of Peter Ustinov, Glynnis Johns. Again if your a Mitchum fan then buy this video,an watch an actor who style owns every scene he's in.Thank you N. Skyles

I've seen this movie more than 15 years ago. The positive impression I had remained for all this time. And was reinforced after I saw it again yesterday. Not James Bond. Real. It has the film texture that "The Talented Mr. Ripley" tried to copy. This, the direction, camera movement on the streets makes you believe you're watching a documentary. Not all actors/acting is first rate, but this also add to the atmosphere of the movie. The real piéce de resistánce is the plot. Ellaborate and precise. Such a plot deserved a higher production at the time, in my opinion. It seems that not everybody at the top of the studio believed this movie. After seeing it, rent (I said rent) the recent multimillion version of it, with Richard Gere and Bruce Willis. Well, maybe what made The Day Of The Jackal great was exactly the restricted money and the dedication of those behind it. As for the DVD, there's not too much to be said, except that the movie is great, hte video is fine, audio so and extras... what?

This movie has some excellent acting, a wonderfully tight plot, and some brilliant casting, superb direction... I could go on.

The movie is an assasination plot. Sure, we've seen so many of these in today's age. But this one is different. It is a serious plot, and is truly brilliant in its casting and direction. The expression of Lebel as he realises that he has to work round the clock, the expressions of anxiety, pressure, tiredness, excitement... and the pace of the movie keeps one riveted to the seat even if one knows the entire story beforehand by reading the book.

The film's strongest character is Fox, who plays the assassin. Cool, calm and collected, he is focused and decisive. He is ruthless and charming. He is cunning and meticulous. Fox has a toothy smile and his perfectly combed hair and his perfect attire make him the consummate Englishman. A lot of this films' directorial style and screenplay seems to have inspired another classic - The Fourth Protocol, where the whole Cat-and-mouse game is replayed. Fox plays the perfect professional killer - cold, methodical, planned and unremorsefully and ruthlessly committed to his goal.

The Day of the Jackal is a silent and terse film. The screenplay and the direction seem to show the same sense of urgency and focus within the plot, that the characters display in their own objectives.

If one has a collection of movies at home, this is one movie that demands its place. Definitely a treasure.

Rarely does a movie do justice to a book, but Fred Zinneman's production of "The Day of the Jackal" is wonderful adaptation of Frederick Forsyth's novel which, I continue to believe, is one of the greatest thrillers ever written.

It's hard to put a finger on what exactly makes this film great: excellent performances by relatively unknown actors, a wonderful plot, fantastic location shooting or a complete desire to avoid the bells and whistles, special effects laden movies that are all that makes up the "suspense" genre of films these days. Like other reviewers have said, be this the first or the fiftieth time that you watch this film, you will be left on the edge of your seat with its "cat and mouse" plot of the search for a lone assassin hired to murder President De Gaulle. The young Edward Fox is brilliant in the title role and the supporting cast excellent.

If anything, this film proves that you do not need big named stars, explosions around every corner or computer generated effects to make a fantastic film. The only downside to watching this film is that you realise that the movie industry just does not make films like this any more.

Highly, highly recommended.

I first saw "A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS" in 1966 when it first came out. I was a senior in high school, and since this was the pre-hippie era, everyone was gung-ho about Sir Thomas More's duty, integrity, etc. There's no question that Fred Zinnemann crafted a masterpiece on the tiny budget allowed him by Columbia, since all the studios were losing money on talky, period pieces.The acting is incomparable, a perfect ensemble centering around the unflinchingly confident performance of Scofield (he'd done the role hundreds of times on stage). The costumes won an Oscar, and were certainly beautiful, though they were so bulky it looked really difficult for the characters to get close to each other. It won an Oscar for Cinematography, too, though the film really is somewhat of a filmed play (I thought the filming of "Hawaii" and "The Sand Pebbles",also nominated, was more breath-taking). Though these are minor problems, they are soon forgotten when one pays attention to the incredible screenplay of Robert Bolt.Loaded with passion and strong character development, it's also a valid history lesson. Don't watch this if there are any distractions (kids, company, etc.) since its maximum appreciation requires concentration. I'm also wondering why the DVD is substantially higher-priced than most others, since there are absolutely NO extras of any kind. This film is notable also for Vanessa Redgrave's unbilled film debut as Anne Boleyn, on screen for only a few minutes, but an absolutely riveting film moment. Everyone should see ths film, but I'd hesitate to recommend you buy it if only due to the unreasonable price.

I have loved this movie since I saw it in its original release too many years ago. Certainly, Sir Thomas More was a magnificent person who died a martyr and has been canonized a saint. However, don't confuse the play and movie with the flesh and blood man. He was much more complex in real life than the purely noble performance of Paul Scofield. You can read the biography of Thomas More by Peter Ackroyd to get at some of his complexities.

But this is a wonderful movie and I recommend it with great enthusiasm. It is a powerful movie and can have some useful at least temporary curative effect on the soul suffering under the ironical detachment and cynicism of our time. Scofield is wonderful and the definitive performance of this role. Orson Welles is quite special as the corpulent and corrupt Cardinal Wolsey. John Hurt is superb as the traitor Richard Rich. Shaw is fine as Henry VIII as is the rest of the cast.

And who can forget the line where More asks to see chain of office that Richard Rich was given to perjure himself and betray More. After examining it and being told that Sir Richard was made the Attorney General of Wales More says, "Richard, it profits a man nothing to trade his soul for the whole world, but for Wales ..." Wonderful stuff.

The disk offers the wide screen theatrical release and a full screen version for those who like to see less of the picture in order to avoid the upper and lower "bars". There is also the original trailer.

There are no other features on the disk beyond scene selection.

This disk belongs in every collection and should be reviewed regularly as an healthful tonic to help remedy the bilious nihilism of our age.

I only saw this movie once, but I never forgot it.

I have thought of Thomas Moore (at least, as he appears in this movie) as one of those people you want to save from themselves. You may find yourself saying "Just compromise already! It's not like you can stop the King from getting a divorce and marrying whomever he likes anyway!"
But if he did compromise he would no longer be so special as to be worth all your emotion. He must fight the King, not out of stubborness, or arrogance. The King stands for something and must be moral. And Thomas Moore, the man, is not a puritan. He wants to appear pure before God when his time comes. Whether one believes in the after life or not is irrelevant: HE believed it.
The intelligence and goodness, the pearls of wisdom that come from this man leave you in awe.

It reminds me of a description I once read of Lincoln giving a speech. The witness said that when he appeared everyone wondered what this ugly, shabby man could possibly have to offer, if he could say something of any interest. And then he started to speak and soon afterwards everyone was thinking what a wonderful, marvelous man he was.

This movie sweeps me off my feet in that same way, I fall in love with the man's dignity and sheer genius. If only there were more dozens of movies like this one...

I first saw "A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS" in 1966 when it first came out. I was a senior in high school, and since this was the pre-hippie era, everyone was gung-ho about Sir Thomas More's duty, integrity, etc. There's no question that Fred Zinnemann crafted a masterpiece on the tiny budget allowed him by Columbia, since all the studios were losing money on talky, period pieces.The acting is incomparable, a perfect ensemble centering around the unflinchingly confident performance of Scofield (he'd done the role hundreds of times on stage). The costumes won an Oscar, and were certainly beautiful, though they were so bulky it looked really difficult for the characters to get close to each other. It won an Oscar for Cinematography, too, though the film really is somewhat of a filmed play (I thought the filming of "Hawaii" and "The Sand Pebbles",also nominated, was more breath-taking). Though these are minor problems, they are soon forgotten when one pays attention to the incredible screenplay of Robert Bolt.Loaded with passion and strong character development, it's also a valid history lesson. Don't watch this if there are any distractions (kids, company, etc.) since its maximum appreciation requires concentration. I'm also wondering why the DVD is substantially higher-priced than most others, since there are absolutely NO extras of any kind. This film is notable also for Vanessa Redgrave's unbilled film debut as Anne Boleyn, on screen for only a few minutes, but an absolutely riveting film moment. Everyone should see ths film, but I'd hesitate to recommend you buy it if only due to the unreasonable price.

I have loved this movie since I saw it in its original release too many years ago. Certainly, Sir Thomas More was a magnificent person who died a martyr and has been canonized a saint. However, don't confuse the play and movie with the flesh and blood man. He was much more complex in real life than the purely noble performance of Paul Scofield. You can read the biography of Thomas More by Peter Ackroyd to get at some of his complexities.

But this is a wonderful movie and I recommend it with great enthusiasm. It is a powerful movie and can have some useful at least temporary curative effect on the soul suffering under the ironical detachment and cynicism of our time. Scofield is wonderful and the definitive performance of this role. Orson Welles is quite special as the corpulent and corrupt Cardinal Wolsey. John Hurt is superb as the traitor Richard Rich. Shaw is fine as Henry VIII as is the rest of the cast.

And who can forget the line where More asks to see chain of office that Richard Rich was given to perjure himself and betray More. After examining it and being told that Sir Richard was made the Attorney General of Wales More says, "Richard, it profits a man nothing to trade his soul for the whole world, but for Wales ..." Wonderful stuff.

The disk offers the wide screen theatrical release and a full screen version for those who like to see less of the picture in order to avoid the upper and lower "bars". There is also the original trailer.

There are no other features on the disk beyond scene selection.

This disk belongs in every collection and should be reviewed regularly as an healthful tonic to help remedy the bilious nihilism of our age.

I only saw this movie once, but I never forgot it.

I have thought of Thomas Moore (at least, as he appears in this movie) as one of those people you want to save from themselves. You may find yourself saying "Just compromise already! It's not like you can stop the King from getting a divorce and marrying whomever he likes anyway!"
But if he did compromise he would no longer be so special as to be worth all your emotion. He must fight the King, not out of stubborness, or arrogance. The King stands for something and must be moral. And Thomas Moore, the man, is not a puritan. He wants to appear pure before God when his time comes. Whether one believes in the after life or not is irrelevant: HE believed it.
The intelligence and goodness, the pearls of wisdom that come from this man leave you in awe.

It reminds me of a description I once read of Lincoln giving a speech. The witness said that when he appeared everyone wondered what this ugly, shabby man could possibly have to offer, if he could say something of any interest. And then he started to speak and soon afterwards everyone was thinking what a wonderful, marvelous man he was.

This movie sweeps me off my feet in that same way, I fall in love with the man's dignity and sheer genius. If only there were more dozens of movies like this one...

Wow! I couldn't believe all the high ratings this movie got. Yes, the song is catchy, Cooper is the all-american western hero and Grace Kelley is lovely - BUT nothing happens from the time the bad guys arrive to the final showdown - about 70 minutes. Its just talk. And folks, we're not talking about great dialogue here. Want to see Gary Cooper beg and whine for someone to save him for 70 minutes? I didn't.

So why the high ratings? It was the first liberal western. Full of talk and no action. And this was the first western to show the old pioneers not fighting Indians, or putting down the bad guys, but as a bunch of greedy cowards who turn their back on old coop when he needs them.

Had it been made 10 years later, Kramer would have shown the townspeople kicking some poor native-american or sneering at some noble black cowboy (played by sidney poitier).

High Noon is a classic tale of a man who is torn between his duty and love. Gary Cooper stars as Will Cain, a sheriff of small town Hadleyville, NM, who has just gotten married to Amy played by Grace Kelly. Amy is a Quaker and in deference to her pacifist beliefs, Will is turning in his badge. But just as the newlyweds are preparing to leave town for a new life, Will learns that a criminal, Frank Miller, he put behind bars is being paroled and arriving in town on the 12 noon train for a showdown. Tension fills the air as the anticipated showdown draws closer. Amy begs for Will to leave with her, but he knows he can't run away. He must stay and defend the town and his honor. Will finds himself alone in the battle as everyone in town, including his deputy sheriff Harvey Pell, played by Lloyd Bridges, have turned away from him. The film is just a little over 80 minutes long and it unfolds in essentially real time on the screen. Director Fred Zinnemann effectively uses clocks to convey the time ticking away towards the battle. The movie is filled with tension as the showdown draws near and Mr. Cooper brilliantly plays his part for which he won his second Best Actor Oscar. Tex Ritter, John's father, sings the Oscar winning song, "Don't Forsake Me" which perfectly captures the essence of the film. High Noon is not only a classic western, but a classic American film.

In The Divine Comedy, Dante reserves the last and worst ring in hell for those who, in a moral crisis, preserve their neutrality. I thought about that provision when recently seeing this film again. In brief, here's the situation. Marshall Will Kane (Cooper) learns that Frank Miller has been released from prison and will arrive on the noon train when it stops in Hadleyville. Joined by others, Miller then intends to locate the marshall and kill him. For various reasons, everyone in town abandons Kane...including his newlywed wife Amy (Kelly) and his deputy Harvey Pell (Lloyd Bridges). Of course, Kane is tempted to leave with his new bride before noon and avoid Miller...but he doesn't. As high noon approaches, he finds himself alone and facing almost certain death. Cooper received and deserved his Academy Award for best actor. His performance in this film may well have been the best in his entire career. Especially effective use is made of the theme song "Do Not Forsake, O My Darling" co-written by Dimitri and Ned Washington (sung off-camera by Tex Ritter), the key component of Tiomkin's music score which received an Academy Award. The supporting cast is outstanding, notably Bridges, Katy Jurado (Helen Ramirez), and Lon Chaney, Jr. (Martin Howe). Working with Carl Foreman's screenplay, director Fred Zinnemann focuses on what was (more than 50 years ago) a very controversial idea: that otherwise good people would refuse to support their marshal when he and their town are threatened by cold-blooded killers. John Wayne was among those who called this film "Un-American." Several of the townspeople can be accused of cowardice but that is not true of Amy Kane who is a pacifist whose principles require her to oppose her husband's decision to remain. The final scene in the street is unforgettable. Whatever we may think, today, of Kane's decision and of those who oppose it or who remain neutral, we can nonetheless agree that this film still attracts and then sustains our interest; also, that our sense of dramatic tension increases with each passing moment.

Wow! I couldn't believe all the high ratings this movie got. Yes, the song is catchy, Cooper is the all-american western hero and Grace Kelley is lovely - BUT nothing happens from the time the bad guys arrive to the final showdown - about 70 minutes. Its just talk. And folks, we're not talking about great dialogue here. Want to see Gary Cooper beg and whine for someone to save him for 70 minutes? I didn't.

So why the high ratings? It was the first liberal western. Full of talk and no action. And this was the first western to show the old pioneers not fighting Indians, or putting down the bad guys, but as a bunch of greedy cowards who turn their back on old coop when he needs them.

Had it been made 10 years later, Kramer would have shown the townspeople kicking some poor native-american or sneering at some noble black cowboy (played by sidney poitier).

High Noon is a classic tale of a man who is torn between his duty and love. Gary Cooper stars as Will Cain, a sheriff of small town Hadleyville, NM, who has just gotten married to Amy played by Grace Kelly. Amy is a Quaker and in deference to her pacifist beliefs, Will is turning in his badge. But just as the newlyweds are preparing to leave town for a new life, Will learns that a criminal, Frank Miller, he put behind bars is being paroled and arriving in town on the 12 noon train for a showdown. Tension fills the air as the anticipated showdown draws closer. Amy begs for Will to leave with her, but he knows he can't run away. He must stay and defend the town and his honor. Will finds himself alone in the battle as everyone in town, including his deputy sheriff Harvey Pell, played by Lloyd Bridges, have turned away from him. The film is just a little over 80 minutes long and it unfolds in essentially real time on the screen. Director Fred Zinnemann effectively uses clocks to convey the time ticking away towards the battle. The movie is filled with tension as the showdown draws near and Mr. Cooper brilliantly plays his part for which he won his second Best Actor Oscar. Tex Ritter, John's father, sings the Oscar winning song, "Don't Forsake Me" which perfectly captures the essence of the film. High Noon is not only a classic western, but a classic American film.

In The Divine Comedy, Dante reserves the last and worst ring in hell for those who, in a moral crisis, preserve their neutrality. I thought about that provision when recently seeing this film again. In brief, here's the situation. Marshall Will Kane (Cooper) learns that Frank Miller has been released from prison and will arrive on the noon train when it stops in Hadleyville. Joined by others, Miller then intends to locate the marshall and kill him. For various reasons, everyone in town abandons Kane...including his newlywed wife Amy (Kelly) and his deputy Harvey Pell (Lloyd Bridges). Of course, Kane is tempted to leave with his new bride before noon and avoid Miller...but he doesn't. As high noon approaches, he finds himself alone and facing almost certain death. Cooper received and deserved his Academy Award for best actor. His performance in this film may well have been the best in his entire career. Especially effective use is made of the theme song "Do Not Forsake, O My Darling" co-written by Dimitri and Ned Washington (sung off-camera by Tex Ritter), the key component of Tiomkin's music score which received an Academy Award. The supporting cast is outstanding, notably Bridges, Katy Jurado (Helen Ramirez), and Lon Chaney, Jr. (Martin Howe). Working with Carl Foreman's screenplay, director Fred Zinnemann focuses on what was (more than 50 years ago) a very controversial idea: that otherwise good people would refuse to support their marshal when he and their town are threatened by cold-blooded killers. John Wayne was among those who called this film "Un-American." Several of the townspeople can be accused of cowardice but that is not true of Amy Kane who is a pacifist whose principles require her to oppose her husband's decision to remain. The final scene in the street is unforgettable. Whatever we may think, today, of Kane's decision and of those who oppose it or who remain neutral, we can nonetheless agree that this film still attracts and then sustains our interest; also, that our sense of dramatic tension increases with each passing moment.

Wow! I couldn't believe all the high ratings this movie got. Yes, the song is catchy, Cooper is the all-american western hero and Grace Kelley is lovely - BUT nothing happens from the time the bad guys arrive to the final showdown - about 70 minutes. Its just talk. And folks, we're not talking about great dialogue here. Want to see Gary Cooper beg and whine for someone to save him for 70 minutes? I didn't.

So why the high ratings? It was the first liberal western. Full of talk and no action. And this was the first western to show the old pioneers not fighting Indians, or putting down the bad guys, but as a bunch of greedy cowards who turn their back on old coop when he needs them.

Had it been made 10 years later, Kramer would have shown the townspeople kicking some poor native-american or sneering at some noble black cowboy (played by sidney poitier).

High Noon is a classic tale of a man who is torn between his duty and love. Gary Cooper stars as Will Cain, a sheriff of small town Hadleyville, NM, who has just gotten married to Amy played by Grace Kelly. Amy is a Quaker and in deference to her pacifist beliefs, Will is turning in his badge. But just as the newlyweds are preparing to leave town for a new life, Will learns that a criminal, Frank Miller, he put behind bars is being paroled and arriving in town on the 12 noon train for a showdown. Tension fills the air as the anticipated showdown draws closer. Amy begs for Will to leave with her, but he knows he can't run away. He must stay and defend the town and his honor. Will finds himself alone in the battle as everyone in town, including his deputy sheriff Harvey Pell, played by Lloyd Bridges, have turned away from him. The film is just a little over 80 minutes long and it unfolds in essentially real time on the screen. Director Fred Zinnemann effectively uses clocks to convey the time ticking away towards the battle. The movie is filled with tension as the showdown draws near and Mr. Cooper brilliantly plays his part for which he won his second Best Actor Oscar. Tex Ritter, John's father, sings the Oscar winning song, "Don't Forsake Me" which perfectly captures the essence of the film. High Noon is not only a classic western, but a classic American film.

In The Divine Comedy, Dante reserves the last and worst ring in hell for those who, in a moral crisis, preserve their neutrality. I thought about that provision when recently seeing this film again. In brief, here's the situation. Marshall Will Kane (Cooper) learns that Frank Miller has been released from prison and will arrive on the noon train when it stops in Hadleyville. Joined by others, Miller then intends to locate the marshall and kill him. For various reasons, everyone in town abandons Kane...including his newlywed wife Amy (Kelly) and his deputy Harvey Pell (Lloyd Bridges). Of course, Kane is tempted to leave with his new bride before noon and avoid Miller...but he doesn't. As high noon approaches, he finds himself alone and facing almost certain death. Cooper received and deserved his Academy Award for best actor. His performance in this film may well have been the best in his entire career. Especially effective use is made of the theme song "Do Not Forsake, O My Darling" co-written by Dimitri and Ned Washington (sung off-camera by Tex Ritter), the key component of Tiomkin's music score which received an Academy Award. The supporting cast is outstanding, notably Bridges, Katy Jurado (Helen Ramirez), and Lon Chaney, Jr. (Martin Howe). Working with Carl Foreman's screenplay, director Fred Zinnemann focuses on what was (more than 50 years ago) a very controversial idea: that otherwise good people would refuse to support their marshal when he and their town are threatened by cold-blooded killers. John Wayne was among those who called this film "Un-American." Several of the townspeople can be accused of cowardice but that is not true of Amy Kane who is a pacifist whose principles require her to oppose her husband's decision to remain. The final scene in the street is unforgettable. Whatever we may think, today, of Kane's decision and of those who oppose it or who remain neutral, we can nonetheless agree that this film still attracts and then sustains our interest; also, that our sense of dramatic tension increases with each passing moment.