Movie Notes: High Noon
= 4 stars
Starring Gary Cooper, Thomas Mitchell, Grace Kelly
Directed by Fred Zinnemann
Synopsis
Marshall Will Kane (Gary Cooper) is about to leave town when he learns Miller, a man he put away has just been released from prison, and is returning to get revenge. Kane tries to round up a posse only to realize he may have to face Miller alone.
The Good
- Interesting structure; the events take place in “real-time” meaning all the activity of this hour and a half long film takes place in that amount of time. Most of the first part is Kane desperately trying to get support from the townspeople and finding none, and the suspense builds up to a climactic showdown at high noon, resulting in an action-packed last few minutes. Once the duel begins, there is no more dialogue and everything, including the conclusion, takes place wordlessly.
- There’s a message here about the masses unable to do the right thing, and individual tenacity to get the job done even when nobody else lends a hand.
The Bad
- Have to say I was slightly disappointed in Grace Kelly’s serviceable but rather wooden turn as Kane’s wife. Of course, I’ve unfortunately seen her work essentially backwards (Rear Window, Dial M For Murder, To Catch A Thief).
- Cooper seems rather old to be playing a marshal, but I’ll let that pass as it makes his character all the more vulnerable and in over his head when the four baddies approaching.
Conclusion
I’m not a western fan, but this one was pretty cool, mostly because the stock western elements of a defenseless town and a lone marshal are used as an allegory for times when the group lets the individual down.
IMDB: High Noon
Wikipedia: High Noon
Rotten Tomatoes: High Noon 95%