Review: Last Train From Gun Hill

Kirk Douglas plays a Marshal whose 9 year-old son comes crying home to tell him that Douglas’ Native American wife has been raped and murdered, by two cowardly thugs played by Earl Holliman and Brian G. Hutton. Going back to the scene of the crime and finding a misplaced saddle, Douglas looks at the saddle and recognises it as belonging to Anthony Quinn, his best friend during their misspent youth way back when. Holliman, it turns out, is Quinn’s idiot no-good son. Filled with a barely concealed rage (and with justice on his mind), Douglas takes a train to the town of Gun Hill to pay his old buddy a visit and get him to turn over his son and moron friend to him. When he gets there, he finds Quinn (now a respected but ruthless cattle rancher) unwilling to present his son to Douglas. It’s his flesh-and-blood, after all, and no matter how much of a dickweed Holliman is, he’s still Quinn’s son. Quinn does, however, fire Hutton from his employ when he works out the two men are guilty. Douglas is nonetheless ruthlessly undeterred in his quest. He will be taking the two guilty men back home with him on the 9 o’clock train no matter what, with Quinn and henchman Brad Dexter (and anyone else on Quinn’s payroll) aiming to stop him. Caught in the middle is saloon girl Carolyn Jones who met Douglas on the train to Gun Hill and knows how dangerous it is to go up against Quinn, a very powerful man in Gun Hill. How does she know? She’s from Gun Hill and is the mistress Quinn’s been violently mistreating.

 

An underrated minor classic from the equally underrated director John Sturges (“The Great Escape”, “Gunfight at the OK Corral”, “The Magnificent Seven”), this 1959 western boasts terrific performances, a grim tone, and superlative colour cinematography by Charles B. Lang (“The Big Heat”, “The Magnificent Seven”, “Wait Until Dark”) as well as wonderful set design. It’s easily Sturges’ best-looking film, and although at times bold with its use of colour (take a look at that purple hotel sofa!), for the most part it’s actually a harsh, grim and even mournful-looking film, especially at the outset. The sense of framing is excellent, just look at the placement of the wagon wheel in the frame of the shot during the opening sequence. It’s a real showpiece of a scene from a purely visual standpoint, but you could choose any scene in the film as evidence that Sturges and Lang really know how to fill a frame interestingly. 

 

As I said, the performances are terrific here, especially the two leads. Kirk Douglas is perfectly cast as the loving family man turned grim-faced bringer of violent justice. Early on we see him as a likeable and good man, which is very important as it makes his transformation into justice-seeker with a singular focus all the more powerful. We like this guy, sympathise with him, but also worry about him as he’s a man who has lost his most beloved thing and now all he knows is anger. It also helps us sympathise with Douglas that Earl Holliman plays a slimy, cowardly sack of shit, mind you. Douglas has one truly incredible speech where he tells Holliman exactly what awaits him. Anthony Quinn was an uneven actor, but here he is perfect as the proud, uber-masculine family patriarch for whom family is everything. Yes, even when his son is clearly a frigging douchebag. It’s amazing how you don’t end up hating Quinn’s ruthless and abusive character as much as you really feel you ought to. It’s because his sense of macho family pride is so well-conveyed, that you understand him a little bit. Speaking of uber-masculine, take a look at the set decoration inside Quinn’s house in the film. It’s uber-macho man cave stuff that speaks to something about his character, no doubt. Earl Holliman, for his part, probably gives his best-ever performance as the dipshit son whom even the biggest detractor of violence can’t deny needs the piss slapped out of him (Basically, it’s the standard Dan Duryea role). Solid work by Morticia Addams herself, Carolyn Jones playing a sassy, cynical saloon girl known to Quinn. There’s something rather sombre about her performance that is not only right for this kind of film, but makes her somewhat clichéd role not seem quite so ancient. Look out for “Magnificent Seven” cast member Brad Dexter as Quinn’s chief muscle. He doesn’t get much to do, but has an intimidating physical presence used rather effectively here.

 

If the film has one flaw, it’s the seriously loud, corny Dimitri Tiomkin (“Strangers on a Train”, “High Noon”, “Gunfight at the OK Corral”, “The Fall of the Roman Empire”) score. It sounds like it belongs more to a B-movie, and something far more rousing and jovial than what really is an especially grim, brooding film. It doesn’t belong and it gets on one’s nerves. Even when the score tries to get more serious, it’s just too loud and distracting.

 

John Sturges in my view is the most underrated director of all-time, and although not his best film (It’s hard to top “The Great Escape” if you ask me), this one definitely deserves much more attention than it has received. Well-acted, sensationally-shot, and with an engrossing and grim story that has Greek tragedy (or possibly Shakespearean) vibes. It’s a winner. Best of all? It’s over in about 90 minutes. Echoing “High Noon” and “Bad Day at Black Rock”, the screenplay is by James Poe (“Attack!”, “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”, “The Bedford Incident”) from a story by Les Crutchfield (“Tarzan’s Greatest Adventure”).

 

Rating: B+