{"id":32661,"date":"2023-11-03T06:19:44","date_gmt":"2023-11-03T12:19:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/?p=32661"},"modified":"2023-11-03T06:19:44","modified_gmt":"2023-11-03T12:19:44","slug":"amb-high-noon-1952","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/amb-high-noon-1952\/","title":{"rendered":"AMB: HIGH NOON (1952)"},"content":{"rendered":"

[THE CHALK-OUTLINE]<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

High Noon (1952): Breakdown by The Hestinator (Brandon)<\/span><\/h3>\n

A Wild West marshal must assemble a posse when he learns of a gang of outlaws coming into town to kill him on his retirement day at noon.<\/p>\n

[THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THEIR BADASSITUDE]<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

THE HEROES:<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Gary Cooper as Will Kane<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

Will Kane is the man who wouldn\u2019t run. This character is retiring and getting married on the same day, which just so happens to be the date that his former rival has plotted to assassinate him. Citizen Kane is a man of integrity, though, and he isn\u2019t cowardly slinking away from a fight with that rapscallion. Gary Cooper, one of the all-time great cinema tough guys and action stars, is pitch-perfect as Will Kane, a role that would earn him his second Academy Award for Best Actor (his first was for portraying Alvin C. York in Sergeant York [1941], another masterpiece). In 2003, the American Film Institute named Will Kane as the number five greatest hero in an American-made film as part of their AFI\u2019s 100 Years\u2026 100 Heroes and Villains retrospective.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Grace Kelly as Amy Fowler Kane<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

This was Grace Kelly\u2019s breakout role and she plays Will Kane\u2019s brand, spanking new wife, Amy Fowler Kane. After seeing her father and brother being gunned down, Amy turned into a Quaker pacifist. She\u2019s troubled by her new husband\u2019s decision to stay in town and face the outlaws, and thinks it would be a good idea to run off without Will.<\/p>\n

THE BAD GUYS:<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Ian MacDonald as Frank Miller<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

Notorious desperado and Batman comic book author, Frank Miller used to run Hadleyville, the town that High Noon is set in. Eventually, Will Kane caught up with him and he was sent to prison, only to be pardoned by those craven politicians. It\u2019s Miller time, with that mad dog returning to Hadleyville to join up with his old gang to finish off Kane once and for all. Frank Miller\u2019s character sometimes receives some flak from viewers for not being as intimidating as he\u2019s built up to be. Eh, I don\u2019t really have a beef with his role, and I\u2019ve heard it suggested that he was intentionally underwhelming to show that the inhabitants of the town are scared shitless of somebody that they really shouldn\u2019t be terrified by.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Lee Van Cleef, Robert J. Wilke, and Sheb Wooley
\nas Jack Colby, Jim Pierce, and Ben Miller<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

The main villain\u2019s three henchmen are Lee Van Cleef\u2019s Jack Colby (what a cheesy name!), Robert J. Wilke\u2019s Jim Pierce, and Sheb Wooley\u2019s Ben Miller. Of course, the standout of these three roles is Van Cleef\u2019s (in his film debut). The dude doesn\u2019t even get any lines and he\u2019s scary as Hell. Many say he should\u2019ve been cast as the primary baddie, Frank Miller. Jim Pierce and Ben Miller (the latter being Frank\u2019s brother) are effective. Robert J. Wilke would later play the railroad bully who receives a thrown knife from James Coburn in The Magnificent Seven (1960), while Sheb Wooley would later sing \u201cThe Purple People Eater\u201d (no, I\u2019m not joking). Wooley is also believed to be the original Wilhelm screamer (once again, this is not a joke).<\/p>\n

[THE SEX AND VIOLENCE]<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

DUDESWEAT AND MACHISMO:<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

There\u2019s not much homoeroticism here, although there is a nice close-up of Gary Cooper\u2019s ass as he approaches the Hadleyville church. I mean, that camera practically started up Coop\u2019s bunghole.<\/p>\n

EXPLOITATION AND MISOGYNY:<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Grace Kelly really isn\u2019t given much to do here other than pout and act irrational for most of the runtime. Her pacifism\u2019s pretty intense (and will be put to the test), but I don\u2019t think her plan of just running away, possibly unarmed, from Frank Miller\u2019s wild bunch is a realistic one. All of that being said, she does redeem herself at the end, at the cost of everything she ever believed in.<\/p>\n

MURDER BY NUMBERS: [ 4 ]<\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Only four souls end up being fitted for pine pajamas in High Noon, all meeting their maker during the final shootout. First, Ben Miller loses a quick-draw competition to Will Kane. Then, Jack Colby gets blasted while storming a stable\/barn that Kane\u2019s holed up in. Next, Jim Pierce gets popped in the back by \u2013 could it be? \u2013 Amy Fowler Kane. Frank Miller is the last scumbag to go, being clawed in the face by Amy and then shot twice by Kane. The slaughter is all very tame, always mild blood can be seen on Cooper\u2019s face and knuckles after a fist fight and on his upper arm after he gets nicked by a bullet during the finale.<\/p>\n

MOST SATISFYING ASS-KICKING AND\/OR DEATH:<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Before the grand finale, Will Kane gets into a scrap with his deputy, Harvey Pell (Lloyd Bridges, father of Beau and Jeff Bridges). Harvey\u2019s a bitter sleazebag who wishes that Kane would just leave, so he can be the new marshal, presumably under Frank Miller\u2019s dictatorial regime. In a livery stable, the two punch it out with each other. It\u2019s not a long battle, but it\u2019s filmed with intensity and seeing Old Man Cooper best some young punk in a fist fight is awesome.<\/p>\n

[THE BEST OF THE REST]<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

EPIC MOMENT:<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The Showdown<\/span><\/h3>\n

The clock is ticking, with three bandits waiting at the train depot for Frank Miller to arrive, so they can do away with Will Kane and retake the town of Hadleyville. Amy\u2019s leaving town, and Kane must face the criminals alone. Tipped off by the sound of Ben Miller being a dump-ass and breaking a window to steal a lady\u2019s hat from a store, our hero sneaks up behind the gang and opens fire. The ensuing shootout is marvelous. While not wholly realistic, it has a grounded quality to it that works wonders, as the baddies chase Kane through town. A stable even gets lit on fire at one point.<\/p>\n

BEST LINE:<\/span><\/h3>\n

There are a lot of good, heroism-related lines in High Noon (1952), but my favorite bit of dialogue is this exchange between Will Kane and Johnny (Ralph Reed), some kid:<\/p>\n

\"\"
\nWill Kane (Gary Cooper): \u201cJohnny, why aren\u2019t you in church?\u201d
\nJohnny (Ralph Reed): \u201cWhy aren\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

[THE EXECUTION]<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

High Noon is simply one of the western films ever released. This was a new kind of western at the time of its original theatrical run. Shoot-\u2018em-up antics are downplayed and the main character, a tough lawman, is scared\u2026very scared. The common people of Hadleyville, the kind of salt-of-the-Earth folks who built White America in the West, are cowards, indifferent non-entities, or potential collaborators with evil. The only help that Gary Cooper gets \u2013 from the kid Johnny (Ralph Reed) and the patch-eyed drunk Jimmy (William Newell) \u2013 he turns away, because a child-soldier and a dude who can barely stand aren\u2019t going to help him much.<\/p>\n

All of this caused western movie icon John Wayne to call High Noon \u201cthe most un-American thing I\u2019ve ever seen in my whole life.\u201d The Duke also probably wasn\u2019t happy with this classic being an allegory for Hollywood filmmakers failing to stand up to the blacklist of suspected communists during the Second Red Scare. Wayne and director Howard Hawks would take matters into their own hands and make a very different western, Rio Bravo (1959), as a response to High Noon. However, Rio Bravo ain\u2019t got a thing on the 1952 Cooper masterwork.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The conservative backlash against High Noon may seem a little odd nowadays. After all, isn\u2019t this motion picture one of the ultimate expressions of individualism? Gary Cooper stands up for what is right, even if everybody around him is telling him to run away. He saves Hadleyville from a second reign of terror by the Miller gang by sticking to his guns and following his conscience. The collective hivemind is proven wrong, and individualism, with a little guts behind it, is vindicated. This may have been too complicated for 1950s right-wingers to comprehend, though.<\/p>\n

High Noon contains some bitter pills about the nature of heroism. Heroes are heroes because they do what no one else wants to do. Will Kane may be fearing for his life, but he marches into battle (alone) anyway. Meanwhile, just about everybody else in Hadleyville just sits there. They don\u2019t deserve a marshal like Will Kane, but a man\u2019s gotta do what a man\u2019s gotta do. Martin Howe (Lon Chaney Jr., who does not transform into a werewolf here) puts it best when he says \u201cPeople gotta talk themselves into law and order before they do anything about it. Maybe because, deep down, they don\u2019t care. They just don\u2019t care.\u201d Harsh, but this reflects your average human\u2019s complacency and fear of standing up to pure evil.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

This may not be an action film, but it is action-adjacent. The physical stuff doesn\u2019t really kick in until the third act, but it\u2019s excellent when it does arrive. The two action scenes \u2013 the livery stable fist fight and the final shootout \u2013 are staged with feeling. They make every punch thrown and bullet fired matter. Every time a gun is fired, you jump just a little bit.<\/p>\n

No review of High Noon would be complete without mentioning the melodic, moody music. Dimitri Tiomkin, one of the very best film score composers of Hollywood\u2019s \u201cGolden Age,\u201d is in top form here. His score rightfully won an Oscar. The theme song, \u201cThe Ballad of High Noon,\u201d better known as \u201cDo Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin\u2019,\u201d was also written by Tiomkin and was sung by Tex Ritter. It\u2019s a catchy ditty that makes numerous appearances throughout the runtime (this song also won an Oscar).<\/p>\n

Believe it or not, this feature actually got a sequel, titled High Noon, Part II: The Return of Will Kane (1980), with Lee Majors in the Kane role. There was also a remake, High Noon (2000), with Tom Skerritt as Kane and Michael Madsen as Frank Miller.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

This western, which only runs 85 minutes, is generally very taut in terms of pacing, but the subplot involving Mexican American businesswoman Helen Ram\u00edrez (Katy Jurado) sticks out like a sore thumb. She\u2019s the former lover of both Will Kane and Frank Miller, and the current squeeze of Harvey Pell, and she decides to pack up shop and leave when violence seems inevitable. She\u2019s a strong female character who gives some good speeches on heroism, but, ultimately, it feels like she could\u2019ve easily been written out of the movie to tighten things up. Sure, the events-take-place-almost-in-real-time shtick would\u2019ve been harder to pull off without her inclusion, but it would be a worthy sacrifice. Still, this is a ten-outta-ten classic, even with the unnecessary Katy Jurado stuff. You can\u2019t call yourself a western film fanatic until you\u2019ve seen it, so watch it now!<\/p>\n

[THE MORAL OF THE STORY]<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Odds are you won\u2019t be a hero when the bad guys arrive in town\u2026 but you can always count on Will Kane to do the right thing.<\/p>\n

[THE AOBG ACTION CHECKLIST]<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

[] Athlete(s) Turned \u201cActor\u201d
\n[X] Clinging To The Outside Of A Moving Vehicle*
\n[] Crotch Attack
\n[] Dialogue Telling Us How Bad-Ass The Main Character(s) Is\/Are
\n[] Ending Featuring An Ambulance, A Blanket, Or A Towel
\n[] Factory\/Warehouse\/Castle
\n[] Giant Explosions
\n[] Heavy Artillery
\n[] Improvised Weapon(s)
\n[X] Macho Mode(s) Of Transportation
\n[] Main Character Sports Facial Accessory(s)
\n[] Manly Embrace(s)
\n[] Notorious Stunt-Man Sighting
\n[] Passage(s) Of Time Via Montage
\n[X] Politically Fueled Plot Point(s)
\n[X] Senseless Destruction Of Property
\n[X] Shoot-Out(s) and\/or Sword Fight(s)
\n[] Slow-Motion Finishing Move(s)\/Death(s)
\n[X] Stupid Authoritative Figures
\n[X] Substance Usage and\/or Abuse
\n[] Torture Sequence(s)
\n[X] Unnecessary Sequel
\n[] Vehicle Chase(s)
\n[] Vigilante Justice
\n* Gary Cooper clings to the outside of running horse.<\/p>\n

[TOTAL: 8 outta 25]<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[THE CHALK-OUTLINE] High Noon (1952): Breakdown by The Hestinator (Brandon) A Wild West marshal must assemble a posse when he learns of a gang of outlaws coming into town to kill him on his retirement day at noon. [THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THEIR BADASSITUDE] THE HEROES: Gary Cooper as Will Kane Will Kane is … Read moreAMB: HIGH NOON (1952)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":32662,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32661","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32661","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32661"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32661\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32665,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32661\/revisions\/32665"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32662"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32661"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32661"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32661"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}