There are moments of genius in this movie, though, as the other reviewer says, it is let down by a talky script - and the lamest "the cavalry arrives and that's the end of the movie" in B western history - because that's what happens; after a long drawn out, interestingly shot siege in the church, the cavalry arrives and the movie ends. Just like that. No denouement. The movie just ends. Everyone leaves the church without a backward glance for all the dead and dying loved ones within and there's a cutesy shot of a little donkey trotting up to its mother. It's so weirdly sudden after all the long drawn out, moody, tense, heightened tension that preceded it that it completely whips the metaphorical carpet out from underneath you.
The moments of genius though, make what is, after all, a pretty short film worth watching. And a textbook example, like all Lewton's movies, on how less is more, and how to make a small budget go a long way. The scene in the desert where the gun-less anti-hero is riding on to (as he thinks) safety after promising to warn the town is nicely edgy and unsettling. And the low angle shot in the church where the town is burnt casting beams of brilliant red light across the ceiling was great. That one shot was worth the admission price for me.
The lighting is terrific, the direction, art direction, and cinematography great - but it's a pity about the script. With a better script - there are no sub-plots or parallel action in the movie - this would have been a classic up there with the likes of Shane, High Noon, and 3:10 to Yuma.
Interesting.
The moments of genius though, make what is, after all, a pretty short film worth watching. And a textbook example, like all Lewton's movies, on how less is more, and how to make a small budget go a long way. The scene in the desert where the gun-less anti-hero is riding on to (as he thinks) safety after promising to warn the town is nicely edgy and unsettling. And the low angle shot in the church where the town is burnt casting beams of brilliant red light across the ceiling was great. That one shot was worth the admission price for me.
The lighting is terrific, the direction, art direction, and cinematography great - but it's a pity about the script. With a better script - there are no sub-plots or parallel action in the movie - this would have been a classic up there with the likes of Shane, High Noon, and 3:10 to Yuma.
Interesting.