If you have the opportunity to pick this one up for a buck like I did, it won't be the worst dollar you ever spent. Not only that, but it was packaged on a DVD along with "The Gun and The Cross" starring Marjoe Gortner, so in a two for one deal, it stacked up for an entertaining afternoon.
One curious thing though, the DVD sleeve described Steve Forrest's character James Devlin as having the power to read minds after surviving a lynch mob hanging. I was paying attention, but never really came up with that conclusion. In fact, the one supernatural reference had to do with a tarot card depicting the 'hanged man', signifying one who changes his way of life by surrendering to a higher being. This Devlin does after surviving the gallows, playing out the remainder of the film as Jack Palance, wasn't that an uncanny resemblance? I kept thinking Curly Washburn from "City Slickers". The other unintentionally distracting element for me was the name of the town where the story takes place called Goshen. That's a small town in New York not far from where I live, and I had to picture it being further out West.
Something I never thought about, and maybe it was made up for the picture, but up until the point Devlin is declared legally dead, there's some discussion about whether he might have to hang again. At one point it was mentioned that the steps up to the hangman's noose numbered thirteen, unlucky in itself, but with added symbolism regarding a death sentence.
Along with Forrest, you have decent support from Dean Jagger, Will Geer, and Devlin's nemesis Halleck, portrayed by Cameron Mitchell. Probably unintentional, the movie's fiery finale envelops Devlin in an eerie glow hinting at some Ghost Rider imagery, a comic book character that started out as a Western. You can pretty much see the ending coming from a mile off, and in that respect, you'd have more of a mind reading ability than Devlin. Still, it's not the worst Western you'll come across, and along with it's DVD counterpart, makes for a couple of hours of satisfying Western diversion.
One curious thing though, the DVD sleeve described Steve Forrest's character James Devlin as having the power to read minds after surviving a lynch mob hanging. I was paying attention, but never really came up with that conclusion. In fact, the one supernatural reference had to do with a tarot card depicting the 'hanged man', signifying one who changes his way of life by surrendering to a higher being. This Devlin does after surviving the gallows, playing out the remainder of the film as Jack Palance, wasn't that an uncanny resemblance? I kept thinking Curly Washburn from "City Slickers". The other unintentionally distracting element for me was the name of the town where the story takes place called Goshen. That's a small town in New York not far from where I live, and I had to picture it being further out West.
Something I never thought about, and maybe it was made up for the picture, but up until the point Devlin is declared legally dead, there's some discussion about whether he might have to hang again. At one point it was mentioned that the steps up to the hangman's noose numbered thirteen, unlucky in itself, but with added symbolism regarding a death sentence.
Along with Forrest, you have decent support from Dean Jagger, Will Geer, and Devlin's nemesis Halleck, portrayed by Cameron Mitchell. Probably unintentional, the movie's fiery finale envelops Devlin in an eerie glow hinting at some Ghost Rider imagery, a comic book character that started out as a Western. You can pretty much see the ending coming from a mile off, and in that respect, you'd have more of a mind reading ability than Devlin. Still, it's not the worst Western you'll come across, and along with it's DVD counterpart, makes for a couple of hours of satisfying Western diversion.