Nice Western concentrates on psychological issues , complex characters and adult themes . The town of Warlock is plagued by a band of thugs , leading the inhabitants to hire Clay Blaisdell (Henry Fonda) , a famous Pistolero . As the villagers ask the experienced sheriff/gunman to rid the little town of bandits when a vicious gang of freebooters passes through . This is the story of the sheriff who'd worn it -till he'd faced one gun too many , and his crippled partner (Anthony Quinn) , they had to teach or watch to die . As a hired sheriff in the small town of Warlock must take a stand when a gang of nasty outlaws takes over his town . A gunfighter/sheriff that's what they gave you for protecting people who ran like rabbits when the going got roguish !
This stand-out , meaty Western contains interesting plot , intrigue , thrills , shootouts and results to be quite entertaining though slow-moving and excessively allegorical . Outstanding literate Western balances action , suspense and drama , including a high-voltage cast . It's a classical recounting about an experienced marshal hired to clean up the crime-infested location . As Fonda in charge of a little town full of cowards and frightening people ; being probably one of the best Western in the fifties and sixties . The highlights of the film are the climatic showdowns , the twisted surprises and , of course, the final confrontation . The traditional story and exciting screenplay was well written by Robert Alan Arthur though clichés run through-out , the enjoyable tale is enhanced for interesting moments developed among main characters and especially on the relationship between gunslinger Henry Fonda and gambler Anthony Quinn . As the picture relies heavily on psychological aspects of the peculiar relationship between them . As Anthony Quinn steals the show playing a particular role going very much against his ordinary type , as the often strong, tough , macho Anthony here is cast as a hesitant, even weak man . However , Richard Widmark is all but lost in the background as a guilty-ridden outlaw become a town sheriff . Being magnificently performed by Henry Fonda and Anthony Quinn , they are awesome experts in the art of conjuring sensational acting , here are reunited in this atypical but thought-provoking western with a lot of reflection , distinguished moments and dramatical attitudes , in addition a multitude of entertaining situations . Top-notch plethora of secondary actors playing vicious, sadistic sociopaths who take advantage of the frightened townspeople such as Tom Drake , James Philbrook , DeForest Kelley ,Frank Gorshin , Gary film debut of Lockwood as well as villagers perfectly performed by Wallace Ford , Richard Arlen , Ann Doran , among others . Wonderful cinematography in Technicolor and CinemaScope is superbly caught by cameraman Joseph MacDonald . Sensitive as well as lively musical score by Leigh Harline .
This is another superbly powerful though forgotten Western being stunningly directed by Edward Dmytryck . A veteran filmmaker, Dmytryck is one of Hollywood's most prolific directors who started his career in the early 40s . He was a craftsman whose career was interrupted by the activities of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), a congressional committee that employed ruthless tactics aimed at rooting out and destroying what it saw as Communist influence in Hollywood . A lifelong political leftist who had been a Communist Party member briefly during World War II, Dmytryk was one of the so-called "Hollywood Ten" who refused to cooperate with HUAC and had their careers disrupted or ruined as a result. The committee threw him in prison for refusing to cooperate, and after having spent several months behind bars , Dmytryk decided to cooperate . Dmytrick's biggest film was ¨The Caine Mutiny¨ , but he also realized another mutiny film titled : ¨Mutiny¨ with Angela Lansbury . Edward was an expert on warlike genre as ¨Back to Batan¨ , ¨Battle of Anzio¨ , ¨Young lions¨ and Western as ¨Broken lance¨ , ¨Alvarez Kelly¨ , ¨Warlock¨ , among others . Rating : 7 , better than average . It's recommended for Western enthusiasts and big stars lovers . Well worth watching as well as to rediscover and it will appeal to Anthony Quinn and Henry Fonda fans .
