High Noon (1952)

“People gotta talk themselves into law and order before they do anything about it. Maybe because down deep they don’t care. They just don’t care.” – Martin

Number of Times Seen – at least 5 times (21 Jun 2001 on cable, DVD and 11 Sep 2013)

Brief Synopsis – A town Marshall on his last day on the job must try to get help from the townspeople when they get work that a notorious villain has been released from prison and is on his way back to their town to enact revenge.

My Take on it –  Gary Cooper was meant to make this movie!

He does a great job showing how nervous a man can get when he sees who truly is his friend when faced with having to do the right thing.  The anguish on his face seems quite real.

This movie is done is (almost) real time which makes the story more intense.  It’s a concept that the TV show 24 used to make each episode more powerful.

Gary Cooper won his 2nd Oscar (out of 5 nominations) for this movie and it was definitely deserving.

This movie was robbed of Best Picture by The Greatest Show On Earth (1952) of Best Picture.  There are claims that it was because this movie has parallels to the ongoing hearings by the House on Un-American Activities going on in Washington.  One of the writers, Carl Foreman was blacklisted and didn’t work in Hollywood ever again.

It’s too bad that sometimes Oscar decisions are made based on politics instead of what is truly a better movie.

Bottom Line – Great intense movie!  Story told in almost real time. Great acting by Cooper. Highly recommended!

Rating – Oscar Worthy