Gunsmoke (1953)

“I built that ranch with my own two hands. You were born there. Your mother died there. I fought Indians and snowstorms and dry years and floods to make it what it is. And I’m not going to give it up just because some two-bit gunslinger happens to come to town.” – Dan Saxon

Number of Times Seen – 1 (24 Sep 2019)

Brief Synopsis – When a wealthy land owner tries to take over the ranch of a man and his daughter, a young gun for hire does all he can to defend them.

My Take on it – This is a film that I had never heard of beforehand and was intrigued to watch since it starred Audie Murphy.

This movie tries to capitalize on his quick rise to stardom due to his wartime heroics.

Unfortunately, this film is a very typical and generic Western that doesn’t have a very unique kind of story line since they pretty much use the same overused plot of a corrupt man trying to take over a ranch by force in order to become richer and more powerful.

Murphy is ok in the lead, but it doesn’t really feel as if he is able to add much to this kind of story and definitely doesn’t stand out in this role which is far from being among his best in his career.

The romance between Murphy and costar Susan Cabot doesn’t feel realistic enough that we can believe things as presented.

The story is paced very slowly and despite the fact that this film is relatively short, it feels as if they have stretched things much too thinly.

It’s too bad that not enough really happens in this film that would make it more interesting to watch unfold.

Bottom Line – Typical Western that has a pretty generic plot that doesn’t manage to really bring anything new to the genre. Murphy is fine in the lead, but he really doesn’t give a performance here that stands out in his career or in this movie itself. The way that things move along is a bit slow at certain points and even though that this film is relatively short, it still feels too long for its own good. Unfortunately not enough happens in this film that makes it interesting enough to watch unfold.

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Audie Murphy was forced to submit to a complete above the waistline body wax for his shirtless sequence. (From IMDB)

Rating – Razzie Worthy (3/10)