The Fedora Chronicles - The Golden Age Of Hollywood: High Noon

High Noon
Release date 24th July 1952
Country : USA
Running time : 85 mins
Genre : Western
Starring Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly
Screenplay by Carl Foreman
Directed by Fred Zinneman

Sheriff Will Kane has to face an old adversary Frank Miller at high noon. He has little support from his fellow townspeople and his new Quaker wife.

In some respects this is a fairly standard Hollywood western in which a man's got to do what a man's got to do, particularly when that man is Gary Cooper star of many oaters since the dawn of sound. So what makes this Fred Zinneman directed movie different ? As well as a western it works as a skilful cinematic exercise in building up suspense. This is done brilliantly by Tiomkin's score and the fact the film more or less follows real time, the audience shares the concern about the encounter at noon as time runs out. As well as Cooper at his best like so many great movies has an excellent supporting cast including Lon Chaney Jnr and Thomas Mitchell. Grace Kelly is fine as his Quaker wife even if somewhat (probably intentionally considering her religion) dowdy compared with her appearance in later films.

This was really the beginning of the psychological western where the difference between good and bad was blurred, the old cosy certainities of the west seemed to be over. It has been said that the movie was an allegory for the Communist witch hunts of the 50s and there are certainly similarities. It was popular enough back then though and Cooper won his second Best Actor Oscar. Some though didn't like its pessimistic outlook and view of the old West, director Howard Hawks gave his answer in Rio Bravo (1959) where everyone who was able pitches in against the bad guys.

DVD available from Artisan Home Video:

DVD Journal
DVD Movie Guide
DVD Beaver
(comparison of various editions)

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High Noon poster from
http://www.allposters.com/