Search - Gun Fury on DVD

Fast-Paced Western from veteran action director, does not qu

James Simpson | USA | 10/05/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Raoul Walsh's "Gun Fury(1953)" is a quickly paced and enjoyable Western from the genre's golden age. At this point, the genre had matured quite a bit and were now much more layered and psychological. Many, like this one, provided plenty of Action but still had a deeper story to tell.

This film tells the story of a young rancher(Rock Hudson) who plans to marry a southern belle(Donna Reed) and move her to his ranch in the West. Along the way, she is captured by a bandit who holds a deep bitterness that he still carries from the South's defeat in the Civil War. Hudson goes after him and his gang, aided only by a former member(Leo Gordon) and a mysterious Indian with a vendetta on the southerner.

The back of the DVD claims that this film is like "White Heat in the West!", but does not quite capture the excitement of that Gangster classic. Part of the problem is the film's half cocked resolution. The film carries alot of complex themes including the corruption of the soul through extreme conditions, the effect of War and defeatism and ultimately, the right to kill another. Everything begins well but ultimately goes nowhere. Hudson simply corners his man at the conclusion, while the villian is offed suddenly and as soon as Hudson goes to embrace Reed, the film concludes. This is a shame because had the film taken more time to build on the puschological aspects of the situation, this film could have been as interesting as those contemporary Anthony Mann Westerns with James Stewart, but it does not fully achieve this. What it becomes, is just a mildly enjoyable afternoon feature.

The film originally was shot in 3-D, so several scenes feature seemingly pointless segments with people and things lunging at the screen. This can be somewhat distracting but it makes the film still interesting and reflective of the time.

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