Man Of The West (1958)

When the train he is on is robbed, a reformed outlaw (Gary Copper) finds himself unwillingly reunited with his old gang. To survive, he must take up his old ways but he is accompanied by two other train passengers: a saloon singer (Julie London) and a gambler (Arthur O'Connell). Is there a way out? Based on the novel THE BORDER JUMPERS by Will C. Brown and directed by Anthony Mann (FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE). Mann directed many excellent westerns in the 1950s but this one has to be the most sordid and brutal. Cooper's casting produces a conundrum of sorts. He's excellent and gives one of his best performances. On the other hand, at age 56 he's way too old for the role. He's ten years older than Lee J. Cobb who plays his uncle and fourteen years older than John Dehner who plays his childhood cousin. Mann's conflictive tale of a man who's found redemption only to find himself back at square one is absorbing. American critics dismissed the film when first released and it took European film critics (including Jean Luc Godard) to elevate its reputation. Ernest Haller's use of the CinemaScope frame and the rural California locations standing in for Texas is first rate. With Jack Lord, Robert J. Wilke and Royal Dano.