Posse From Hell (1961)

A group of escaped criminals ride into a town called Paradise and proceed to shoot up the town, killing several townsfolk, as well as robbing the bank. They leave the town with a female hostage (Zohra Lampert) who they gang rape before leaving her for dead. The town's new sheriff (Audie Murphy), a former gunslinger, sets out with an inexperienced and unreliable posse to recover the girl, the bank's stolen money and get the killers dead or alive. Based on the novel by Clair Huffaker (FLAMING STAR) and directed by Herbert Coleman, better known as a producer and assistant director for Alfred Hitchcock in films like VERTIGO and THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH (1956). This is one of only two feature films he directed himself. As a westerns fan, I love coming across unheralded sleepers like this. It's a brutal, tough little western and very adult for its time. Audie Murphy may not have been a great actor but I've always liked his natural "acting" which was often better than those who didn't bother to hide their acting. His scenes with Lampert, a trained "Method" actress are very good as the dissimilarity between his subdued line readings and Lampert's decidedly dramatic line readings make for a nice contrast. Highly recommended for westerns fans. With John Saxon, Vic Morrow, Lee Van Cleef, Rodolfo Acosta, Robert Keith, Frank Overton and Ray Teal.