HotToastyRag
"How does it feel being put in your place?"
"I wouldn't know."Pizazz, spunk, humor, and romance are all found in Borden Chase and D.D. Beauchamp's screenplay to Man Without a Star, but without the wonderful cast to say those great lines, I'm not sure how well it would have played. Kirk Douglas takes the lead in this delightful western as a drifting cowboy with attitude. Surprisingly enough, he's not the bad boy! Jeanne Crain is the bad girl, and the sparks that fly between them are scorching! Jeanne is the ranch owner Kirk works for, and she's a very tough boss. She's hard on her ranch hands, and even harder on Kirk, using every bargaining chip in the book to get what she wants out of him.Joined by Claire Trevor, William Campbell, Richard Boone, and Jay C. Flippen, the cast and director King Vidor creates a classic western, with every element in place to help it stand the test of time. This is definitely one you'll want to watch over and over again, especially if you're a Kirk Douglas fan. My favorite scenes are the tension-filled banters between Jeanne and Kirk, but there's another great scene that's a staple in the western genre: teaching the new kid how to be a cowboy. In Man Without a Star, the scene has an extra oomph of humor and charm, making it surpass other westerns that blend together in my memory. "Did your mother ever tell you it was rude to point?" Kirk asks William Campbell, after he's missed the shooting target. "Sure," William says. "Well, when you're using a gun, you're downright rude, so point!" Too cute!
Rindiana
One of those all too bright and cheery semi-comic easygoing Westerns full of stupid men behaving childishly.Were it not for Kirk's star turn and some nice touches in the first half of its running time, this rather silly affair wouldn't be worthwhile at all.The character motivation is all at sea and the hero's barb wire trauma is ridiculous from the get-go.There are some interesting topics hidden among the posturing, but the execution is half-hearted at best.4 out of 10 interior bathrooms
moonspinner55
Terrific stuff! Kirk Douglas is a whiskey-sluggin' man's man who drifts into a Wyoming cattle town after taking young, hot-tempered William Campbell under his wing; they get jobs on cattle baroness Jeanne Crain's ranch, but she's fixin' to muscle in on her rancher-neighbors's land (for the grass) until her neighbor puts up a barbed-wire fence--something Douglas has a violent aversion to. Obviously a quality package, what with King Vidor directing and Douglas at the peak of his rough 'n tumble charms; his paternal relationship with Campbell suits him, as does tough-lady Crain as a possible love-interest. Screenwriters Borden Chase and D.D. Beauchamp get this outdoor yarn off to a great start, and it just keeps going from there. Strong cast includes Richard Boone as the villain, an uncredited Jack Elam as a killer, and Claire Trevor, wonderful as a bar hostess. Douglas swaggers, shoots, bites, plays the banjo and sings! It's one of his very best films. *** from ****
alexandre michel liberman (tmwest)
In 'Man Without a Star' Kirk Douglas as Dempsey Rae, gives a great performance; an outgoing cowboy, unstable and with fits of euphoria. This film is able to capture the beauty of the west, of the big herds of cattle, and the daily life of the cowboys. Dempsey is running away from barbed wire, which to him means the end of freedom. He calls himself a man without a star because he is obsessed about his freedom of choice, whereas following a star will bind him to a predetermined life. His affair with Jeanne Crain, with plenty of sexual innuendo, but far from being explicit, is one of the great things about this film. William Campbell has a very important part as an easterner who wants to become a cowboy and Douglas is there to teach him.
AD
