Ed-Shullivan
Throughout the film I kept asking myself what is so special (if anything) about Marlene Dietrich that two quick draw gunfighters would be interested in? Marlene Dietrich was 51 years old when she appeared in Rancho Notorious and to be playing a sexy saloon singer and the owner of a horse ranch hideout for a bunch of fugitives on the run from the law, why did the producers think she could pull it off? I'll tell you why this over the hill saloon singer with her strong German accent starred in this offbeat western, it was because the German born director Fritz Lang wanted her to star in it.There is a plot to this western which is a woman is murdered during the execution of a robbery by two gunmen and the husband of the murdered woman is a cowboy named Vern Haskell (Arthur Kennedy) so he rides out of town in hot pursuit of his wife's killer until he finds him at the hideout horse ranch Chuck-O-Luck run by aged and weathered actress Marlene Dietrich who plays Altar Keane.So there is double crossing, bandits, gunslingers, two gunmen vying for a woman's affection, and a man on a mission to revenge his wife's murder, but there is a also a really bad musical score chiming in throughout this offbeat western, and Marlene Dietrich's heavy German accent was too much of a distraction for me to take this western too seriously. Thus the mediocre 5 out of 10 rating.
DKosty123
Fritz Lang directs this film with a 50 year old Dietrich showing how the new 50 looked in 1952. This color film was almost certainly one of RKO's more expensive films at this time. In 5 more years, 2 of their employees- Lucy and Desi would buy the studio. In the meantime, this is one of the more impressive films for RKO this long after King Kong was made. It has Dietrich quite aptly cast as an aging beauty queen who has gone to making a living by having men steal money for her and providing a safe haven for the crooks at her ranch.The plot line has more to do with a man losing his wife to be a week before the wedding to one of these crooks. He chases the guy to try to get revenge but winds up having to find the guy using Dietrich ranch and Marlene to locate him. Trouble is there are several guys in her haven and he can't figure out which one unless he can get her to tell him. In the process he falls in love with the aging woman who can still pack a wallop. There are plenty of character actors in support of the main cast. Even William Frawley who would eventually work for Lucy and Desi has a small role in this one. There is a lot of talent here and a bit of stock footage of the Monument Valley in the back drop. Overall, this is a film with lots of proved talent and a veteran director still proving they can do a solid film.Thing is in 1952, all of them are considered has be-ens so the film loses at the box office which is no help to the struggling studio. It is a really good forum for those of us who want to look back at the folks who did this one.
morrison-dylan-fan
After seeing the charming Western Rachel and the Stranger,I took a look at the TV listings,and found out that the BBC were following the screening with a Western from Fritz Lang. Previously only knowing Lang for his Sci-Fi,Film Noir and late Adventure movies,I excitingly got set to enter Lang's Western metropolis.The plot:Working as a ranch hand, Vern Haskell finds his peaceful life to be left broken when his fiancée Beth Forbes is killed during a robbery. Finding no help from the law,Haskell leaves his peaceful life behind,and goes in search of the outlaws. Finding one of the robbers dying on the ground after being betrayed by his former pal,Haskell is told of a game called Chuck-a-Luck. Locating the main salon where the game is played,Haskell crosses paths with Altar Keane,who along with getting lucky on Chuck-a-Luck,is now wearing some of Forbes jewellery.View on the film:Locked from giving a full crack of the whip by studio owner Howard Hughes taking control of the editing and his relationship with the lead actress being so "frosty" that they ended up not speaking to each other during production,director Fritz Lang & cinematographer Hal Mohr are still able to find a saddle which allows them to enter the Wild West with style,as expertly delivered overlapping images cast an evil under the sun Film Noir atmosphere under the West,with the burning hot sun dimming as Haskell takes another step to finding Forbes killers. Possibly spurred on by the production "issues" Lang shootout with a peculiar comedic side,which steps into view as all the dames take the cowboys on in a piggyback ride contest.Being a diva on set (with her demanding Mohr to make her look younger) Marlene Dietrich wonderfully transfers her off-screen confidence to the screen,via giving Altar Keane a brashness which keeps all the boys in line. Haunted by the sight of his dead wife, Arthur Kennedy gives a marvellous performance as Haskell,whose sweet heroic smile is tainted by Kennedy as loner who finds himself unable to stop the transformation into an outlaw,as Haskell gets his revenge with a game of Chuck-a- Luck.
writers_reign
Hard to believe that Fritz Lang signed off on this ho-hum oater that comes across as a prototype Johnny Guitar inasmuch as both movies boast strong females (Crawford, Deitrich) running isolated establishments which offer hospitality/hideouts for outlaws. Despite an interesting roster of supporting players barely two members of the entire cast - Mel Ferrer, Arthur Kennedy, Frank Ferguson, William Frawley, Jack Elam - are able to look as if they are in the same movie, or care either way. I managed to avoid this shambles for years but it's just turned up on television so, on the off chance that my instincts had been under the weather I gave it a whirl. Should have trusted my instincts, now I'm down the thick end of two hours I can never get back.
AD
