Gunsight Ridge (1957)

Sadly Over-hyped

Boring

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

The film begins with Mike Ryan (Joel McCrea) heading to a town by stage. They end up being robbed and when one of the robbers loses his mask, his partner blows him away...as he's a man who wants no one to know his identity. That's because in town he's a respectable guy...which is why the sheriff is having a hard time figuring out who's been robbing the stage coaches. Now that Mike's in town to help, perhaps they'll finally have some action.I had to laugh when folks in the movie kept complaining how old the sheriff was and how they needed a young guy...like 52 year-old McCrea (who actually looks a bit older). Still, he was fine in westerns and this one won't disappoint...nor will it particularly impress because so much of the story seems ordinary and familiar.

"Gunsight Ridge" is an adequate, likable B Western that finds its star, Joel McCrea, in fine form. For the most part, it's routine, but it does have some nice touches, especially in the way that it treats its villain, Velvet Clark (Mark Stevens). Clark is definitely the bad guy, but we are treated to scenes in which he reveals what his preferred line of work would have been, had the reality of his situation not interfered. There's a rich array of character actors, and some very beautiful ladies. Both the music (by David Raksin) and cinematography (by Ernest Laszlo) are well done. Francis D. Lyon directs quite capably, and does particularly well at staging a suspenseful "last stand" finale that plays out without any score.McCrea stars as Mike Ryan, a stranger who comes to a small town for a purpose known only to him. He impresses the local sheriff (Addison Richards) enough to get himself deputized, and he handles things such as collecting taxes from locals, while also helping out to determine the identity of the bandit who's been robbing stages. Forming a subplot are the run-ins that Mike has with the ill-behaved boys who work at the nearby Lazy Heart ranch.McCrea is quite engaging, playing a lead character who's every bit the good, honest, dependable hero. His supporting cast reads like a who's who of veteran talent. In addition to Richards, there's Robert Griffin, I. Stanford Jolley, George Chandler, Slim Pickens (who's quite amusing in his brief part), Herb Vigran, L.Q. Jones, Morgan Woodward, Dan Blocker, and Hank Patterson. Jones and Woodward are fun as two of the antagonistic Lazy Heart ruffians. McCrea's son Jody has a small part as a young man getting married. Joan Weldon, Darlene Fields, and Carolyn Craig are all quite pleasing to look at in the female roles. Best of all is Stevens, who's appropriately intense and not entirely unsympathetic."Gunsight Ridge" is not particularly memorable, but it is sufficiently entertaining for an agreeably paced 86 minutes.Seven out of 10.

Joel McCrea stars in Gunsight Ridge as an undercover agent for Wells Fargo which has been getting regularly robbed on a certain stagecoach run through the territory of Addison Richard who is the sheriff. He's not getting the job done so McCrea's brought in.The title refers to a particularly rough stretch of country where McCrea has his final showdown with the bad guy or at least the chief bad guy.There are two sets of them, one is a group of four cowhands from George Chandler's ranch who do a little cattle rustling on the side, two of them western standbys L.Q. Jones and Morgan Woodward. The other is a man of mystery who plays an exquisite piano and goes by the unlikely western name of Velvet. This is a guy who clearly has some issues which in a better script would have been more explicitly dealt with. Mark Stevens may have had his career role in playing this man.Addison Richard gives a nice performance as an aging sheriff who won't quit until the stagecoach bandit is taken dead or alive. McCrea does what he can to help and the sight of Richard's pretty daughter Joan Weldon gives him all that more interest.Viewers might also note the presence of farm girl Carolyn Craig who helps both Stevens and then McCrea. She's one lonely girl with a budding libido and an itch to get off the farm. In a bit role as a bartender is Dan Blocker who with his frame and voice you can't miss.Not one of Joel McCrea's best westerns, but his fans should like it.

In this western starring Joel McRea, the star goes undercover along the Arizona border to investigate several nasty border ruffians. Mark Stevens co-stars and as always turns in a fine performance. The script is good and holds the viewers interest throughout.Joel McRea was at his best in this western detective yarn..... a story not unlike those from his radio series Tales of the Texas Rangers . A great cast of western character actors make the most of an interesting story.Any western with this cast would be exciting and this film does not disappoint. Enjoy this one, they don't make 'em like this anymore ...