High Noon




I've got to, that's the whole thing.

They don't come much plainer than this. Short and sweet, this story could probably fit multiple times into other movies. But hey, when you've got Gary Cooper as your lead, you can do anything.

Marshall Kane (Gary Cooper) has just been married to Amy (Grace Kelly). Unfortunately, word reaches him that a killer has just been released and is coming for him. He's supposed to leave on his honeymoon, but feels like he should stay and do his job one more time. Everyone else is all for him leaving, for various reasons.

This is the quintessential American Western. One man alone against the bad hombres in order to save the town. A classic piece of Americana. It may surprise some that this was a thinly veiled insult against the Communist witch-hunts and subsequent Hollywood black listing that was going on. It is ironic that it has become so engrained in our culture.

High Noon takes an interesting approach by shooting the film in real time, meaning that the time the story takes on screen is actually how long the running time is. This, along with numerous reference shots to clocks and some pretty tight editing, creates a unique air of suspense. The story hurtles along, even as hope grows increasingly dim. It's difficult to say where any help will come from, or if there will be any help at all. Kane justifies his reasons for staying in the beginning and it makes sense. He spends the rest of the movie trying to explain that to the people, who would rather just see him turn tail and run out of town. Let me tell you about those ignorant capitalists.

There's a fair drought of action, but no one seems to notice. Kane scrambling for allies is what saturates most of the story. In fact, the pace covers up a lot of what the story lacks. It's not really fair to expect a story that takes place over one hour to have drastic character development. There is some, as Amy comes to terms with the violence that surrounds her husband's profession. But still, don't expect anything real deep. This unusual time frame has its down side.

I never really got the whole thing about Gary Cooper in this movie. He's decent, with a set jaw and more than a few moments of uncertainty. Otherwise, he spends the movie trying to bum up deputies and has little else to do. Grace Kelly is pretty good as the conflicting Amy, whose beliefs don't jive with what her new husband is about to do.

It's tense and it has a great build up, but otherwise it's pretty one note.



-The Gnome