This highly praised western takes place in a ghost town. In this unusual, confined setting, the characters dance around one another in a melodrama gleaming with style and passion. Another tough William Wellman heroine, played by Anne Baxter, puts protagonist Gregory Peck firmly in his place with the heel of her boot. Some scenes were clearly borrowed from The Ox-Bow Incident (1943); like John Ford and Howard Hawks, Wellman was not above quoting himself throughout his long career.
Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp. (Production): Lamar Trotti. Director: William A. Wellman. Screenwriter: Lamar Trotti. Based on the unpublished novel by W.R. Burnett. Cinematography: Joe MacDonald. Editor: Harmon Jones. Cast: Gregory Peck, Anne Baxter, Richard Widmark, Robert Arthur, John Russell. 35mm, b/w, 99 min.
