The Westerner

The Westerner

By

  • Genre: Western
  • Release Date: 1940-09-18
  • Runtime: 100 minutes
  • : 7
  • Production Company: Samuel Goldwyn Productions
  • Production Country: United States of America
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7/10
7
From 104 Ratings

Description

Drifter Cole Harden is accused of stealing a horse and faces hanging by self-appointed Judge Roy Bean, but Harden manages to talk his way out of it by claiming to be a friend of stage star Lillie Langtry, with whom the judge is obsessed, even though he has never met her. Tensions rise when Harden comes to the defense of a group of struggling homesteaders who Judge Bean is trying to drive away.

Trailer

Reviews

  • CinemaSerf

    7
    By CinemaSerf
    Though not given top billing in this cracking cowboy adventure - the film certainly belongs to Walter Brennan. He, rather uncharacteristically, portrays the quite nasty piece of work "Judge Roy Bean" of Vinegarroon. When "Cole Harden" (Gary Cooper) arrives in this backwater Texan town, he's accused of and summarily convicted of stealing a horse. Some quick thinking, a few coins and a photo of actress Lily Langtree manage to save his bacon long enough for him to befriend the judge before he gets involved in a ruthless turf war between the local cattlemen against the homesteaders. Brennan is smashing. Evil, but his adoration of Langtree gives him a smidge of humanity too. Cooper is fine but very much in Brennan's Oscar winning shadow. William Wyler keeps this taut and focussed, and with the added contributions of Forest Tucker, Chill Wills and Dana Andrews who help it all along well, too, it is one of these largely forgotten westerns that if you get a chance, you definitely ought to watch.

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