Terror in a Texas Town

Anti capitalist western

Not completely successful, but interesting. At its best it is weird and off-beat; at its worst it looks like second-rate T.V. Features a Wild West "shoot-out" with a harpoon.

A few shots approach Lewis’ penchant for unhinged tenacity, but overall feels like a workman’s picture - genre through the motions. It’s a shame because Nedrick Young’s offbrand Bogart gunslinger with a steel hand (literally) and Trumbo’s dialogue reveals a despotically lonely atmosphere that’s vacuous in despair. I at times believed the Bad Guys would win, and I can only imagine what Trumbo experienced that led to this social claustrophobia. If only he had a harpoon like Swedish Sterling did.

An interesting and different-minded western with plenty of quirks, like a gunslinger with a steel hand, a harpoon shoot out, and a multinational set of characters. It's interesting to see Sterling Hayden in a more humble and naive role than we're accustomed to seeing him play, but his excuse for a Swedish accent is pretty laughable. The whole thing has this punchy quality that reminds me of Sam Fuller.

watched: 2012, 2020

Short description: Shane with a harpoon.The plot is very similar to Shane, except seaman returning to find his dead father replaces a gunslinger wanting to hang up his guns. Hayden's Swedish accent isn't very good, and the filmmaking, overall, isn't, either. (probable score: 68)