Warlock

This 1959 CinemaScope Western was written and directed by Edward Dmytryk, based on a novel by Oakley Hall (who just died a few days ago). Dmytryk was one of the Hollywood Ten who was jailed but then "named names." I mention that because this is an example of someone using the Western genre to explore themes that were very contemporary, as it was with High Noon.

The title of the film refers to the town of Warlock. The citizens are besieged by cowboys who like to shoot up the town and chase off cowardly lawmen. The citizens decide to hire a marshall, Henry Fonda. Since they are not an incorporated town, he is not technically a lawman, more like a mercenary. He's accompanied by his longtime partner, Anthony Quinn, who sets up a gambling parlor, which is one of the conditions Fonda demands.

The cowboy gang finds that Fonda is not easily scared off. One of them, Richard Widmark, is conflicted by the violence and leaves them. He, like the rest of the town, comes to view Fonda's authoritarian rule with a suspicious eye (as he predicted they would). Eventually Widmark takes the job of deputy sheriff, so he is the official law in town. Now there is basically a triangle of sides here, between Fond and Quinn, the cowboys, and Widmark, and there are various showdowns between all sides.

As Westerns go, this is one of the more psychologically complex I've seen, especially in the days before the "post-modern" westerns that started being made in the late sixties. All of the characters have multiple layers. Widmark starts out being with the bad guys, but ends up being the hero. Fonda rides into town a hero, but at times is a villain. And Quinn, well, I'm not sure how intentional it was, but his devotion to Fonda borders on the homoerotic. Maybe this wasn't evident back then, but it sure is now.

In the supporting cast are all sorts of recognizable character actors of the period, with great names like Regis Toomey and Whit Bissell. Also in the cast are DeForest Kelley (Bones from Star Trek) and Frank Gorshin, who would go on to the play the Riddler, as Widmark's brother, a good bit of casting as I always thought they resembled each other. Interestingly enough, Widmark would marry Fonda's ex-wife some years later.