The Naked Spur (1953)

Directed by Anthony Mann. Starring James Stewart, Robert Ryan, Ralph Meeker, Janet Leigh, Millard Mitchell.

Third Anthony Mann/Jimmy Stewart Western collaboration is still their (distant) second-best behind the masterful Winchester ’73, a tight and tough five-character drama set among the lush vistas of Colorado, claustrophobia in mostly wide-open spaces. Echoes of The Treasure of Sierra Madre ring through the tale of bounty hunter Stewart who is joined by two unwanted allies (cavalry officer Meeker and unlucky prospector Mitchell) as he tries to bring in nogoodnik Ryan for a $5000 reward, a payout that would split better two ways, or just one way, they each realize. Leigh is saddled with the lone female role, the companion of the captive, on hand just to be abused and romanced and to give voice to the silent moral protest; good action more than compensates, including an Indian attack, a raging river maneuver, and the titular device being called upon as a desperate measure at a desperate time. Screenplay by Sam Rolfe and Harold Jack Bloom.

77/100