*** This review may contain spoilers ***
*Plot and ending analyzed*
A few scenes come to mind in The Lonely Man (1957), a unique Western. It has Jack Palance, as a misunderstood gunfighter. Jack Palance's physique matches his laconic attitude. We don't know whether he truly is evil at heart, or a killer. We believe it at first, but then, we see that he is nothing but a fragile human who is going blind. He exists in the wild West where men will kill you for nothing. He has merely defended himself.
Townspeople want him out of their town, a few rivals want him dead. Anywhere he goes, he is treated like a pariah.
Jack Palance wants to find his son (Anthony Perkins) before it is too late. Anthony Perkins doesn't want anything to do with him, but goes with him nonetheless. When they get to a town, Anthony Perkins wants to simply go to eat, but Jack Palance says, "A man first takes care of his horse." That scene to me is stupendous, it is what makes Westerns so good. A cowboy who knows the ways of the West.
Elisha Cook Jr., Neville Brand, Lee Van Cleef, Claude Akins and Denver Pyle are just a few familiar Western actors in the film.
This is a nice character study in a Western.
*Plot and ending analyzed*
A few scenes come to mind in The Lonely Man (1957), a unique Western. It has Jack Palance, as a misunderstood gunfighter. Jack Palance's physique matches his laconic attitude. We don't know whether he truly is evil at heart, or a killer. We believe it at first, but then, we see that he is nothing but a fragile human who is going blind. He exists in the wild West where men will kill you for nothing. He has merely defended himself.
Townspeople want him out of their town, a few rivals want him dead. Anywhere he goes, he is treated like a pariah.
Jack Palance wants to find his son (Anthony Perkins) before it is too late. Anthony Perkins doesn't want anything to do with him, but goes with him nonetheless. When they get to a town, Anthony Perkins wants to simply go to eat, but Jack Palance says, "A man first takes care of his horse." That scene to me is stupendous, it is what makes Westerns so good. A cowboy who knows the ways of the West.
Elisha Cook Jr., Neville Brand, Lee Van Cleef, Claude Akins and Denver Pyle are just a few familiar Western actors in the film.
This is a nice character study in a Western.