While the Western genre is not one of my favourite film genres, there is still appreciation for it and there are many classics in it. Also like one of the genre's icons Randolph Scott, though not a favourite, with some of his best work being with Budd Boetticher. Andre De Toth was a very gifted director, with already good experience with Westerns (the genre he revisited most frequently), and sadly undervalued. Those were the main reasons for seeing 1952's 'Carson City'.
'Carson City' for me turned out to be an uneven film that finished a good deal weaker than it started. It is also though a mostly enjoyable ride that has a lot to recommend it. It is not the best work of either Scott or De Toth, but again it is not a lesser effort of either of them. Somewhere in the middle for both and when it comes to their collaborations together there is a preference for 'Man in the Saddle' and 'Riding Shotgun', but again a lot is very well done here.
It is at its weakest with the completely superfluous and quite watery love triangle that turned out to not be as incidental to the story as it should have been. It doesn't help that Lucille Norman is incredibly bland and ill at ease, or that her role is very sketchy.
Really do wish that the conclusion was as good as how 'Carson City' started. Instead it was very predictable and lacked tension.
A shame because 'Carson City' started off incredibly well with a quite exhilarating opening. That excitement is maintained for a vast majority of the length, with a good deal of tautly paced and atmospheric storytelling. De Toth's direction is typically confident, one would not think he was actually a last minute replacement, and of the acting only Norman is bad. Scott's gritty charisma is evident throughout and there is strong support from Raymond Massey and Richard Webb.
Visually it looks good, with the photography having a good sense of style and atmosphere. Nothing cheap about the settings either. The music never felt at odds, and the script is lean and intelligent as well as pull no punches.
Concluding, enjoyable. 7/10.