IMDb RATING
6.8/10
5.5K
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After the murder of his fiancée, a Wyoming ranch hand sets out to find her killer.After the murder of his fiancée, a Wyoming ranch hand sets out to find her killer.After the murder of his fiancée, a Wyoming ranch hand sets out to find her killer.
Rodd Redwing
- Rio
- (as Rodric Redwing)
Victor Adamson
- Racer with Fat Girl
- (uncredited)
Roger Anderson
- Red
- (uncredited)
Al Bain
- Race Spectator
- (uncredited)
Ray Beltram
- Barfly
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDirector Fritz Lang had originally planned to call this film "Chuck-a-Luck". However, studio head Howard Hughes insisted that its name be changed to "Rancho Notorious", and when Lang asked why, he was told that it was because non-Americans (Europeans) wouldn't understand what "Chuck-a-Luck" (a gambling game commonly played in saloons in the Southwest) meant. Lang replied, "Well, it's a good thing that they all know what 'Rancho Notorious' (which has nothing to do with anything in the film) means!"
- GoofsWhen Haskell and Fairmont are in the cell and talking about gambling. One of them refers to a Chuck-a-Luck "Wheel". There is no wheel in Chuck-a-Luck. Chuck-a-Luck is a dice game, it's played with three dice usually contained in an hour-glass shaped rotatable cage. Bets are placed as to what number will come up on gaming table. The game played in the film involves a wheel with pegs in between representations of all the possible 3-dice rolls, which is the wheel that is both talked and sung about. This is a variation on the original game called Big Six Wheel. Because of the distribution of the combinations, the house advantage or edge for this wheel is greater than for chuck-a-luck.
- Quotes
Altar Keane: [to Vern] I'd wish you go away... and come back ten years ago.
- Crazy creditsAs the title song plays and Bill Lee sings the lyric "... and a man of steel ..." there are eleven names of supporting actors on screen, and the name in the central position is George Reeves, soon to be cast as The Man of Steel in *The Adventures of Superman* (1952-58).
- ConnectionsEdited into Histoire(s) du cinéma: Fatale beauté (1994)
Featured review
Atmospheric Western Noir
"Rancho Notorious" is a beautifully atmospheric and suspenseful film. Best known for his expressionist black & white suspense thrillers, director Fritz Lang brings the same qualities to this Technicolor western.
Although she must have been in her fifties when the film was made, Dietrich looks absolutely gorgeous. She also seems to be having lots of fun with the part, in a sense reprising her character from "Destry Rides Again." It's never explained how this woman with the strange German accent ended up in the Wild West, and we don't really care. By the way, Dietrich's performance in these two films was the basis for Madeline Kahn's great parody in "Blazing Saddles."
The one thing that really stands out in my mind about this film is how effectively the suspense builds. The tension leading up to Vern's discovery of the killer's identity is almost unbearable, and Lang makes us wait until the film's last five minutes for the inevitable score-settling gunfight.
In a period of film history when westerns were a dime a dozen, this one really stands out as a true classic.
Although she must have been in her fifties when the film was made, Dietrich looks absolutely gorgeous. She also seems to be having lots of fun with the part, in a sense reprising her character from "Destry Rides Again." It's never explained how this woman with the strange German accent ended up in the Wild West, and we don't really care. By the way, Dietrich's performance in these two films was the basis for Madeline Kahn's great parody in "Blazing Saddles."
The one thing that really stands out in my mind about this film is how effectively the suspense builds. The tension leading up to Vern's discovery of the killer's identity is almost unbearable, and Lang makes us wait until the film's last five minutes for the inevitable score-settling gunfight.
In a period of film history when westerns were a dime a dozen, this one really stands out as a true classic.
helpful•535
- Dr Zaius
- Dec 13, 1998
- How long is Rancho Notorious?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Chuck-a-Luck
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $900,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 29 minutes
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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