Shane

I couldn't help but feel a little sympathy for the old rancher in Shane, who is desperately trying to drive off the pastoral farmers whose fences prevent him from herding his cattle up and down the valley. After all, he would have been the original settler on the land, would have driven off the pesky redskins and made the place safe for the farmers and their families. None the less, the movie makes no bones about who the bad guys are here. The rancher is portrayed as a good for nothing drunk surrounded by gun toting henchmen. In rides Shane, a mysterious stranger, no slouch with his gun and fists, to save the day. He's a complex little gun-slinger, slow to bait and almost effeminate in his ways, but deadly in the ultimate conclusion of his involvement with the hapless farmer folk. Shane is an important and trend-setting Western, paving the way for many other lone gun-slinger-to-the-rescue movies. Of course, this is another Western, like the Magnificent Seven, that harks back to tales of the Samurai. Alan Ladd is excellent in the role and the scenery of the Grand Tetons a pleasure to look at.