Decision at Sundown (1957)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Budd Boetticher

Writers:

Charles Lang (screenplay)
Vernon L. Fluharty (story)

Release Date:

10 November 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Western

Plot:

Bart Allison arrives in Sundown planning to kill Tate Kimbrough. Three years earlier he believed Kimbrough was responsible for the death of his wife...

Plot Keywords:

Sheriff | Revenge | Town Meeting | Crooked Sheriff | Love

Cast

Randolph Scott	...	Bart Allison
John Carroll	...	Tate Kimbrough
Karen Steele	...	Lucy Summerton
Valerie French	...	Ruby James
Noah Beery Jr.	...	Sam (as Noah Beery)
John Archer	...	Dr. John Storrow
Andrew Duggan	...	Sheriff Swede Hansen
James Westerfield	...	Otis, the Bartender
John Litel	...	Charles Summerton
Ray Teal	...	Morley Chase
Vaughn Taylor	...	Mr. Baldwin, the Barber
Richard Deacon	...	Reverend Zaron, Justice of the Peace
H.M. Wynant	...	Spanish, Sheriff's Deputy
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Frank Chase	...	Morley's Henchman (uncredited)
Abel Fernandez	...	Pete, Sheriff's Deputy (uncredited)
Herman Hack	...	Stage Passenger (uncredited)
Jim Hayward	...	Shotgun Guard (uncredited)
Reed Howes	...	Morley's Henchman (uncredited)
Shirley Jocelyn	...	Lillian (uncredited)
Ethan Laidlaw	...	Townsman (uncredited)
Mike Lally	...	Townsman (uncredited)
Pierce Lyden	...	Morley's Henchman (uncredited)
Philo McCullough	...	Townsman (uncredited)
Frank Mills	...	Townsman (uncredited)
Frank O'Connor	...	Townsman in Church (uncredited)
Bob Reeves	...	Townsman (uncredited)
Frank J. Scannell	...	Morley's Henchman (uncredited)
Bob Steele	...	Irv, Deputy Sheriff (uncredited)
Guy Wilkerson	...	Abe, Livery Proprietor (uncredited)

Directed by
Budd Boetticher

Writing credits
Charles Lang		(screenplay) (as Charles Lang Jr.)
Vernon L. Fluharty		(story)

Produced by
Harry Joe Brown	....	producer
Randolph Scott	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Heinz Roemheld
Mischa Bakaleinikoff		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Burnett Guffey

Film Editing by
Al Clark

Art Direction by
Robert Peterson

Set Decoration by
Frank Tuttle		(as Frank A. Tuttle)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Sam Nelson	....	assistant director

Sound Department
John P. Livadary	....	recording supervisor (as John Livadary)
Jean G. Valentino	....	sound (as Jean Valentino)

Music Department
Heinz Roemheld	....	conductor

Other crew
David Breen	....	assistant to producer
Henri Jaffa	....	technicolor color consultant

Production Companies

• Columbia Pictures Corporation (presents)
• Scott-Brown Productions

Distributors

• Columbia Pictures (1957) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia Film-Verleih (1957) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Comet Video (????) (USA) (DVD)

Runtime:

77 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

West Germany:12 | USA:Approved (certificate #18651) | UK:U | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Several coils of rope hanging in the barn where Scott is trapped are secured with modern tape.

Quotes:

[Discussing Sundown's town boss Tate Kimbrough]
Bart Allison: Is he a big man in Sundown?
Sam: The biggest. He's got that town in his fist and he's squeezin' it hard. Ain't heard folks complain much. Guess they're all scared.
Bart Allison: I'm glad to hear he's doing so well. When a man's riding high, the ground comes up and hits him a lot harder when he falls.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Budd Boetticher: An American Original (2005) (V)

Very Good

Decision at Sundown (1957)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

After the suicide of his wife, Bart Allison (Randolph Scott) makes it his goal to hunt down and kill the man he feels responsible. He finds Tate Kimbrough (John Carroll) in the small town of Sundown where he owns the sheriff (Andrew Duggan) and has the town frightened. Not to mention he shows up just as Tate is about to be married. It seems these Boetticher/Scott films weren't overly successful or popular when first released but over the past few years their reputations have really grown. There are a couple twists here that happens at the end of the film, which probably wouldn't go over too well back in 1957 but today I think people will be able to enjoy these more. This is certainly a western by all means but it's also a lot deeper than that and I think that's the reason these films keep getting more popular. The character study that involves Bart, Tate and the entire town makes for some suspenseful scenes and a lot of stuff to think about when it comes to men trying to seek revenge. Boetticher's direction is masterful as he does a terrific job at building tension from the opening scenes all the way to the end. The majority of the film has Scott held up in a barn, which is perfect because it gives the film a chance to visit and see the supporting characters and learn how they're going to have a major impact on the ending. The performances are also excellent with Scott leading the way in a role that isn't your typical hero. An anti-hero might be better because he is playing a very ugly character that doesn't have much charm. The way Scott lets the character's pain run free makes this the best work I've seen from him. Duggan is terrific as the snake sheriff and we get strong supporting performances by Carroll, Karen Steele and Valerie French. Noah Beery, Jr. is also excellent in his role as Scott's friend. Again, I'm sure people could debate the twists at the end but I think the make the film a lot more memorable. We've seen countless western's involving revenge so to see one that isn't done in a standard fashion is very refreshing.