Shane

Plot synopsis:
Shane (Alan Ladd), a skilled, laconic gunfighter with a mysterious past, rides into an isolated valley in the sparsely settled state of Wyoming, some time after the Civil War. At dinner with local rancher Joe Starrett (Van Heflin) and his wife Marian (Jean Arthur), he learns that a war of intimidation is being waged on the valley's settlers. Though they have claimed their land legally under the Homestead Acts, a ruthless cattle baron, Rufus Ryker (Emile Meyer), has hired rogues and henchmen to harass them and drive them out of the valley. Starrett offers Shane a job, and he accepts.
At the town's general store, Shane and other homesteaders are loading up supplies. Shane enters the saloon adjacent to the store, where Ryker's men are drinking, and orders a soda pop for the Starretts' son, Joey (Brandon deWilde). Chris Calloway (Ben Johnson), one of Ryker's men, throws a shot of whiskey on Shane's shirt. "Smell like a man!" he taunts. Shane doesn't rise to the bait, and leaves to the taunts of Ryker's men. On the next trip to town, Shane returns the empty soda bottle to the saloon, where Calloway again taunts him. Shane orders two shots of whiskey, pours one on Calloway's shirt and throws the other in his face, then knocks him to the ground. A brawl ensues; Shane prevails, with Starrett's help. Ryker declares that the next time they meet, "the air will be filled with gun smoke."
Joey is drawn to Shane, and to his gun. Shane shows him how to wear a holster and demonstrates his shooting skills, but Marian interrupts the lesson. Guns, she says, are not going to be a part of her son's life. Shane counters that a gun is a tool, no better nor worse than a hoe or axe, and as good or bad as the man using it. Marian retorts that the valley would be better off without any guns—including Shane's.
Jack Wilson (Jack Palance), an unscrupulous gunfighter working for Ryker, deliberately provokes Frank "Stonewall" Torrey (Elisha Cook Jr.), a hot-tempered ex-Confederate homesteader. "Them rebs are all Southern trash," Wilson says. "You're a low-down, lyin' Yankee," responds Torrey. "Prove it," Wilson replies—and when the inexperienced farmer goes for his gun, shoots him dead. At Torrey's funeral, there is talk among the settlers of giving in to Ryker and moving on; but after battling a fire set by Ryker's men, they find new determination and resolve to continue the fight.
Ryker invites Starrett to a meeting at the saloon to negotiate a settlement—and then orders Wilson to kill him when he arrives. Calloway, unable to tolerate Ryker's treachery any longer, warns Shane of the double-cross. Starrett says no matter, he will shoot it out with Wilson, and asks Shane to look after Marian and Joey if he dies. Shane, aware that Starrett is no match for Wilson in a gunfight, says he must go instead. Starrett is adamant, and Shane is forced to knock him unconscious. A distraught Marian asks Shane why he is doing this. For her, he replies, and her husband and son, and all the other decent people who want a chance to live in peace in the valley.
As Shane rides to town, Joey follows him on foot. At the saloon, Shane tells Ryker he cannot prevail, because times have changed; cattle barons and gunfighters are both relics of the Old West. Then he turns to Wilson: "I hear you're a low-down Yankee liar," he says. "Prove it," replies Wilson, and draws. Shane beats him to the draw, then shoots Ryker too, as he draws a hidden gun. Before Ryker's brother Morgan, concealed in a balcony overhead, can shoot Shane in the back, Joey shouts a warning, and Shane kills Morgan as well.
Shane tells Joey to go home and tell his mother that the settlers have won, that there are no more guns in the valley. As Joey reaches out, blood drips onto his hands; Shane's left arm hangs limply at his side as he mounts his horse. In an iconic closing scene, Shane rides out of town, slumped forward in his saddle, ignoring Joey's desperate cries of "Shane! Come back!"

Tags: revenge, murder, violence, melodrama

Review:
Likewise, at the end of the film, when little Joey is calling across the plains for Shane to "come back," he yells to Shane, "Mother wants you, I know she does," and the words echo back, we see a close up of Joey, his expression changing, and we know the child realizes too that Shane does (or could) mean something more to his mother.Stevens also didn't make the "bad guys" black-and-white villains.
Shane tries to stay out of the disputes, but keeps being drawn in and is finally compelled to put his six shooter back on when the ranchers hire Jack Wilson (Jack Palance) a noted gunfighter to intimidate the farmers.This story is outstanding in so many ways.
It is also an excellent human interest story and succeeds in getting the viewer to love the homesteaders and hate the ranchers.George Stevens directed this film late in a notable career and does a splendid job.
The movie makes a reasonable attempt, for that time, to look authentic in costume and gear, and gives fans of the movies of the '40s and '50s some interesting cinematic moments (see the small things, like how the camera was used to make Alan Ladd seem more "heroic").I'd probably recast some of the secondary roles, if I had the chance, but Ladd's soft-spoken, gentlemanly way is just right for Shane, and Jack Palance is subtly evil.Yes, "Shane" contains a few clichés, but they weren't yet quite so cliché, in 1953.
Their son Joey loves his parents, but is greatly impressed by the mystery and skill of Shane (Alan Ladd).Shane is reluctant to return to the way of the gun until Ryker hires a top gunslinger (Jack Palance).
No classic roles for that man any more.The rancher versus homesteader is an old western plot story and there have been many films made from both points of view.
So he leaves to an unknown fate, living in the hearts and memories of the Starrett family and the rest of the small farmers, especially young Brandon DeWilde.And in the hearts of all lovers of the western genre including this little cowpoke who saw him as a small lad on the big silver screen so many years ago..
However, an unsung role (eighth billing in the credits) in here was the one by Emile Meyer, who played the real villain in here, "Ryker." (Palance was just called in at the end.) A young Ben Johnson plays a member of his gang.Alan Ladd, meanwhile, is the hero, the man who comes to the aid of family man Van Helflin, his wife Jean Arthur and young son Brandon De Wilde.
Whether feverishly chewing on his candy while witnessing Ladd fighting the bad guys or his plaintiff cries for "Shane!" at the end of the film, he made a memorable impression.The only overdone part - as seen in so many old-time westerns - is the amount of punches people took, blow after blow, when in real life they would have knocked unconscious right off the bat!
After watching the massively depressing LOGAN (2017) and noticing that the closing scene pays homage to Shane (same dialog used to mark Logan's grave) I felt the need to do an update review on Shane.According to traditional Hollywood history, Shane is one of the 100 greatest films of all time, iconic, and even the dialog is multi-layered.There is a scene in the short-lived TV series THE OTHERS (done by the same two men who created X-Files) where one of the lead characters, who is blind, regularly goes to the movies to watch SHANE, over and over.
In many ways, that has to be one of the grandest back-handed compliments you can pay to a film.I wish however to also suggest there is a great deal of hidden irony in what otherwise appears to be a straightforward western.For example, Ladd hated guns and, according to film legend (Wikipedia) had to do over 100 takes in the iconic scene where he teaches the boy to draw.
Rolling thunder clouds open for a moment and bathe the homesteader in bright light as he almost turns back on the way to his doom, then they close and roll on as he rejects his last chance.Shane, the film, owes much to its beautifully-rendered bad guys, who confront a rather bland, uni-dimensional good, giving it texture and motivation.
Shane attempts to settle down with a homestead husband named Starrett (Van Heflin) , his wife named Marian (Jean Arthur was over 50 years old ,she was, in fact, ten years older than Emile Meyer and Katharine Hepburn was originally suggested for the role of Marian) and a son , but a smoldering settler/rancher conflict forces him to act.
Director George Stevens originally cast Montgomery Clift as Shane and William Holden as Joe Starrett , when both decided to do other films instead, "Shane" was nearly abandoned , a bit later on , upon seeing a list of actors under contract to the studio, Stevens cast Alan Ladd, Van Heflin and Jean Arthur .
Alan Ladd looks too wimpy in his frilled top to look significant and Jean Arthur, normally one of my favourites is frankly too old and reserved to be a believable source of the sexual tension that appears between Marion and Shane in the book.A fine western; but it could have been a great one..
Alan Ladd had been one of my screen heroes ever since I had seen him in "This Gun for Hire" a few years earlier.I so idolized Ladd in his portrayal of Shane, the gunfighter, that I have seen the movie dozens of times since, and own a DVD of it.
The plot is more complicated than just that as a young boy also comes to idolise Ladd and the film has some very good scenes as Brandon De Wilde slyly keeps looking at Ladd at the dinner table and silently sneaks out to watch him fight.
How we long to see a sequel telling us more....and there is so much more we would like to know about the feelings between Shane and Marion, very subtle and understated, but frustrating for us, the silent voyeurs of these feelings.There are many classic scenes - Shane and Joe uprooting the stump, Shane proving that he is not a coward by turning the tables on Calloway, then Shane and Joe fighting the whole bunch with the same exhilaration and comradeship that they showed when fighting the tree stump.....the confrontation between the marvelous Jack Palance as Wilson, the gunfighter, and 'Stonewall' Torrey, the way the light changes, the day turning from sunshine to dark, a foreboding of what is to come as Torrey ends up on his back in the mud, gunned down mercilessly by the madly grinning Wilson....Then, that climactic and atmospheric night in the saloon, when Shane rides alone to face Wilson and Ryker......what a fantastic setting, the still saloon, the heartbeat drum gently, madly throbbing as the dog practically slithers across the floor, the atmosphere so dense and tense you can almost taste it......Shane and Ryker share that memorable dialogue that leads inevitably to the confrontation between Shane and Wilson, the same words of insult used by Wilson against Torrey being turned round and thrown in his face by Shane before the guns blast......Then that finale, almost shocking, draining in its intensity, as Shane rides off alone into the mountains, wounded and lost to the wilderness once more, as Joey cries out to him in vain, his voice echoing in the mountains as the figure of Shane rapidly vanishes into the dark forever.......As the years go by, the story, which was always gripping enough in any case, becomes more and more interesting, raising questions that can't be easily answered, which is one of the reasons why 'Shane' has outlasted other Western classics of their time such as 'High Noon'....the film is a source of constant inspiration......
The movie also has some great editing, that took over a year to complete and some good camera-work, when it comes down to its positions and close-up work.The main character Shane is perfectly portrayed by Alan Ladd, who has a kind though still tough looking appearance.
I have seen "Shane" at least 20 times over the last 35 years and still identify with those who think very highly of the movie.While I know that child actors can sometimes deliver their lines in a forced or self-conscious way, Brandon DeWilde's high-pitched voice does not annoy me, as it does a few people who disliked the movie, and though Alan Ladd may not exude much ruggedness, in my mind his mild-mannered but firm style allow him to more than adequately portray Shane himself.As for the movie's pace -- too slow for some viewers -- the weekly routine of homesteaders in the 1880's most likely included planting gardens, rebuilding fences, or traveling en masse to the general store.
For me, the awesome natural setting does more to enhance the film than would have any additional action, and the time taken to establish identities and personalities amongst the homesteaders and ranchers serves a fundamental purpose - to show that the residents of an isolated tiny settlement in NW Wyoming find that their uneventful lives have significantly changed after the arrival of a stranger on horseback.I have sometimes wondered if the viewers critical of Shane were born too recently to feel impressed by a film made so long ago, especially if they had had exceedingly high expectations beforehand because of having read or heard that they were about to see one of the best films of its genre, a classic.
Within this warm family environment Shane hopes to find redemption, but sometimes a man has to do what a mans got to do, and this leads us to the films crowning glory.Alan Ladd is Shane, wonderfully attired and playing the character with just about the right blend of gusto and tenderness, perhaps dangerously close to stiffening up at times, Ladd however nails it and gives the Western genre one of its ever lasting icons.
Van Heflin, Jean Arthur, and Brandon de Wilde play the Starrett family, all of whom come out with much credit, whilst Jack Palance leaves a lasting impression as the dark knight, deadly hired gun, Wilson.
Sometimes when one revisits the film it feels like it is the prototype Western, all the genre characters are so vividly evident, but it's a testament to director George Stevens and his crew that Shane holds up to the iconic status it has garnered.
Loyal Griggs won the best colour cinematography award at the 1953 Oscars, within three minutes of the opening credits he well and truly deserved it, as good an opening sequence as genre fans like me could wish for, and of course the rest of the fabulous Big Bear Lake location in California is sumptuously filmed.Both as a technical piece of work and as a shrewd story of some standing, Shane deserves every bit of praise that has come its way over the years, oh yes!.
each time i review the latest leaders in great movies, Shane keep sliding into the sunset, who in their right mind could possibly do this, this epic western has it all, landscape, acting, realism, set decorations, cinematography,sets, you name it, this one delivers it all, i find it so sad, that the younger people cannot appreciate a true classic, and keep supporting the cynical works of Tarentino, and The Coen boys, i guess my opinion does not matter, after all, i am well over 30, so what do i know eh?
Anyone who can sit unmoved through the final sequence where Shane rides off, alone and wounded, has to question the state of their own soul....and the final shoot-out between Shane and Wilson contains so many classic lines and scenes that it's difficult to see how any sensible person can add a negative comment to it - magical film-making in anyone's book (including Woody Allen's - asked by the New York Times to review his favourite film, he chose 'Shane').Alan Ladd was not perhaps everyone's choice as the enigmatic hero - even Jack Schaefer was not impressed at the casting - but the quality he brought to the role was, I think, the significant factor in the film's ultimate mystery.
Such were the evolutions of the aspirations of this movie and these moments, like a child changed by time and experience into the strange adult figure looking out of the mirror, that, in a sense, Shane `grew up' to become William Munney (another gunman trying to become a pig-farmer), finally truly accepting his credo that `A man has to be what he is, Joey.
The story is about a wanderer, named Shane, and played by Alan Ladd who happens upon a family led by Van Heflin and helps them defend their farm against an evil rancher named Ryker(this theme has definitely been repeated in other westerns that followed).
Alan Ladd is, of course, the man himself, very good indeed as the outsider in a settlers' community, finding himself drawn into the quintessential frontier quarrel between farmer and cowman.SHANE, as its story unfolds, accumulates emotional power, generated in no small measure from the emphasis on young Joey Starrett's point of view.
There are many such felicities in this film.The unspoken understanding between Ladd's Shane, Jean Arthur's Marian, and Van Heflin's Joe, is beautifully done - excellent writing, performing and directing.
"Shane" is many things - Here is my interpretation of what makes it so special - The mysterious Shane (Alan Ladd) comes to town and gets a job working for a family: The Husband (Van Heflin), The Wife (Jean Arthur), and The Son (Brandon de Wilde).
********** Shane (4/23/53) George Stevens ~ Alan Ladd, Brandon de Wilde, Jean Arthur, Van Heflin.
To me, it was simplistic in the extreme and, although Alan Ladd was one of my all-time favourite actors, he was MUCH better carrying a snub-nosed 38 than a Colt 45!...a cop or a noir-bad guy...yes, but a cowboy or a Mountie, afraid not!!I just couldn't buy him beating up Van Heflin, let alone taking out Jack Palance, and the wide-eyed admiration of all those sodbusters when little Alan came upon the scene reminded me of a bunch of pro-wrestling fans!!
Shane is a 1953 western film, directed by George Stevens and stars Alan Ladd as the titular hero, Shane as well as Jean Arthur, Van Heflin and Brandon DeWilde.
"Shane" ,like some other Stevens ' movies is torn between realism and western clichés.The farmers 'life is depicted in minute detail.Consequently the best scenes are these which deal with ordinary life:the dance is one of these perfect moments,ending with two children waltzing ...But the peak must be the funeral:a dog lays its paw on its master's coffin before it returns to the earth.All the farmers stand in the sunset and realize that they can all stand together and build a village with a church, a school....
George Stevens directed Alan Ladd as Shane, a drifter and retired gunfighter drawn into a conflict between a cattle baron and homesteaders, like the Starretts(played by Van Heflin, Jean Arthur, and Brandon Wilde as their son Joey) Shane is staying with the Starretts, and cannot sit idly by while they(and others) are being forced off their land, especially when a thug(played by Ben Johnson) and a notorious gunfighter(played by Jack Palance) start terrorizing and murdering...
Released in 1953, "Shane" is a Western starring Alan Ladd in the titular role as a laconic drifter who takes up residence as a farmhand with a family of homesteaders in a Wyoming valley.
Shane (Alan Ladd) and his friends can do no wrong and the open range ranchers can do no right.An apologist would be justified in pointing out that the film tepidly forces us into the subjective eyes of young Joey Starrett (Brandon De Wilde), who idolizes Shane to a degree that seems almost unhealthy by today's standards.There is really no stand-out performance here.
Director George Stevens' aestheticism is of another time, and while I respect it I can see what's wrong with it (too slow, too deliberate, too obvious, a tad more moralistic than most people these days are comfortable with).The plot is fairy tale simple: Shane, a mysterious stranger dressed in white arrives at the house of Starret, a pigheaded but basically decent rancher who, as things develop, is being set upon by an evil, greedy land-grabber named Ryker, who wants to gobble up the entire valley, and who is attempting to drive the small farmers and ranchers off their land.
It is this master's touch, along with iconic performances by Alan Ladd and Jack Palance, that gives "Shane" its enduring quality and merits viewing by modern audiences.The plot is simple, which is what works best in Westerns.
I think not , the story line of good over evil , the stunning scenery, the interplay between Ladd and Palance, a cameo by one of the finest action cowboys (Ben Johnson) and the fist fight with Shane were and still are in my opinion riveting.
In this film, Alan Ladd and Jack Palance  define for all time the white hat/black hat, good guy versus bad guy scenario which has become so cliche in lesser movies over the years.
Shane moves in with the Starrett family, Joe, Marian, and Joey, played by Van Heflin, Jean Arthur and Brandon De Wilde respectively.
The cast includes Van Heflin as Joe Starrett, Jean Arthur (in what is to be her final film appearance) plays his wife Marian and Brandon De Wilde as their little boy, Joey.
One of the finest of all westerns because of its characters, story, and settings, "Shane" is also Alan Ladd's finest performance.