BT1886

Day of the Outlaw

My second André de Tothfilm (my first being the Randolph Scott led Man in the Saddle),Day of the Outlawis a surprisingly somber story dealing with the idea of community and morality. Starring Robert Ryanas Blaise Starrett, a tough-as-nails cowboy at odds with the ranchers in the small town Bitters regarding them putting up a barbed wire fence (though it’s very much implied this is just a lie, as he is in love with Helen Crane, one of the rancher’s wife, and that is the reason for his stubbornness), and Burl Ives as Jack Bruhn, a former army man turned outlaw leader, in roles that are very much against type for both of them. Set against the unforgiving backdrop of a snow-covered town, the cinematography from Russell Harlan (To Kill a Mockingbird) is stark and moody and does so much to heighten the darker tones. The theme of survival takes center stage, as it usually does with these snowy westerns, but a big focus here is also the nuanced (well, as nuanced as a film from 1959 can be) exploration of human nature, especially under extreme circumstances. Another film this reminded me of was Sergio Corbucci’s The Great Silence, though that one is objectively a much darker revisionist western. I also couldn’t help but fan-cast Stephen Rootas Bruhn and Alden Ehrenreichas Gene in my head. Do with that information what you will. André de Tothis now 2 for 2 in my book, and I, for one, am pretty dead set on exploring more of his films. I love me a good western, man. ⏵ COLLAB FILM CLUB RANKED (https://boxd.it/ggvO4)