An Iconic Western With Sociopolitical Implications
A newspaper headline like "High Noon for the Mayor" indicates that the accompanying story will be about the mayor facing a moment of reckoning. The reference is, of course, to the 1952 film High Noon, a working knowledge of which has become part of cultural literacy. The hero in the movie is a frontier marshal (Gary Cooper in an Oscar-winning performance) in "a dirty little village in the middle of nowhere" in the Old West.
In the film, everything takes place on the day the marshal marries a classy-looking Quaker (Grace Kelly in her first major role). It quickly emerges that the marshal's former lover was an attractive Mexican businesswoman (Katy Jurado). It's interesting that he prefers the icy blonde to the more likable Latina, but in any case, the movie gives us two memorable female characters.
Fred Zinnemann directed High Noon, giving it a stark, newsreel-like look. There's no beautiful scenery and little action until the climactic shootout. Structured as a thriller, the film is 85 minutes long, but tells a story that spans about 105 minutes. For a theme song, the movie has an unforgettable melancholy ballad, "Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin'," sung by Tex Ritter.
High Noon is a compelling, suspenseful drama from beginning to end, but much of its enduring appeal comes from being a morality tale that is tricky to interpret. The marshal is a courageous man who is devoted to doing his duty, but the townspeople are cowardly and unwilling to stand up for what is right. The thoughtful viewer is led to contemplate issues of individualism and community.
A Thought-Provoking Documentary That Analyzes the Feature Film
The 2-Disc Ultimate Collector's Edition of High Noon provides a superb 50-minute 2006 documentary titled "Inside High Noon." This documentary brings together fact and opinion that can help the interested viewer better appreciate the movie. Although considered a classic today, when initially released it was negatively reviewed by some distinguished critics, including Andrew Sarris, Manny Farber and François Truffaut.
In some ways, High Noon is not so much a Western as it is a Stanley Kramer social problem film. One of the academics in the documentary identifies that problem as "civic complacency." He observes that the movie presents "a very cynical view of human nature." As viewers, we understand when Katy Jurado's character says, "I hate this town."
But the film is not only about the townspeople, it's also about the marshal, and former President Bill Clinton is shown stating the movie reminds him that "courage is not the absence of fear, it is perseverance in the face of fear." Yet, the documentary quotes filmmaker Howard Hawks as calling the marshal "unprofessional." One of the scholars says Hawks later made Rio Bravo starring John Wayne to "correct" the image of the Western hero left by High Noon.
The documentary helps us get historical perspective by noting that at the time High Noon was made, the Cold War, Joseph McCarthy and the Hollywood Blacklist loomed large on the American political landscape. Screenwriter Carl Foreman was blacklisted, and cinematographer Floyd Crosby and actor Lloyd Bridges (played the deputy marshal) couldn't get studio work for years.
Additional DVD Bonus Materials
The DVD contains the 22-minute "The Making of High Noon" (2002) hosted by Leonard Maltin. This is fairly entertaining and offers the chance to hear from producer Stanley Kramer and director Fred Zinnemann. We also learn that the movie was mostly shot on the Columbia back lot in Burbank, although some parts were filmed up in California Gold Rush country.
Also on the DVD are three short extras about Tex Ritter, who sings the High Noon theme song, and all are reasonably interesting. There's a visit to the Tex Ritter Museum in Texas, a radio interview with the singer and a TV performance of the song by Ritter with a big studio orchestra behind him.
Another bonus material is the 10-minute "Behind High Noon" (2002), but this is of little or no interest since the good material in it is duplicated in "Inside High Noon," the documentary described earlier.
Finally, there is a feature-length audio commentary, but it is a candidate for the least worthwhile ever recorded for a great movie. The commentary consists mostly of chitchat between Gary Cooper's daughter and Carl Foreman's son. Occasionally the voices of Fred Zinnemann's son and Tex Ritter's son are heard. Once in a while something worth hearing is said, but the information is generally available elsewhere on the DVD set.
DVD Details
Below I've listed the details for the High Noon 2-Disc Ultimate Collector's Edition DVD set.
Release Date: June 10, 2008
Number of Discs: 2
Disc One:
Feature Film (1 Hour 25 Minutes)
Widescreen (1.33:1), Black & White
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Original Restored Audio (Dolby Digital)
Enhanced Original Restored Audio (Dolby Digital)
English Closed Captioned
English Subtitles
Spanish Subtitles
Audio Commentary by Four Offspring of the Men Who Made the Film
Disc Two:
Inside High Noon (50 min.)
Behind High Noon (10 min.)
The Making of High Noon (22 min.)
Tex Ritter: A Visit to Carthage, Texas (6 min.)
Tex Ritter Performs "Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin'" on TV (3 min.)
Radio Interview of Tex Ritter (5 1/2 min.)
