High Noon

High Noon is a 1952 American Western film produced by Stanley Kramer from a screenplay by Carl Foreman, directed by Fred Zinnemann, and starring Gary Cooper. The plot, depicted in real time, centers on a town marshal who is torn between his sense of duty and his love for his new bride and who must face a gang of killers alone.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) The film revolutionized the western film genre, and is rather unique among the entries. Rather than use the usual black and white morality used in the genre, this film has various shades of grey morality throughout the entire cast. It also doesn't contain chases, Indian attacks or a siege on the jail, but has them replaced by sermons, moralizing and a sort of shorthand symbolism. This makes the film one of -- if not the -- most respected of the socially conscious Westerns that appeared after World War II.
 * 2) Gary Cooper pulls off an excellent and emotional performance as Marshal Will Kane. Also, Will Kane's a relatable and noble hero with an honor code who wants to fight for his town, even after his time as marshal is up.
 * 3) * Grace Kelly had previously been in an off-Broadway play, which landed her a role as Will's fiancee-turned-wife Amy Kane
 * 4) * Katy Jurado had been a star in Mexican cinema for years, but this was her first major Hollywood part. Here she plays local saloon owner Helen Ramirez who's a very strong female character.
 * 5) * Lloyd Bridges is convincing as Will's former deputy Harvey Pell
 * 6) Memorable and well-written characters throughout a lot of the film. Aside from Marshall Will Kane, there's also his former deputy Harvey Pell, and Helen Ramirez who as previously mentioned is a female character ahead of her time for Hollywood.
 * 7) Despite shooting on a confined set with a small budget of only $750,000, it helped him when it was time to work on what he called a "jigsaw puzzle picture", like this film and some of his other films.
 * 8) There was also a washed-out "documentary" look for the film
 * 9) The film is around 85 minutes long, and is tightly-compressed with the film's events taking place around 105 minutes; almost the exact the length of the actual film
 * 10) The film was driven by three major themes: the looming threat to the retiring sheriff Will Kane, symbolized by a static shot of empty railroad tracks; a victim searching for help, in constant movement but finding no one; and time shown in a succession of clocks and timepieces that gradually grow larger in the frame.
 * 11) The film's central song, "Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin" was well put together, and it encapsulates the strengths and weaknesses of the film (more on that in "Bad Qualities"). Both the song and film are piously simple and restrained, both remarkably fulfill the demands of their genres, but they also deliver blunt, artificial "messages".
 * 12) The film poster's tagline, describes our main hero's theme who stubbornly willingly delayed his newly-married life with his pacifist Quaker wife in order to stay and confront his former nemesis: The story of a man who was too proud to run!

Bad Qualities

 * 1) Although Gary Cooper had won an Oscar for his portrayal in the film, he was capable of far more nuanced acting. Plus his moral choices in this film aren't quite as challenging or satisfying as in one of his later films.
 * 2) Frank Miller, the film's central villain, is a pretty forgettable antagonist who barely gets any screen-time or depth for why or how he became Kane's enemy.