There are movies with strong openings, those which grab one’s attention from the very first shot and never relinquish their grasp thereafter. Others are slow burners, seemingly leading viewers down drifting, meandering paths till they finds themselves inveigled into the story in spite of themselves. Then of course there are the uneven affairs, movies which could be said to suffer from an identity crisis, confidently striking out in one direction before abandoning that plan entirely and gradually transforming themselves in a wholly unexpected manner. Three Violent People (1957) falls into that latter category, the broad beginning flirts and teases then segues into a lengthy middle section that lacks energy, before hitting the home straight with renewed vigor and purpose.
Colt Saunders (Charlton Heston) returns to Texas after the Civil War with three basic aims: to get his sprawling ranch back on a paying basis, to keep the grasping Carpetbaggers at arm’s length, and to find a woman to settle down with and make his wife. A brief dust-up with some of the aforementioned Carpetbaggers leaves him with a sore head, empty pockets and the strong suspicion that he’s just been rolled by newly arrived Lorna Hunter (Anne Baxter). She is one of those ladies discreetly referred to as “saloon girls”, though with a polished line in patter that creates the illusion of refinement and gentility. Her plan is to hook the well-to-do Captain Saunders and worry about the consequences of his finding out about her real past later. Well, she manages the first in record time and, not long after setting up home on the Saunders ranch, that deception does indeed come back to haunt her. In the meantime, Saunders finds himself butting heads with the crooked representative of the provisional government (Bruce Bennett) and his chief enforcer (Forrest Tucker).
Three Violent People was written by James Edward Grant and it is a very inconsistent picture. The opening suggests we’re in for a relatively light confection and both Baxter and Heston play it accordingly at that stage. However, as soon as they are married and the action moves to the ranch, the tone alters radically, not least with the introduction of Heston’s one-armed brother (Tom Tryon). It morphs into something that borders on the Shakespearean; guilt, retribution and envy all jostle for position as honor, decorum and the weight of expectation gaze broodingly from out of the past, and quite literally down from the portraits hanging sternly above the hearth. The ingredients here are certainly tempting, strongly spiced by the complication provided by Baxter’s pregnancy, while the machinations of Bennett and Tucker act as a savory side dish. Still and all, the end result is a stodgy concoction, that overstuffed middle proving to be a little too rich. The last act saves it somewhat – a face-off timed by an upturned whiskey decanter, a brisk yet gratifying duel, and a wrap-up that blends vindication and personal growth.
Three Violent People wouldn’t rank as Charlton Heston’s best role in westerns, but he still does what he can with it. He had a knack for walking that line between pride and implacable priggishness. That emotional puritanism is given a good run-out here and collides headlong with the natural compassion that arises from the plight that Baxter finds herself facing. As he finds almost everyone turning against him, he starts to unbend emotionally and morally and manages to redeem himself in the end. Baxter is fine as the woman looking for a way out in life, taking the kind of rash decision that fits the feisty and mischievous woman we first encounter and then finding that she has the requisite steel within when her deception is dragged out into the light.
Tom Tryon, an actor I’ve never been that keen on excepting a good enough turn in Preminger’s In Harm’s Way, is much less effective as the maimed brother. His role is poorly defined, there is resentment there, as one would expect, and bitterness too. However, his demeanor is a little too glib and arch and it’s difficult to get a handle on his real motives. It doesn’t help either that his character’s disability looks hugely unconvincing – just like a man wearing a large and bulky sling under his shirt. Forrest Tucker is reliably mean as the hired gun, conniving and blustering in his characteristic style. One of the real standout performances, however, comes from Gilbert Roland as Heston’s foreman. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen Roland give a bad performance and his role in Three Violent People offers ample opportunity to display his unique style, that suave, man of the world wisdom and shrewdness. He brings a touch of grandness to the part, offering Heston’s stiff prude an object lesson in dignity and true honor in one of the key scenes late in the movie as he disdains a tainted toast following the birth of his employer’s child. It is a terrific moment and Heston’s stung and startled countenance as the man he has esteemed all his life excoriates his pompous moralizing is something to behold. It is his holding up of a mirror to Heston’s sanctimony that sets the character on the road to salvation. In support, Bruce Bennett is a bit colorless and lacks bite, while Jamie Farr (who I will always think of as Klinger from MASH) and the controversial and recently deceased Robert Blake both appear as sons of Gilbert Roland.
The movie was released on DVD by Paramount many years ago and the widescreen transfer looks acceptable, but maybe not a strong as some of the studio’s other titles do. Generally, I am fond of the films of Rudolph Maté, but Three Violent People is a weaker effort. It’s not a bad film, and I certainly hope I haven’t slated it here, but it is not all it might have been either. The writing needed to be tighter and some of the internal conflict lacks the punch it ought to have. This, in conjunction with some rather lackluster work from Tom Tryon in a pivotal role, diminishes the overall effect of the production.
Riding the High Country 
Colin
Jeepers man. Yet another duster that I have never seen. I know that am behind most, who frequent RTHC in titles seen, but this is becoming a tad ridiculous on my part. On the list it goes. Strange that I missed a R Mate film as I also like his work for the most part. Of course one of the main reasons for coming to RTHC is to discover new films. Keep them coming Colin!
Gordon
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Happy to draw your attention to something new to you.
Maté’s movies generally look good, which is hardly unexpected given his background as a cinematographer, but I thin his best directorial work was in the earlier part of his career. This is, as I say, an inconsistent film that comes home strong but I find the middle somewhat lumpy.
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Just watched western on you tube…1969 Five Bloody Graves. Richard Dix, Jim Davis, John Carradine. Well filmed, quite violent, downer of a finale. Ever heard of it?
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No, I had to look it up to be honest. After, say 1965 or 1966, my knowledge of westerns starts to get a little patchy, or less comprehensive at any rate.
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Colin, good write-up and explanation of this type of movie. Your first paragraph is a keeper, because it describes a lot of movies made over the years.
THREE VIOLENT PEOPLE(1956) isn’t a great Western Movie by any means, but I think it is a solid made melodrama. For viewers looking for an action-packed oater, this isn’t one until towards the end. This is a character driven movie with a good cast, which I think makes it worth viewing. I think Tom Tryon as Beauregard “Cinch” Saunders is quite good, especially in scenes with Anne Baxter as Lorna Saunders. Anne Baxter is good here and I think she is good in Westerns. Charlton Heston plays his role as Colt Saunders just as the part calls for, in my opinion. Gilbert Roland as Innocencio Ortega is a pleasure to watch, because he has such a memorable screen presence as well as being a good actor. I don’t want to give away too much, but in the end this Western melodrama is about forgiveness.
I probably like THREE VIOLENT PEOPLE more than you do, although I do like THE NAKED JUNGLE(filmed 1953, released 1954) much better. The two movies are similar in subject matter, by the way.
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Yes, it is a character driven piece, which is no bad thing in my view. I find Tryon is a weakness as his character ought to be more interesting than he makes him. Baxter is generally fine, as she tended be in most of her peak years. She had a good part and made the most of it. There are some thematic similarities to The Naked Jungle, which is a far stronger movie all round.
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I’ve seen THE NAKED JUNGLE at least a dozen times. I love it more each time I see it.
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I liked that movie from the very first moment I saw it. It’s perfectly cast and everything just gels.
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Dee, I also really like THE NAKED JUNGLE . I think if romantic melodrama disaster movies are to anyone’s taste, this is the one. Eleanor Parker is such a wonderfully talented and beautiful actress.
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It has been a while since I viewed “THREE VIOLENT PEOPLE” but I think I enjoyed the film a little more than you, Colin. It is a film that generally seems to draw rather negative reviews so I found I enjoyed it more than I perhaps expected to.
Considering his stature as a star it always amazes me how willing Heston was to play somewhat boorish and unsympathetic characters on many occasions. Not so in “WILL PENNY” though – far from it.
Gilbert Roland is another of those second-string lead actors that never failed to give a fine performance.
I really quite like the film but I find your review fair and just, Colin.
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Jerry, I think there are good things going on in the movie, but only sporadically and it doesn’t flow the way I’d like.
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Jerry, it appears that we feel pretty close to the same way about THREE VIOLENT PEOPLE. I would much rather watch this movie than most of the tripe that comes out today.
I really like Charlton Heston and he could carry on his shoulders the weight of an epic movie like no other actor. Although, he did as you write, “play somewhat boorish and unsympathetic characters on many occasions.” At the moment I’m thinking of the character Harry Steele in SECRET OF THE INCAS(filmed 1953, released 1954). Heston’s Harry Steele was an unlikeable rogue. I can understand why George Lucas and Philip Kaufman morphed the characters of Harry Steele and archeologist Dr, Stanley Moorehead(Robert Young) into one, as in their Indiana Jones(Harrison Ford).
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Walter, one of Heston’s most memorable ‘unsympathetic’ portrayals was in Charles Marquis Warren’s “ARROWHEAD”. But then he plays Ben Hur and the performance is sympathetic and powerful – indeed epic.
Quite an actor. And I believe Heston saw himself not as a ‘star’ but very much as an actor.
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I think that is probably the key to Heston’s willingness to take on consistently multi-faceted roles, and his refusal to shy away from the downright unpleasant ones at times. That calls for a dedication and commitment to one’s art as well as courage.
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Colin, I think that you hit the nail on the head concerning the acting career of Charlton Heston. He was proud to be an actor and proud of his profession.
Another, as Jerry says, sympathetic and powerful performance that I really like of Charlton Heston’s is THE WAR LORD(filmed 1964, released 1965). I think this movie is a top-notch spectacle of an action-packed love story set in Medieval Normandy. It’s so realistically done.
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Walter, I agree entirely about THE WAR LORD. This may have been the first epic to have a really gritty feel to it. And Heston is superb.
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Jerry, you are so right about ARROWHEAD(filmed 1952, released 1953). Charlton Heston portrays an Apache hating cavalry scout and Jack Palance portrays a Whiteman hating Apache. This movie written and directed by Charles Marquis Warren is a brutal Western for its time and shows racism on both sides. In other words, it is an anti-BROKEN ARROW(filmed 1949, released 1950) Western Movie.
Charlton Heston is one of the legendary stars, but he seemed to always view himself as a working actor. Well, he is a working actor who became a shining star.
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Walter, I watched SECRET OF THE INCAS a few days ago. I loved it. I like the fact that Heston was prepared to play characters who were not obviously sympathetic. He had a knack for making such men convincing and giving them some depth. Harry Steele was a rogue, but he was an honest rogue. He didn’t pretend to be anything but a rogue.
I found him perhaps less likeable than Indiana Jones, but more interesting and in some ways, perversely, more honest. Indiana Jones is a thief but he’s a thief with a veneer of respectability. He steals artefacts on behalf of respectable institutions like universities and museums. Harry Steele is a crook but he steals for money. There’s no hypocrisy about it.
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Dee, as we well know, George Lucas and Philip Kaufman wanted to make Indiana Jones more likable than Harry Steele. Yes, I also think Harry Steele was an honest rogue. I don’t want to give away the ending of the SECRET OF THE INCAS, but didn’t the ending seem somewhat forced, because of Steele’s characterization throughout the movie?
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Yes, I’m inclined to agree about the ending.
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Well observed, but personally, I do not like the Indiana Jones films nor Secret of The Incas, on the merits, not the character of the principal.
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Chuck made a few good Westerns didn’t he. Some are exceptional/Classics: Will Penny. The Big Country, Major Dundee … ? I can’t really recollect going back into the 50’s – though The Big Country was 1958 – so some of his early ones were likely pretty good as well. I truly wish I could catch these on TV sometimes, but unfortunately you really have to seek them out now if you want to watch them. A few can be located or even watched on YouTube however. Or at least you can find the Trailer/Preview to decide if it interests you or not.
Have a good one Colin.
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Pony Express is another western featuring Charlton Heston and Forrest Tucker from the 50s. I wasn’t all that taken with it when I first saw it but then I picked up a Blu-ray release of it from Germany (it’s coming out soon in the UK on BD too) and felt much better about it.
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That’s a good thought, Colin. My copy of “PONY EXPRESS” is off-air. I think it would be a good idea to get a BD of it and perhaps reassess the movie. It is seemingly not highly-regarded but I prefer to make up my own mind on such things. Thanks for the release info.
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Jerry, I think PONY EXPRESS(filmed 1952, released 1953) is an enjoyable movie. Yes, it is Historical hooey and I knew this as I first viewed the movie when it was first airing on the NBC TUESDAY NIGHT AT THE MOVIES in 1967. At that time, I’d read BUFFALO BILL, BOY OF THE PLAINS(1948) written by Augusta Stevenson as part of the FAMOUS CHILDHOODS OF FAMOUS AMERICANS series of books for juvenile readers. So, I knew the movie wasn’t anywhere near being factual. Although, as a Western Movie fan, I don’t require them to be documentaries.
PONY EXPRESS isn’t a great Western, but I think it has some good things going for it. It was filmed near Kanab, Utah and that is always a plus. Also, I really like Jan Sterling as Denny Russell a Calamity Jane type character. Sterling in this role is lively, determined, and with courage. Too me, this is the type of movie that you just sit back and enjoy for what it is.
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I’ve noticed before that although there’s no way to make a genuinely bad movie good, an improved presentation can help to raise my opinion of an average one. Anyway, it’s heartening to see films such as it getting a BD release in the UK.
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I find that occasionally a really perceptive audio commentary can cause me to revise my opinion of a movie, by offering me a different perspective. And occasionally an interview with a director can do the same thing. It can help to know exactly what was in the mind of the director.
But good audio commentaries are unfortunately rather rare.
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I need to get seriously into Heston’s westerns. I saw MAJOR DUNDEE many many years ago and I need to watch it again. And I haven’t seen WILL PENNY – I suppose it’s another movie I need to add to my shopping list.
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Major Dundee is very uneven, very good in places and desperately weak in others.
Will Penny is just wonderful.
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Dee, Colin never spoke a truer word – you should get to “WILL PENNY” as soon as possible. A western classic.
Walter, good to have your thoughts too on “PONY EXPRESS”. I very unexpectedly met Jan Sterling around the late 1970s at the National Film Theatre in London (where she was living). She was there to watch a 1938 British film, as I was. She was a most charming lady.
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Jerry, yes, you’ve mentioned meeting Jan Sterling before, over on Toby Roan’s site. She was with a group attending with Michael Redgrave. You told us that she was surprised to find herself chatting with someone who instantly knew who she was. Also, you talked about her late husband, actor Paul Douglas. I’m envious of you of getting to meet and visit with such a talented and beautiful actress.
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Walter, another beautiful actress I had the pleasure of meeting around the same time was Jennifer Holt, Tim’s sister. She also was living in London and was a very nice person.
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Jerry, this is really neat information, Thanks.
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You won’t be disappointed in Will Penny, Sir. It’s not a movie you’ll wish to watch every week, but definitely an excellent Western.
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Found my copy of THE NAKED JUNGLE, so later in the week it goes on the machine for a spin. Thanks people for the reminder.
Gordon
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You can’t go wrong with that movie, Gord. Enjoy the revisit.
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Fair review Colin, Heston carried quite a few B plus Westerns in his early roles and always managed to raise the material, here in UK we are lucky to see quite a lot of these 50’s westerns on TV Freeview channels, – The Savage, Arrowhead, Pony Express etc and recently this film. Also Forest Tucker seemed to single handed hold top spot for villains and heroes in so many of them
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Hi, Bruce. Yes, whenever I get back to Northern Ireland for a visit I’m usually pleasantly surprised by how many of those types of movies can be viewed on the Freesat service – it’s a real boon for old movie fans.
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Bruce, sounds like to me that you get to view a lot of good Westerns on your free to air satellite tv system. I’m envious,
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Neither B plus nor A minus, just a lousy picture.
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You are right Walter, mind you the weather lousy, but yes we have at least 5 channels that air plenty of old westerns as well as lots of great old noir, thrillers and war movies
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Film Noir Memorabilia
I found another box of Film Noir Memorabilia while at my storage unit last weekend. Anyone who missed out last year on a free package of goodies let me know. Six or seven of you good folks know what this stuff is. Free care package from me with myself paying for the postage and packaging. Just contact Colin with your mail info and he will then forward it. A few of you guys who received goodies already can comment on them. Again, it is all on me at no cost.
Cheers, Gordon
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Folks, Gordon has some rare and fascinating Film Noir memorabilia which he generously wishes to share. I have received some and recommend you make contact.
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I’ll second Jerry on Gordon’s neat Film Noir Memorabilia. I received some of it last year and enjoyed it. Thanks Gordon.
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I’ll third Jerry. I too received a package with great memorabilia. Thanks, Gordon. 🙂
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BTW, for anyone interested, Indicator have one of their sales on and it continues till the end of this month. There are some superb bargains to be had here.
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Yes indeed Colin-
But Indicator’s recent releases have puzzled me- just what market are they aiming for. Imprint Australia which in many cases are aiming for the same market seem to know just who they are aiming at. Imprint’s titles generally go OOP pretty quickly whereas Indicator’s titles languish until they have to sell them at giveaway prices-I mean 3 Blu Ray’s for £15 you really cannot beat that. I NEVER watch Westerns on UK TV they rarely show anything that’s not out on disc in far better quality as well. TPTV’s recent showings of VENGEANCE VALLEY and THE PROUD REBEL have been unwatchable and they keep showing CinemaScope
pictures as 4×3 as they did recently with SIERRA BARON ‘though I think that’s Fox’s fault not TPTV. TPTV’s showing of Columbia pictures fares much better A PRIZE OF GOLD looked beautiful and why has that never been given a DVD release-it’s not as if it lacks star power. I would only watch a Western on UKTV if they come up with something rare which is very unlikely. I note that TPTV are showing a Lone Wolf film nest week so I’ll be tuning in for that. I hope with their Columbia deal TPTV will also show some Boston Blackie’s and Crime Doctors. It’s with old Brit B Movies and Noir where TPTV score best. Film 4 is another major offender showing ropey old copies of films like AT GUNPOINT and DRAGOON WELLS MASSACRE which have no chance of getting a decent release on disc , sadly. They also tend to show old AC Lyles Westerns as 4×3 as opposed to 2.35 Techniscope….Ugh!
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You’re not alone in wondering exactly what market Indicator are targeting – there are some very attractive titles, from my perspective, mixed in with stuff I’d not even watch for free. I know here are those who will buy anything in order to complete collections from certain labels, but that kind of collector mindset must surely be restricted and it can’t be representative of the consumers in general.
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John K, we’ve got used to viewing movies, from back in the day, on DVD and Blu-ray, which makes it hard to go back and watch them on regular tv, especially if they’re not in the proper ratio.
You mention A PRIZE OF GOLD(filmed 1954, released 1955) being shown on TALKING PICTURES TV in a beautiful print. I also wonder why it hasn’t been given a good DVD or Blu-ray release. It’s a Warwick Film Production released through Columbia Pictures with an American Star in Richard Widmark. The movie has a good cast with Mai Zetterling, Nigel Patrick, George Cole, Donald Wolfit, and Eric Pohlmann. Irving Allen(Matt Helm movie series) and Albert R. “Cubby” Broccoli(James Bond movie series) as producers and Mark Robson directing. You would think that there would be some interest here to put that beautiful print out on DVD and Blu-ray.
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In addition to A Prize of Gold, another Warwick Films title I’d happily buy were it to be given a release is The Man Inside.
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Colin, THE MAN INSIDE(1958) has eluded me over the years, but I’ve viewed A PRIZE OF GOLD. If my memory serves me right, I finally caught up with it during the cable-tv explosion during the 1980’s. It was on Ted Turner’s SuperStation WTBS Channel 17 out of Atlanta, Georgia. I think the movie is a good thriller about a heist of Nazis gold during the Cold War years of the 1950’s. Ted Moore photographed it on location in West Germany. I recall getting a kick out of seeing Richard Widmark driving a three-wheeled Messerschmidt bubble car.
From what I’ve read about John Gilling’s THE MAN INSIDE I would like to see it. It has a good cast of Jack Palance, Anita Ekberg, Nigel Patrick, Bonar Colleano, Anthony Newley, Donald Pleasance, Sidney James, and Eric Pohlmann.
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If it’s written and directed by John Gilling it would go straight onto my shopping list. I’ve liked everything of his that I’ve seen so far.
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“THE MAN INSIDE” is another that is shown on our Talking Pictures TV channel. My memory of it is that it was a good yarn and as Dee says if it it was directed by John Gilling it’s a fairly sure-fire bet it will be a well-constructed and well-paced movie.
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BTW PONY EXPRESS is due out on Blu Ray from Signal One soon-I should imaging it’s from the same master as the German version Colin mentions which looks just fine. As Walter quiet rightly says the film is nonsense as history but as entertainment it’s a whole heap of fun plenty of gunplay and set pieces.
I feel “journeyman” director Rudy Mate fared better with Noir as opposed to Westerns although BRANDED is very good- his best IMHO. Unlike other “journeyman” directors of the 50’s (Joe Pevney, Jerry Hopper, Jesse Hibbs and Nathan Juran) Mate avoided
working in TV preferring to pick up work in Europe-as did Hugo Fregonese and Roy Rowland. TV provided plenty of work for these directors as their careers were winding down and the hour long TV episode was becoming the norm.
Mate’s last film was a disaster-certainly his worst a trifle called ALIKI. Film was meant to promote prolific Greek stage & screen actress Aliki Vougiouklaki (try saying that after a few beers) and was not even in colour Aliki’s leading man was Jess Conrad….need I say more. The profile of ALIKI was so low it has it’s UK premiere at the Rex East Finchley, the local flea pit! (now the ultra trendy Pheonix Cinema.) I only saw the darned thing at the time because the support picture was WINCHESTER’73. Aliki (the actress not the film) went on to fortune and fame and even garnered rave reviews for her stage work from none other than Sir Larry! No doubt Mr Mate was well paid for this trifle and had a lovely holiday in the Greek sunshine to boot.
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Aliki Vougiouklaki was a huge star in Greece, on screen and in the theatre, her films playing regularly on TV here. I’ve seen many f them over the years, but I don’t think I’ve caught Aliki for some reason.
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I fully agree with you, John, about the ghastly prints of films like “THE OREGON TRAIL”, “THE CANADIANS” along with those you mentioned. I was checking my off-air (Channel 4) copy of “AT GUNPOINT” which showed the lead actor’s name as ‘red MacMurra’ and the opening scene of Skip Homeier talking to John Pickard either side of a room but both out of sight! I have though acquired a very decent wide screen print from our good friend Jonathan at Hollywood Scrapheap. Very pleased with it. His restoration of “RIDE THE MAN DOWN” is a revelation!
My report of the latter release elicited no interest so I assume that to be because they would not be considered ‘official’ releases. But these have been among my most important additions of this (or any) year.
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Thanks for the reminder on those, Jerry. I’ll have to look into acquiring copies of At Gunpoint and Ride the Man Down.
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Jerry-
I think HOLLYWOOD SCRAPHEAP provide
a great service to collectors especially when
the licence holders have no interest in releasing
these films.
Long may Jonathan continue.
I’d love him to have a crack at some of those early
George Montgomery Fox pictures which are impossible
to track down like LAST OF THE DOUANES; RIDERS
OF THE PURPLE SAGE and non Western titles like
CHARTER PILOT among others.
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Me too, John.
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Unlike many, I am not one to replace all my DVDs with BluRays (the famous ‘double dipping’) but I was particularly struck by the strong voices on here for the BluRay of “THE NAKED SPUR” when it came out. Put off by the incredibly (to me) high prices being asked for it generally I have now found a copy at half those prices and jumped at it! On its way as I write so many thanks to folks whose opinions I value.
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Believe me, Jerry, it’s worth the upgrade and you will enjoy it.
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Your opinion was the clincher, Colin.
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I’ll upgrade to Blu-Ray if my DVD copy of a movie is seriously unsatisfactory, if for example it’s in the incorrect aspect ratio or it’s an early generation DVD and it’s a really lousy transfer. And I’ll upgrade if the Blu-Ray offers a more complete uncut print. But if my DVD copy is quite satisfactory I won’t upgrade just for the sake of upgrading.
In a few cases I did upgrade and then found that the Blu-Ray offered no significant improvement over my existing DVD.
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That’s exactly my own stance on the reasoning, Dee (except for this one instance).
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Personally, I have no blanket rule and just approach on a case by case basis. My feelings about the quality of what I already own, how much a given title means to me or how often I’m likely to return to it, and of course the cost all come into play.
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Agreed, any output from John Gilling was good. If you do not have high expectations, The Man Inside was entertaining.
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There is a copy up on YouTube but the quality is not all it might be.
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Not a great movie, but an enjoyable one.–and a great review, too. 🙂
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Thank you!
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