Tonight's Western was from my recently acquired Randolph Scott collection of six films but before I give you the title, could you oblige me by joining in on a chorus of "RAN-daugh-holf Scottt"! from the legendary scene in "Blazing Saddles"? The link is provided below, just copy and paste it, watch the video, and sing along at the end. Thanks.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVGFGmoltDs
Okay, now that we have paid homage, I can reveal the film's title : "Hangman's Knot" (1952). In it, Scott plays a Confederate captain heading up a small group of soldiers on a secret mission way out in Nevada, to hijack a stagecoach that will be carrying a quarter million dollars in gold. Scott and his men are dressed in civilian clothes so that if they are captured, the Union will assume they are simple bandits. The movie starts out with a bang as the gang are hiding out in the highly-recognizable Alabama Hills (in Lone Pine, California, standing in for Nevada). I make a quick aside to remind you that I find the Alabama Hills to be a fascinating place and want to make a drive there when I am able).
Scott and his men set charges of dynamite into the ground along the stage route, and mark those settings with mirrors reflecting the sun. When the gold-laden stagecoach arrives, they shoot at the mirrors, discharging the explosives, disabling the stage and killing most of it's crew. They bag up the gold and prepare to ride off, back to the South, where they will complete their mission by giving the gold to the Confederate cause.
But as they are getting ready to leave, a dying stagecoach driver tells them something they were unaware of : The Civil War has ended, a month ago in fact. Their side has lost. There is no more Confederacy, and because they blew up the stage after the war's end, they could be technically charged with murder by a Union military court.
All of this sets up the usual One Hell Of A Plot In Which A Ton Of Stuff Happens In Only 81 Minutes (81 in this case; sometimes it's 66 minutes, sometimes 72, and you get the idea).
The now-illegitimate gang - for their cause is no longer protected by the rules of war - is set upon by a larger group of gold-greedy drifters, all armed and on horseback. Scott and his men retreat into the bunkerlike enclosure of a nearby way station, and it is there that most of the movie plays out as they try to fend off the ruthless band of gunmen who have them trapped.
Also inside the way station is the beautiful Donna Reed, a passenger on the stage that was robbed. She starts out as a hostage of Scott and his men, but things turn out differently in the end as you might imagine.
So there you have it, an above average B-Western with a hostage drama plot rather than the usual cowboys and Indians, and extra characters that I have neglected to mention but who each contribute to the conflict with their own small self-interests. Filmed in glorious Technicolor, the only color a Western should ever be filmed in when a director's choice is not black and white.
Two Thumbs Up for "Hangman's Knot", then, with extra points for the Alabama Hills. ////
Elizabeth, I see that you are headed back home now, and probably are in Madison as I write. It sounds like you had a great time in Washington, and I am glad you got to see some more of the Smithsonian, as evidenced by your FB post of the beautiful jeweled necklaces. I wonder who they belonged to or what the reference was? Also, was perchance one of the necklaces attached to the Hope Diamond? Just curious......:)
Most importantly, I hope and trust that "Elemental" was well recieved, and you should let it settle in that your film has now been a part of several festivals across the country.
Not too shabby, I think. :)
That's all I know for tonight. See you in the morning. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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