Memorable, crazy movie

best movie i've ever seen.

Admirable film.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Audie Leon Murphy established himself as a real life icon and role model for his fans throughout his twenty years of movie making. During that long film career Audie was never seen as a Black Hat heavy. Although he did accept a couple of Bad Guy roles which took him awful close. This is one of them, it's called " No name on the bullet. " The unusual movie tells the story of John Gant, (Audie Murphy) a hired professional gunman who rides into a typical western town Cir, 1880 with the expectation of eliminating someone. When he arrives, a score of nervous, conscience driven townspeople immediately suspect that Gant is there to murder them. The original story was written by Howard Amacker and directed by Jack Arnold and is the kind of vehicle which because of it's somber direction added to the legendary mystic of former soldier Lt. Murphy. In addition the superb casting which includes Charles Drake, Luke Canfield, Warren Stevens, R.G. Armstrong and Edgar Stehli as Judge Benson highlights this exceptional movie as a true western Classic. To the delight of his many fans. ****

OK...nobody is going to be able to compare Audie Murphy's acting with Olivier, but he effectively underplays this role, and seems to relish being the "villain" of the piece. His gamut of emotions, here, range from a sneer to a smirk, and that is all he needs for this film. The rest of the "B" list cast does an adequate job in framing this tale of morality. Similar films include Bad Day at Black Rock, High Plains Drifter, and High Noon, where the moral character of the Townfolk are called into question. I feel that No Name On the Bullet is more effective that the "A"-listers mentioned, because any damage done to the town and it's people are, essentially, completely self inflicted due to guilt or suspicion. Audie initiates none of the action, and while he philosophizes about the townsfolk's foibles, he is above even judging them. His mere presence starts the chains of events, as one's conscience might move a guilty one to action.This story was done as a "B" western, by people who did "B" westerns, but, could work in many other settings, and is interesting from start until the final credits roll.

In No Name on the Bulllet, Audie Murphy got to star in one of the most unusual and best westerns in his career when he was cast in this off beat tale of a hired killer. As John Gant, Audie reverses type and becomes a coldblooded, yet very philosophical hired killer.His modus operandi is simple. He gets hired by someone to do someone else in and he goes to wherever his target is, baits him into a fight and then shoots him dead. It's pretty well known in the west that's how he operates.So Murphy arrives in a particular town, everyone knows he's there to see that someone dies. The town grows crazy with panic and speculation as to who his target might be.It's a nice original concept for a western and the credit has to go to scriptwriter Gene L. Coon who all Star Trek fans remember as the writer on the original series. Some of the townspeople are blacksmith R.G. Armstrong, doctor Charles Drake, banker Whit Bissell, mine owner Karl Swenson, judge Edgar Stehli, bartender Charles Watts, and store clerk Warren Stevens. Just who has Audie come to dispatch. All of these players fill out the roles of the panic stricken townspeople very well indeed. But it is Murphy's film and one of the best westerns ever done and I believe his personal best.

"No Name on the Bullet" is just such a great title for a Western; it conjures up so many images of gun fights, shoot outs and showdowns. I enjoyed the film with one reservation - I just can't get used to the idea of Audie Murphy portraying a heel. For me, it just doesn't work, just as Roy Rogers wouldn't have worked as the lead character. A baby face on the lead villain doesn't create the tension needed in a psychological Western.That aside, the film works on it's premise - a hired gunman rides into town on a mission with a reputation that precedes him. His method is always the same, stay awhile, get the lay of the land, and let the town's nervous citizens take themselves and each other apart until the day of reckoning.Fine performances are turned in by Willis Bouchey as Sheriff Buck Hastings, and Charles Drake as Dr. Luke Canfield who befriends gunslinger John Gant (Murphy) before he realizes who he is. As his contact with Gant is entirely amiable, including a game of chess, Canfield has a tough time acknowledging Gant's reputation as a cold hearted killer.Gant plays his cards close and observes, as if waiting for the town to take out his intended victim for him. Along the way, crooked banker Pierce (Whit Bissel) commits suicide, and cowhand Ben Chafee (John Alderson) forces a confrontation with Pierce's partner Stricker (Karl Swenson). The finale allows Gant to dole out his own brand of justice without firing a shot, yet know that his career is over as he heads into sundown, the victim of a healer with a hammer.