Prince of Players (1955)
The synopsis of The Hanging Tree isn’t exactly accurate. It’s supposed to be about a doctor who saves a man from a hanging, then cruelly controls him out of blackmail. While Gary Cooper does play a doctor who shelters a thief, Ben Piazza, before an angry mob can find him and lynch him, he doesn’t exactly manipulate him. He does tell him to work off his debt of medical bills by acting as his manservant, but that seems reasonable, doesn’t it? And while he does pretend to blackmail him, he throws the evidence against Ben away, showing he never has any intention to follow through. Ben is the real villain in the story, starting off with as a thief and continuing with a major attitude problem who isn’t grateful to the man who saved his life.
The other villain is Karl Malden, a man working a gold claim in the territory. He’s woman-obsessed, and when Maria Schell is found close to death after a stagecoach attack, the writing’s on the wall that someday, he’ll try to collect on the favor of rescuing her. This movie’s filmed in Technicolor, so you get to see Karl’s piercing blue eyes, but it’s not a great part. If you like seeing his talent, skip this one since it seems determined to waste it. Gary Cooper’s normal unemotional delivery detracts enough from the story, but Maria Schell’s accent is so thick, I might have understood ten words she said in the entire film. Also, whatever she was trying to put across with her expressions didn’t work for me; I found her “innocence” incredibly insincere when I wasn’t supposed to. If you do decide to rent this far from compelling western, keep your eyes open for George C. Scott in his film debut, who plays a religious fanatic for about five minutes. The only aspect of the movie I really loved was the scenery. Filmed in Washington, the trees and mountains were absolutely breathtaking.
Want to watch it? Click here to watch it on ok.ru. And thanks "Classic Movies Kristine Rose" for posting!
More Gary Cooper movies here!
More George C. Scott movies here!
The other villain is Karl Malden, a man working a gold claim in the territory. He’s woman-obsessed, and when Maria Schell is found close to death after a stagecoach attack, the writing’s on the wall that someday, he’ll try to collect on the favor of rescuing her. This movie’s filmed in Technicolor, so you get to see Karl’s piercing blue eyes, but it’s not a great part. If you like seeing his talent, skip this one since it seems determined to waste it. Gary Cooper’s normal unemotional delivery detracts enough from the story, but Maria Schell’s accent is so thick, I might have understood ten words she said in the entire film. Also, whatever she was trying to put across with her expressions didn’t work for me; I found her “innocence” incredibly insincere when I wasn’t supposed to. If you do decide to rent this far from compelling western, keep your eyes open for George C. Scott in his film debut, who plays a religious fanatic for about five minutes. The only aspect of the movie I really loved was the scenery. Filmed in Washington, the trees and mountains were absolutely breathtaking.
Want to watch it? Click here to watch it on ok.ru. And thanks "Classic Movies Kristine Rose" for posting!
More Gary Cooper movies here!
More George C. Scott movies here!