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Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Thomas Mitchell, Lloyd Bridges, Katy Jurado ... see more see more... , Otto Kruger , Lon Chaney Jr , Henry Morgan , Ian MacDonald , Eve McVeagh , Morgan Farley , Harry Shannon , Lee Van Cleef , Robert J. Wilke , Sheb Wooley , Tom London , Ted Stanhope , Larry J. Blake , Jeanne Blackford , James Millican , Cliff Clark , Ralph Reed , Lucien Prival , Guy Beach , Howland Chamberlain , Virginia Christine , Jack Elam , Paul Dubov , Tim Graham , Nolan Leary , Tom Greenway , Dick Elliott , John Doucette , Virginia Farmer , Harry Harvey , William Newell , William 'Bill' Phillips

This Western classic stars Gary Cooper as Hadleyville marshal Will Kane, about to retire from office and go on his honeymoon with his new Quaker bride, Amy (Grace Kelly). But his happiness is short-li... read more read more...ved when he is informed that the Miller gang, whose leader (Ian McDonald) Will had arrested, is due on the 12:00 train. Pacifist Amy urges Will to leave town and forget about the Millers, but this isn't his style; protecting Hadleyburg has always been his duty, and it remains so now. But when he asks for deputies to fend off the Millers, virtually nobody will stand by him. Chief Deputy Harvey Pell (Lloyd Bridges) covets Will's job and ex-mistress (Katy Jurado); his mentor, former lawman Martin Howe (Lon Chaney Jr.) is now arthritic and unable to wield a gun. Even Amy, who doesn't want to be around for her husband's apparently certain demise, deserts him. Meanwhile, the clocks tick off the minutes to High Noon -- the film is shot in "real time," so that its 85-minute length corresponds to the story's actual timeframe. Utterly alone, Kane walks into the center of town, steeling himself for his showdown with the murderous Millers. Considered a landmark of the "adult western," High Noon won four Academy Awards (including Best Actor for Cooper) and Best Song for the hit, "Do Not Forsake Me, O My Darling" sung by Tex Ritter. The screenplay was written by Carl Foreman, whose blacklisting was temporarily prevented by star Cooper, one of Hollywood's most virulent anti-Communists. John Wayne, another notable showbiz right-winger and Western hero, was so appalled at the notion that a Western marshal would beg for help in a showdown that he and director Howard Hawks "answered" High Noon with Rio Bravo (1959). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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87% liked it

23,601 ratings

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96% liked it

47 critics

PG, 1 hr. 25 min.

Directed by: Fred Zinnemann

Release Date: July 24, 1952

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DVD Release Date: October 23, 2001

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Stats: 1,612 reviews

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High Noon Grace Kelly in High Noon High Noon Grace Kely and Katy Jurado Gary Cooper in High Noon High Noon (Stanley Kramer/UA, 1952) High Noon
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Flixster Reviews (1,612)

  • fb1442511448
    April 11, 2013
    fb1442511448
    In an era of flamboyant and charismatic westerns, High Noon takes a turn in a somewhat darker direction. The film does a remarkable effort to highlight the suspenseful moments before it dwindles down to the climatic showdown. The music and score also plays well to reflect the pri... read morede-filled moments. Finally, the film is epitomized by the Oscar-winning performance by the resilient Gary Cooper. High Noon is a new direction in westerns that changed the face of the genre and film in the years ahead. 4/5
  • cosmo313
    March 4, 2012
    cosmo313
    John Wayne once called this the most Un-American film he'd ever seen because he didn't like it's subtext which was very critical of McCarthyism and red-baiting during the Red Scare. Looking at the film now, yes, you can still see shades of that social commentary, but its impact h... read moreas waned some over the years. However, it is still nevertheless an absolutely fantastic story of one man standing up against unfavorable odds while no one else will stand alongside him.

    What makes it even more great is the fact that somehow the film manages to keep the tension at a very high boil all the way through up to and including it's suspenseful climactic showdown. Also, it does all this, gets the point across, and has it all wrapped up in just under 90 minutes, but still provides wonderfully written and developed chasracters. Bravo.

    Marshal Will Kane is on the verge of retiring from his position as head lawman in the town of Hadleyville. Just minutes after getting married to his Quaker bride Amy, his packing for his honeymoon is interrupted when news gets out that a man he put away back in the past has just been released, and is on his way to Hadleyville to rendezvous with three of his henchmen to get his vengeance on Will.

    Faced with some tough decisions about how to deal with all of this and decide which direction his life should take, Will finds himself all alone as everyoen he turns to ends up being cowardly and unwilling to help him out in what could very well be his most dire time of need.

    All in all, this is a superb western. It's wonderfully written, unbelievably taut and gripping all the way through, and not onyl does it feature Grace Kelly's first major role, it also is the film debut of a young Lee Van Cleef. Gary Cooper is great in the lead, and there's some nice work from Lloyd Bridges and Lon Chaney Jr. as well.

    WIth some good music, excellent, cinematography, and fairly sharp direction, this routine story is brought to life and made fresh and memorable. It's a bummer the subtext has lost some of its impact over time, but I do applaud it for being something risky at a time when being critical of the Red Scare was something to tread lightly around.

    Definitely give this one a watch. It's one of the top westerns ever, and just one heck of a memorable ride.
  • blkbomb
    February 26, 2012
    blkbomb
    Amy: Don't try to be a hero! You don't have to be a hero, not for me! 

    "Simple. Powerful. Unforgettable."

    Whenever the best films of the western genre are discussed High Noon is always at the top of the list. It's as influential as any movie in the genre, and it's plot has been... read more used many times since. It's a movie that isn't long and doesn't have much action. It's all build. We watch as a marshall desperately tries to get some support from his fellow townspeople, but as he continues to try we see, it's just not going to happen.

    A Marshall must postpone leaving his town with his new wife, when he finds out a gang of killers are going to return. He is alone in his fight though as some of the townspeople are friends of the killer, some are too afraid of the killer, and some are just unwilling to help. 

    I can see why a lot of people love High Noon. It is a great exhibition of the power of building a story to a final shootout. It's undoubtedly a genre staple and a classic film in general. I just can't help feeling like it isn't as great as I had heard. Maybe my expectations were too high, but I didn't love this film like I though I would. I enjoyed it, I liked it. I just didn't love it.

    This is far from perfect in my opinion, but still well worth the watch, especially if you are a fan of the genre. Plus it has Grace Kelly, so it is sort of a must watch.
  • fb100001048934982
    July 6, 2011
    fb100001048934982
    'High Noon' deserves certain praise for the legacy it beholds and the story it tells. The performances may be overrated because all Cooper has to do is look weary and nervous. However, 'High Noon' still stands as a taut, enduring western. One that will be modeled after in years t... read moreo come.
  • fb100001581602053
    April 1, 2011
    fb100001581602053
    Meh. It may be considered a classic, but High Noon's film strips are just John Ford's toilet paper.
  • ajv2688
    November 7, 2010
    ajv2688
    My favourite western, I usually hate westerns, but this movie has a more film noir type story, and a great cast too. Whether or not you like westerns, I recommend this movie.
  • ythelastman89
    June 25, 2010
    ythelastman89
    What it might lack in performances, it makes up in ridiculously cool style. This has one of my favorite openings ever, Lee Van Cleef playing a harmonica and the perfect theme song. The story is quite simple, but the message is what really makes it powerful. One man against evil i... read mores never more prominent and the result is just so suspenseful. Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly are good leads even if they don't have that much room to show off. It's not anything like you're used to while watching a western, truly original.
  • MeetMeinMontauk
    May 29, 2010
    MeetMeinMontauk
    I had to watch this for a History of Cinema class. But I actually kinda liked it. We used it to study the three act structure. But I liked the story and I LOVE Grace Kelly. Again, I don't like 90% of westerns, but this has made it into that slim 10%.
    Awesome.
  • sononothing
    March 26, 2010
    sononothing
    A Hollywood rebuttal to the Communist witch hunts of the era, High Noon is a real time tale about recently wed, retiring Marshall Will Kane (Gary Cooper) who feels that he has to stay when he learns that a man he put away to hang has been released and is returning to town. The p... read moreroblem is that, unlike other westerns of the era, the townspeople and even his deputies refuse to help him fight off the threat. He's going to have to do it alone.

    High Noon was really a revolutionary film for its time, particularly in the way that it depicted the town as being either A) scared or B) indifferent. The judges runs away. The deputy (a great performance by Lloyd Bridges) bargains his help for support in being the new Marshall. The mayor is worried about how a gun fight will affect the towns economy. All in all, this is probably the most realistic western of its era.

    The greatest of High Noon lies with Gary Cooper. Will Kane is not John Wayne moseying into a gunfight, ready to raise hell at a moments notice. As the clock ticks away, Cooper puts more and more worry on his face making Kane a more sympathetic character. This is a film that isn't afraid to show the humanity of its hero. You're basically watching a man take the long walk to the executioner, with no one watching his back. Along with Cooper, we also get a great performance from Grace Kelly as Kane's new bride. She's a woman that can't understand why Will Kane feels the need to fight this battle when he doesn't have to.

    And that's basically the theme of the film. A man that fights when he doesn't have to do it. When you really look at it, High Noon represents the seeds of the western that Sergio Leone would craft with Clint Eastwood being a hero even when he was a rogue and didn't have to do it. In a way, Clint Eastwood is the heir to Gary Cooper. A chiseled individual that represents what is right, not what the law happens to be.

    High Noon is one of those great American westerns that;s head and shoulders over the typical fare of the era, letting a little social commentary slip thru along the way. A true classic film.
  • FireStormStudios
    August 6, 2009
    FireStormStudios
    This was a really good all round western. I?m not sure if I have ever seen a movie that built up so much suspense, right from the beginning until the very end. It didn?t disappoint.

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Critic Reviews

July 26, 2011
TIME Magazine

High Noon combines its points about good citizenship with some excellent picturemaking. Full Review

William Brogdon
October 18, 2008
William Brogdon, Variety

Zinnemann carefully and deliberately makes the most of the mood cast by the threat of impending violence. Full Review

Jonathan Rosenbaum
September 4, 2007
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

Some of the results ring false, but the memorable theme song and some equally memorable character acting (by Thomas Mitchell and Lon Chaney Jr. more than Lloyd Bridges and Katy Jurado) help things along. Full Review

Derek Adams
February 9, 2006
Derek Adams, Time Out

High Noon won a fistful of Oscars, but in these days of pasteboard screen machismo, it's worth seeing simply as the anatomy of what it took to make a man before the myth turned sour. Full Review

Michael Atkinson
April 27, 2004
Michael Atkinson, Village Voice

More than a half-century later, Foreman was right after all: High Noon is a scorching and sour portrait of American complacence and capacity for collaborationism. Full Review

Stephen Hunter
May 30, 2003
Stephen Hunter, Washington Post

Regarded as '50s melodrama, it's nearly perfect.

Bosley Crowther
May 20, 2003
Bosley Crowther, New York Times

Meaningful in its implications, as well as loaded with interest and suspense, High Noon is a western to challenge Stagecoach for the all-time championship. Full Review

James Berardinelli
March 21, 2001
James Berardinelli, ReelViews

The Western may be one of the few truly American art forms, and High Noon shows exactly how much potential it can embrace. Full Review

Jeffrey M. Anderson
August 22, 2012
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

High Noon isn't really a masterpiece, and if you're a fan of more honest Westerns, it's hard not to notice Zinnemann's general lack of interest throughout. But it is a tense, effective little film. Full Review

July 26, 2011
Film4

File under 'classic'. Full Review

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    • Amy Kane: Don't try to be a hero! You don't have to be a hero, not for me!
    • Amy Kane: Then what is it? Why is he staying?
    • Helen Ramirez: If you don't know, I cannot explain it to you.
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High Noon Trivia

  • Which beautiful REAL Princess (given in 1956) played in classics like 'Rear Window' & 'Dail M For Murder', & others like 'High Noon' & 'To Catch A Thief', & 'The Country Girl', & more...?  Answer »
  • what is the title of a western ,that revolves around the noon train   Answer »
  • This tall slender actor began in silent movies in the !920's. Made Mr DeedsGoes to Town, Meet John Doe and won his 2nd Oscar in 1951 for High Noon. Actor is__  Answer »
  • I starred in Rear Window, Dial M For Murder and High Noon. Who am i?  Answer »
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