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James Stewart, Janet Leigh, Robert Ryan, Ralph Meeker, Millard Mitchell

The powerhouse combination of star James Stewart and director Anthony Mann score another cinematic bullseye in The Naked Spur. Stewart plays a taciturn frontiersman who loses his home while he's off f... read more read more...ighting the Civil War. To raise enough money for a new grubstake, Stewart becomes a bounty hunter in Colorado territory. His first quarry is fugitive, killer Robert Ryan. Stewart's efforts to bring in Ryan and collect the reward are compromised by the presence of Ryan's loyal girl friend Janet Leigh and Stewart's two disreputable sidekicks, wily prospector Millard Mitchell and disgraced Union-officer Ralph Meeker. There's plenty of "cat and mouse" byplay between Stewart and Ryan before the brutal climax; the drama is intensified by the fact that both men are on the outer rim of total insanity. The Oscar-nominated screenplay for The Naked Spur was cowritten by Sam Rolfe, who was later one of the creative forces responsible for the similarly no-nonsense TV western series Have Gun, Will Travel. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Flixster Users

76% liked it

2,092 ratings

Critics

100% liked it

11 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 31 min.

Directed by: Anthony Mann

Release Date: February 1, 1953

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DVD Release Date: August 15, 2006

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Stats: 162 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (162)

  • flixsterman
    February 11, 2011
    flixsterman
    One-dimensional characters and corny situations stand between The Naked Spur and broad appeal. Still, Jimmy Stewart can make ANY script seem interesting and plausible.
  • ajv2688
    November 7, 2010
    ajv2688
    Another boring confusing stupid western that I did not like. Of course there are good actors in this movie, so maybe you'd like it if you like westerns.
  • jjnxn
    April 8, 2010
    jjnxn
    Better than average western benefits from strong direction, beautiful color photography and most of all an excellent cast. Jimmy Stewart is properly gruff and driven and Janet Leigh is fine but her part isn't that strong. However the great Robert Ryan is smoothly evil and the und... read moreervalued Ralph Meeker wonderful as someone he always played well the conflicted heel who could be counted on in the end.
  • kenstachnik
    March 1, 2008
    kenstachnik
    Not quite as good as Winchester 73', but still a lot of fun.
  • garyX
    November 22, 2007
    garyX
    Another bracing western from the James Stewart/Anthony Mann stable sees Stewart as a rancher forging an uneasy alliance with an old prospector and an AWOL cavalry officer to bring outlaw Robert Ryan in dead or alive for the reward money. Stewart is one of the best when it comes t... read moreo playing tough guys with a streak of vulnerability, and there's some great psychology at work; Stewart's crisis of conscience accentuated by Janet Leigh's divided loyalties and all the while, Ryan is constantly using mindgames to set the trio against each other. I could have lived without the schmaltzy soundtrack, but otherwise, quality stuff.
  • mjgildea
    November 20, 2006
    mjgildea
    Watching Jimmy Stewart get pissed off is great. A great movie for a western, too.
  • staindslaved
    July 16, 2011
    staindslaved
    A film that's more fun to discuss than to watch, The Naked Spur is never the less another solid western from Anthony Mann and James Stewart. The themes of greed and betrayal were better explored in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre but The Naked Spur adds an additional element of... read more threat as several of the lead characters are easily capable of killing off the others if the opportunity arises, none least of all the 'prize' himself. Teachers should have students watch this is school instead of reading Shakespeare. It teaches many similar literary themes and kids would probably relate to it better.
  • HenrikSchunk
    December 23, 2010
    HenrikSchunk
    A very tense and focused western without big gunfights and elaborate saloons, but rather, The Naked Spur is a wild west road movie in the vain of Tarantino with a headhunter and a whole bunch of misfits and a woman making their way to Kansas to hand in a criminal and reek in the ... read morereward. James Stewart has not played many gritty roles or bad guys but his brooding nature and stern calmness make for a good tough guy. The supporting cast could have been slightly more interesting, but all in all, the ensemble cast does a good job and the most interesting character is definitely Millard Mitchell. The ending is good and not as cheesy as most westerns from that time.

    I found the film very refreshing for a western and it reminded me of other classics road-trip westerns such as Red River or The Searchers.

    HX
  • threefolddado
    June 4, 2008
    threefolddado
    James Stewart as an anti-hero and it works.
  • blizzpirate
    January 28, 2011
    blizzpirate
    this movie is great, seems like it was made more like in the 1970's then the 50's... great acting, a cool storyline, i enjoyed watching this... i think i should start watching more westerns

View All The Naked Spur Reviews

Critic Reviews

Jonathan Rosenbaum
January 1, 2000
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

This 1953 film has Janet Leigh in jeans, beautiful location shooting (and Technicolor cinematography) in the Rockies, and some of the most intense psychological warfare to be found in [director Anthon... Full Review

Gabe Leibowitz
September 19, 2010
Gabe Leibowitz, Film and Felt

This rock-solid Western is brisk, terse, and full of excellent performances..and for once, a Jimmy Stewart film doesn't find its leading man stealing the show! Full Review

Kelly Vance
May 5, 2010
Kelly Vance, East Bay Express

His every move meets resistance. In this grim cavalcade of paranoia on the hoof, the verbal jabs never let up. Full Review

Emanuel Levy
March 1, 2007
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

In this taut revenge Western, from Oscar-nominated script by Sam Rolfe and Harold Jack Bloom, Jimmy Stewart gives one of his best performances, revealing a darker facet to his screen persona that only... Full Review

Jeffrey M. Anderson
September 8, 2006
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

Mann never failed to deliver an astonishing ending to his Westerns, but this is one of his best. Full Review

John J. Puccio
August 10, 2006
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis

...an engrossing little film that doesn't flinch from showing us the worst in people, including the hero. Full Review

Dennis Schwartz
July 1, 2005
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Wonderfully intense psychological Western built around a simple story of greed and the chance to start life over again after failure. Full Review

Bob Bloom
August 15, 2002
Bob Bloom, Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)

One of Stewart's best tortured performances, showing his dark side. A must-see for Stewart buffs.

October 18, 2008
Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

October 31, 2006
New York Times

Click to read the article Full Review

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