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In a Western, the ultimate confrontation between the forces of good and evil is the showdown
It is the classic ending, and as such, the point towards which the whole film has been moving; the moment of truth when the good guy faces the black guy in the dust of the main street
It is, of course, a cinema cliché
Tension mounts as the two protagonists walk slowly towards their duel, a clash that is inevitable and from which only one will walk away
In "The Fastest Gun Alive," an aggressive, belligerent bandit Vinnie Harold (Broderick Crawford) refuses to be taking as "second best," and a peaceful shopkeeper (Glenn Ford) claims to be 'faster than Wyatt Earp, faster than Billy the Kid, faster than Fallon, and faster than the man who killed him.'
That's the cliché, and it comes in with such high expectation as director Russel Rouse builds the climax with great degree of intensity, and higher degree of excitement... A few words are exchanged, when a loud voice is heard from a stocky figure: 'You the one who shot the silver dollars?' 'Yes,' replies a fairly silent man. 'By what name are you called,'? asks a determined killer. 'Kelby. George Kelby.' And suddenly the two men draw... Both fired simultaneously at the same instant...
The clash is a heightened moment of suspense that is as exciting as anything the cinema has ever produced...
Based upon a story called "The Last Notch" by Frank D. Gilroy, this minor budget Western turned out to be a surprise smash... Russ Tamblyn delivers a great "solo" dancing number just to reduce the tension...
score 8/10
Nazi_Fighter_David 25 March 2005
Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw1046719/ |
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18-2-2021 03:16:02