Rating: 3/5
Tombstone, Arizona in the 1880s
Forty Guns is an unusual tragedy and an unintentional one at that. A powerful and wealthy woman forsakes it all for love. As the movie song says, “She’s only a woman after all.”
Jessica Drummond (Barbara Stanwyck) is supposed to be the center of the movie, and it’s her posse, The Dragoons, after which they named the movie.
When Griff Bonnell (Barry Sullivan) arrives in town, he plants the seed of her demise. And when Jessica’s brother, Brockie Drummond, shoots US Marshal John Chisholm in cold blood, it’s only a matter of time.
I’m so conflicted about this movie! Besides Stanwyck’s performance, there’s little else to hold on to. Westerns don’t capture me unless they are experimenting with genre.
We’re the only ones being played with here. We barely see the forty guns or Stanwyck as much as we should. The plot sort of clumps together, like a Frankenstein of tropes.
The black and white Cinemascope is clunky as it tries to navigate tighter spaces. Despite that, the landscapes are breathtaking. The opening shot of the Dragoons overtaking the wagon is so triumphant.
I still like this movie! I hoped I would like it more.