Sun 31 Aug 2014
A Western Movie Review by Jonathan Lewis: THE GUNFIGHT AT DODGE CITY (1959).
Posted by Steve under Reviews , Western movies[14] Comments
THE GUNFIGHT AT DODGE CITY. United Artists, 1959. Joel McCrea (Bat Masterson), Julie Adams, John McIntire, Nancy Gates, Richard Anderson, James Westerfield, Walter Coy, Don Haggerty.
I really wanted to like The Gunfight at Dodge City much more than I did. I’m generally an admirer of Joel McCrea and I find it difficult not to like the lovely Julie Adams. I also quite enjoyed the Jacques Tourneur-directed Wichita starring McCrea as Wyatt Earp, which I reviewed here and believe to be a Western deserving of more critical attention.
Yet despite McCrea’s adequate portrayal of Bat Masterson, Joseph M. Newman’s solid direction, and some beautifully decorated interiors, The Gunfight at Dodge City ended up feeling like a disappointment, a case of what could have been rather than what it is.
McCrea, in a stoic role, portrays legendary lawman Bat Masterson as he transforms himself from a buffalo hunter to the lawman of Dodge City, Kansas. Along the way, however, Masterson makes two mortal enemies, Dave Rudabaugh (Richard Anderson) who seeks revenge for his brother’s death at the hands of Masterson, and Dodge City’s corrupt sheriff, Jim Regan (Don Haggerty). Both are villains without any depth.
Masterson also finds himself torn between two beautiful women, Lily (Nancy Gates), a saloon owner and Pauline Howard (Julia Adams), a preacher’s daughter engaged to Bat’s brother, Ed (Harry Lauter) who ends up being killed by the aforementioned Dave (Anderson).
Masterson also plays mentor to a mentally challenged kid, Billy, who has, to Bat’s mind, an unhealthy fascination with guns and violence. What does help make Masterson’s character a bit more interesting are his friendships with Doc Sam Tremaine (John McIntire) and Reverend Howard (James Westerfield).
As you might suspect, Billy gets himself into a pickle by shooting a lawman and is sentenced to death by hanging. This forces Masterson’s hand. Will he uphold the law or will he revert to his semi- outlaw ways and free the lad from state custody?
If all of this happens to sound like fairly standard Western fare, you’re absolutely correct. That’s what The Gunfight at Dodge City is. There’s a couple of fights, some drunken cowboys shooting in the twilight, a couple of love affairs, brothers with different personalities, a saloon, and a protagonist who kills his rivals and gets the girl. But it’s just not much more than that.
True, there are a couple of great moments, but there’s really not too much in the way of memorable dialogue or excellent acting. McCrea is a very capable actor, but in this one, he just seems at times like he was phoning it in. Bat Masterson looks more bored than tormented. And everyone else was playing their roles better than many actors could have, but it still leaves one with a nagging question: aside from making a movie with Bat Masterson at the center of the action, what was it all for?
August 31st, 2014 at 7:51 pm
Joel McCrea was 54 when he made this movie, and according to IMDb, he was at the end of the road in terms of making western movies on a regular basis. During the 1959-60 TV season, though, he played Marshal Mike Dunbar on a series called WICHITA TOWN, which I’ve never seen. Has anyone?
August 31st, 2014 at 9:02 pm
I have seen Wichita Town. It was a dull non-action packed western which presented the star’s son Jody. It was less than mild, as were all the AA films McCrea did. Needless to say, Wichita Town, not a success.
August 31st, 2014 at 9:12 pm
On the Western Clippings site Boyd Magers has an interesting article, more favorable than my point of view, but amounting to the same thing. It includes comments from McCrea. Good to check out. (But, if the ground had already been covered by Hugh O’Brian and Company, why would they expose themselves, and without slighting Hugh, how could he trump McCrea?
August 31st, 2014 at 9:45 pm
Barry
I’ve looked for that article about WICHITA TOWN but so far I’ve found only this one, which doesn’t mention Hugh O’Brian.
http://www.westernclippings.com/remember/wichitatown_doyouremember.shtml
Only that McCrea blames the time slot, 10:30 at night, for the early demise of the series.
August 31st, 2014 at 10:33 pm
Steve,
Put Wichita Town up at Wikipedia. My error.
September 1st, 2014 at 1:25 am
McCrea’s Bat Masterson kills more men in this movie than the three Bat killed in real life — and one of those was an accident, and Bat was deputy to his brother Ed. I can’t recall if they got that right in this film or not.
I agree though, it is pretty dull.
He picked up the name Bat because he had a broken leg when he started his law career having been shot in a barroom by one of Custer’s men, a Sgt. King, who Masterson dropped while he was still falling by all accounts. A saloon girl they both liked was killed by King while she and Masterson were dancing. He took the deputy job because he couldn’t hunt buffalo and patrolled town in a cast with a crutch. The story goes the criminal element was relieved when he put up the crutch and turned back to guns since he cracked more skulls than fired bullets.
And he may well have been rethinking buffalo hunting after Apache Wells where he and fourteen others were trapped by 5,000 Cheyenne who lost so many men they retired on the third day.
The film is accurate about his interest in journalism at least.
Masterson was far more flamboyant than McCrea and by all accounts a master of psychology. He staged weekly demonstrations of his speed and accuracy in the afternoon Saturdays, and no matter how drunk they were most recalled them that night on Texas Street.
Eventually he went back east where he helped Police Commissioner Teddy Roosevelt clean up boxing (establishing the strict New York Boxing Commission) and was sports editor on one of the major papers. His prodigy was a young Damon Runyon who named and modeled Sky Masterson in GUYS AND DOLLS on him. The regulars at his table were young Ed Sullivan, Earl Wilson, and Walter Winchell.
In Virginia City he refereed one of Jack Johnson’s most famous fights where his mere presence was enough to hold back a few thousand drunken spectators and Gentleman Jim Corbett who was backing the fighter Johnson was in the ring with. His reputation was such that no one crossed the line and what promised to be a riot with mass bloodshed turned into boxing match.
All in all he was far more interesting than anything in this movie.
September 1st, 2014 at 2:02 am
This link may be of interest, a book from a year or so ago published by University of Oklahoma Press
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15937145-gunfighter-in-gotham
September 1st, 2014 at 2:19 am
David,
Very informative. And you’re right, the real Bat was much more interesting that depicted in this film.
September 1st, 2014 at 5:09 am
After a very promising opening, the film just kind of marks time. As for Masterson, he was found dead of a heart attack at his typewriter. The last words he typed:
“There are those who argue that everything breaks even in this old dump of a world of ours. I suppose these ginks who argue that way hold that because the rich man gets ice in the summer and the poor man gets it in the winter things are breaking even for both. Maybe so, but I’ll swear I can’t see it that way.”
September 1st, 2014 at 4:48 pm
After thinking about it for a good long while (overnight) I succumbed to temptation and purchased a set of DVDs for the TV series WICHITA TOWN that I found online.
I’ll report back later, once in hand — and viewed.
September 3rd, 2014 at 8:50 am
One of my all-time favorite westerns (and Is suspect one of the all-time favorites of may reading this blog) is RIDE THE HIGH COUNTRY, in which McCrea co-starred with another cowboy star legend, Randolph Scott.
It’s interesting, considering that RTHC was the only film they ever made together (and was, for practical purposes the final film for both), how many parallels there were in their respective careers.
Both played Wyatt Earp, Scott in FRONTIER MARSHAL and McCrea in WICHITA, Both played Earp’s friend, Bat Masterson, McCrea in this week’s film and Scott in TRAIL STREET. Both played troubleshooters for railroads making their way across the west in films that had practically the same plot, McCrea in UNION PACIFIC, and Scott in SANTA FE. Both played undercover Pinkerton detectives out west, Scott in THE BOUNTY HUNTER and McCrea in THE LONE HAND. Both played U.S. Cavalrymen, McCrea in TROOPER HOOK and Scott in 7TH CAVALRY. Both co-starred with Shirley Temple in non-westerns, McCrea in OUR LITTLE GIRL and Scott in REBECCA OF SUNNYBROOK FARM.
McCrea, oddly, nver played a soldier in a WW2 movie, which Scott did several times (notably in GUNG HO and CORVETTE K-225), but he did sound the bell for preparedness in the Hitchcok thriller FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT, and he played a post-war American officer in the espionage thriller SHOOT FIRST.
All things considered, it’s remarkable they never paired up prior to RIDE THE HIGH COUNTRY.
September 3rd, 2014 at 9:29 am
Nice thoughts, Jim. Add Susannah of the Mounties to the Scott/Shirley Temple list.
September 3rd, 2014 at 10:49 am
Barry,
The reason I didn’t mention SUSANNAH OF THE MOUNTIES is ’cause it WAS a western.
September 3rd, 2014 at 4:24 pm
Interesting to note is that Bat Masterson, as portrayed by Randolph Scott, in the Ray Enright-directed “Trail Street” tells Robert Ryan’s character that he would much prefer to be a journalist than a lawman. In many ways, that’s a much better film than this one with McCrea. There’s one scene in “Trail Street” in particular which I love — when Scott, Ryan, and Gabby Hayes are all standing around outside in the town street. Looked like they were having a lot of fun with the project