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Movies / On DVD / High Noon
High Noon

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High Noon (1952)

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95 %
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Reviews Counted:40

Fresh:38

Rotten:2

Average Rating:8.7/10

Runtime: 1 hr 51 mins

Genre: Westerns

Synopsis: Gary Cooper is Hollywood's perfect hero, the very embodiment of integrity and grace in this greatest of Westerns. As a newly married town marshal, he must balance an innate sense of justice and... Gary Cooper is Hollywood's perfect hero, the very embodiment of integrity and grace in this greatest of Westerns. As a newly married town marshal, he must balance an innate sense of justice and duty with loyalty to his beautiful new--and pacifist--bride when he is left by an ungrateful town to face a gang of deadly outlaws alone. As we watch spellbound, film time is real time as the showdown grows ever closer. HIGH NOON is a masterpiece that is frequently interpreted as a parable about artists left to "stand alone" and face persecution during the HUAC Hollywood blacklisting. However, Howard Hawks allegedly devised RIO BRAVO as an answer to the film's "wimpiness," and John Wayne once declared HIGH NOON as un-American--he was apparently offended by the ending of the film, which shows Sheriff Kane removing his badge and tossing it in the dirt. [More]

Starring: Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Thomas Mitchell, Lloyd Bridges

Starring: Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Thomas Mitchell, Lloyd Bridges, Katy Jurado, Otto Kruger, Lon Chaney, Harry Morgan, Ian MacDonald, Eve McVeagh

Director: Fred Zinnemann

Director: Fred Zinnemann
Producer: Stanley Kramer
Screenwriter: Carl Foreman
Producer: Elmo Williams
Composer: Dimitri Tiomkin

[See More Credits]

Reviews for High Noon

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Bubble View | 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 
Reviews
Tomatometer Critic Review Category
tomato

Derek Adams

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 Source: | comment Comment | Feb., 09 2006 03:17 AM

Time Out

tomato
5/5

David Wood

A film about what it means to be a man that manages to avoid the musk of machismo, High Noon is truly a film that improves with each and every viewing.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Apr., 17 2001 11:16 PM

BBC

N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Oct., 18 2008 07:44 AM

Variety

tomato
4/5

Cole Smithey

No review available.

comment Comment | Jun., 14 2008 02:01 PM

ColeSmithey.com

tomato
5/5

Steve Crum

One of top five westerns of all time w/Cooper's Oscar winning role. Powerful.

comment 1 Comment | Mar., 08 2008 07:37 PM

Video-Reviewmaster.com

tomato

Jonathan Rosenbaum

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 Source: | comment Comment | Sep., 04 2007 08:08 PM

Chicago Reader

tomato
5/5

Lori Hoffman

One of the essentials

comment Comment | Apr., 20 2007 07:33 AM

Atlantic City Weekly

tomato
5/5

Susan Granger

No review available.

comment Comment | Nov., 10 2006 05:38 AM

www.susangranger.com

tomato
4/5

Robert Roten

No review available.

comment Comment | Aug., 27 2006 05:51 PM

Laramie Movie Scope

tomato
B+

Emanuel Levy

One of the most overestimated Westerns in film history, High Noon is schematic and more of a reflection of the times in which it was made than the classic it's considered to be, though Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly are excellent.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jul., 29 2006 09:06 PM

EmanuelLevy.Com

tomato

Nick Schager

A simple, somewhat creaky tribute to defiant courageousness.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 04 2005 10:18 AM

Lessons of Darkness

tomato
4/5

Andy Klein

No review available.

comment Comment | Apr., 07 2005 05:36 PM

Los Angeles CityBeat

tomato
5/5

Scott Weinberg

Drop-dead brilliant Western Noir.

comment Comment | Apr., 03 2005 12:50 AM

eFilmCritic.com

tomato
3/5

Mark Palermo

No review available.

comment Comment | Mar., 08 2005 08:43 PM

Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

tomato
A-

Steven D. Greydanus

Generates claustrophobic suspense by focusing on three images: Kane's increasingly tense, pained expression; implacably ticking clocks; and the ominous, empty train tracks.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 22 2004 02:31 PM

Decent Films Guide

splat
2/5

Jake Euker

No review available.

comment 1 Comment | Jun., 04 2004 08:59 PM

F5 (Wichita, KS)

tomato
A

Dennis Schwartz

Can be enjoyed simply because it's so well done.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Apr., 30 2004 07:08 AM

Ozus' World Movie Reviews

tomato

Michael Atkinson

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 Source: | comment Comment | Apr., 27 2004 03:01 PM

Village Voice

tomato
9/10

John J. Puccio

...plays on the psychology of its characters and situations; an oater with insight and introspection...thought over action.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Dec., 04 2003 10:17 AM

DVDTown.com

tomato
5/5

Jonathan R. Perry

THE great American Western.

comment Comment | Nov., 28 2003 12:14 AM

Tyler Morning Telegraph (Texas)

 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Bubble View | 1 2 3 >> >|
all

Latest News for High Noon

November 07, 2007: Hollywood Remake Clock Strikes High Noon
John Wayne's least favorite Western is making its way back to a theater near you. We're talking about High Noon, the thinly veiled swipe at McCarthyism that Wayne called "the... More...

September 05, 2007: Total Recall: 3:10 to Yuma And The Dark Side of the Frontier
3:10 to Yuma joins a long line of Westerns that explore the complexities of human nature against the unforgiving backdrop of the frontier. More...

June 22, 2007: AFI Announces Top 100 Movies of All Time ... Again
Ten years ago the AFI gave us a list of the Top 100 American Films Ever Made -- and when that was done they churned out 15 other lists every few years. And then last night they... More...

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