Review of Shane (1953) by Francis L — 29 Dec 2011

To be honest, Shane remains my all-time favorite Western. And it's almost the unlikeliest Western too: coming just an year after High Noon, this would seem almost startling. But I firmly state that I cherish Shane much more than High Noon.

Its lush color sets, including the beautiful Wyoming hills and greenery, were beautifully and nostalgically depicted, and I simply couldn't help but love it. Its performances - especially Alan Ladd as the reluctant gunslinger Shane - were breathtakingly likable to watch, as was its artistically lovely score.

In the end, Shane gave up on his pacifism and bravely encountered that menacing gang in a memorably shot fight scene. However, the change of mood in its absolute finale was to that of a painful, even tear-jerking (though unsentimental) parting between Shane and young Joey Starrett, culminating in the now famous, and even more heart-rendering "Shane! Shane! Come back!" line.

What it left unresolved - whether Shane dies, or whether he has already died in the film's final shot of him riding up the hillside - was masterly and ambiguously implied, and it is up to us to interpret it.

In all, Shane is one of the most beautiful films I've ever seen, and undoubtedly the most personally appealing Western. For all Western movie fans, this is definitely a must-watch.