Review of Shane (1953) by Lee C — 09 Jun 2007

Shane is called George Stevens best film, is considered to have a great ending along with one of the most famous lines in cinema history in ?Shane, Shane. Come back!? This line is uttered by little Joey Starrett (Brandon De Wilde, whose performance could have been topped by the likes of a rock).

I found the lines only quality was its timing. It was a very appropriate line given the situation, however I failed to see, or hear rather, the emotion in it. The movie was a relatively basic western story, one that I?ve grown tired of considering the number of westerns that there are.

Shane (Alan Ladd) randomly rides into town, befriends the good guys and helps fend off the bad guys who are greedy for land, money or anything else the think they may be able to get their hands on. The one thing that is may not have had is a woman for this particular hero.

The film hints at some sort of infatuation that Shane has for Joey?s mother Marian (Jean Arthur). However, he never disrespects her or her husband Joe (Van Heflin, perhaps the highlight performance). Overall, I was disappointed in what is supposed to be a great western.