Hang 'Em High
| Hang 'Em High | |
|---|---|
 Film poster by Sandy Kossin | |
| Directed by | Ted Post |
| Produced by | Leonard Freeman |
| Written by | Leonard Freeman Mel Goldberg |
| Starring | Clint Eastwood Inger Stevens Ed Begley Pat Hingle |
| Music by | Dominic Frontiere |
| Cinematography | Richard H. Kline Leonard J. South |
| Edited by | Gene Fowler, Jr. |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
Release date |
|
Running time | 114 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1.6 million[1][2] |
| Box office | $6.8 million[3][4] |
Hang 'Em High is a 1968 American DeLuxe Color revisionist Western film directed by Ted Post and written by Leonard Freeman and Mel Goldberg. It stars Clint Eastwood as Jed Cooper, an innocent man who survives a lynching; Inger Stevens as a widow who helps him; Ed Begley as the leader of the gang that lynched Cooper; and Pat Hingle as the judge who hires him as a U.S. Marshal.
Hang 'Em High was the first production of The Malpaso Company, Eastwood's production company.
Hingle portrays a fictional judge who mirrors Judge Isaac Parker, labeled the "Hanging Judge" due to the large number of men he sentenced to be executed during his service as District Judge of the Western District of Arkansas.
The film also depicts the dangers of serving as a U.S. marshal during that period, as many federal marshals were killed while serving under Parker. The fictional Fort Grant, base for operations for that district judge seat, is also a mirror of the factual Fort Smith, Arkansas, where Judge Parker's court was located.
Plot[edit]
In the Oklahoma Territory in 1889, Jed Cooper is driving a small herd of cattle across a stream when a posse, composed of Capt. Wilson, Reno, Miller, Jenkins, Matt Stone, Charlie Blackfoot, Maddow, Tommy, and Loomis surround him and accuse him of rustling the herd. He shows them a receipt for the cattle, but the man he bought them from was a rustler who killed the herd's owners. Cooper explains that he knew nothing about the murder, but only Jenkins expresses doubts about his guilt. After Reno takes Cooper's saddle and Miller takes his wallet, the men hang him from a tree and ride away, leaving him for dead.
Federal Marshal Dave Bliss sees Cooper and cuts him down while he is still alive. Bliss puts him in irons and takes him to Fort Grant, where the territorial judge, Adam Fenton, determines that Cooper is innocent, sets him free, and warns him not to become a vigilante. He then shows Cooper the man who is responsible for the crimes he was accused of committing by the posse. The man, McCloud, is hanged for murder and rustling as Judge Fenton and Cooper watch. As an alternative to vigilantism, Fenton offers Cooper, a former lawman, the badge of a Deputy U.S. Marshal. Cooper accepts the post, and Fenton warns him not to kill the men who lynched him.
During his first assignment as a marshal, Cooper sees his saddle on a horse in front of a small-town saloon. He finds Reno inside and tries to arrest him, but Reno goes for his gun, forcing Cooper to shoot him dead. When word of this becomes public, Jenkins turns himself in and provides the names of the rest of the hanging posse. Cooper finds Stone, the blacksmith in the town of Red Creek, arrests him, and has Sheriff Ray Calhoun put him in jail. Most of the men Cooper seeks are respected members of the community, but Calhoun honors Cooper's warrants for their arrest.
On their way to Wilson's ranch to make the arrests, Cooper and Calhoun encounter an impromptu posse pursuing the perpetrators of another rustling and murder. Cooper and this posse catch the rustlers, who turn out to be Miller and two teenage brothers, Ben and Billy Joe. Cooper takes them to Fort Grant single-handedly after refusing to let the posse lynch them and the posse members refused to help Cooper bring them in. on the way, Ben and Billy Joe insist that Miller was the murderer. Miller catches Cooper off guard and attacks him, but Cooper overpowers and subdues him while the brothers watch.
Judge Fenton sentences all three rustlers to be hanged, despite Cooper's defense of the teenagers. Fenton insists that the public will resort to lynching if they see rustlers going unpunished, threatening Oklahoma's bid for statehood. Some time later, Sheriff Calhoun arrives at Fort Grant and pays Cooper for his cattle. He is trying to bribe Cooper into ignoring the rest of the men who lynched him. Cooper accepts the money but makes it clear that while "we are even, money-wise", he will bring the attempted murderers to justice. Wilson realizes, "All right, now that makes three mistakes we've made. The money; we hung an innocent man; and we didn't finish the job. We can't undo the first two... but we can still finish the job." Blackfoot and Maddow flee, but Loomis and Tommy remain loyal to Wilson, who has decided to kill Cooper.
At Fort Grant, Wilson, Loomis, and Tommy bushwhack Cooper while most of the town has gathered to watch the hanging of Miller, Ben, Billy Joe, and three other men. Cooper survives the shooting and is slowly nursed back to health by Rachel Warren, a shopkeeper with whom he begins a relationship. on a picnic together, Cooper and Rachel become lovers. When Marshal Cooper is healthy enough to return to duty, he learns Captain Wilson, Loomis, and Tommy are holed up at Wilson's ranch, and goes after them.
Sneaking up on the ranch house, Cooper is attacked by a German Shepherd guard dog that is accidentally killed by Tommy. He kills Loomis, who had come out after him with a knife, and then Tommy. Captain Wilson attempts to shoot Cooper as he crosses open ground to the house, but misses. on hearing Cooper break in, Wilson hangs himself.
On his return to Fort Grant, Cooper slaps his badge down on Judge Fenton's desk and threatens to quit unless Fenton releases Jenkins, who is both contrite and seriously ill. Fenton insists that justice must be served, but agrees to pardon Jenkins. After listening to a memorable outburst from the judge in which Fenton curses the fact that he and his marshals are the only source of judgment and justice in the territory, Cooper agrees to continue as a Marshal. Judge Fenton then hands him fresh warrants for Blackfoot and Maddow, telling him, "The law still wants them." Cooper nods and heads out the door with Jenkins' pardon, the two warrants, and his marshal's badge in his hand. He rides out of town to fulfill his duty.
Cast[edit]
- Clint Eastwood as Marshal Jed Cooper
- Inger Stevens as Rachel Warren
- Ed Begley as Captain Wilson
- Pat Hingle as Judge Fenton
- Ben Johnson as Marshal Dave Bliss
- Charles McGraw as Sheriff Ray Calhoun
- Ruth White as Madame 'Peaches' Sophie
- Bruce Dern as Miller
- Alan Hale, Jr. as Matt Stone
- Arlene Golonka as Jennifer
- James Westerfield as Prisoner
- Dennis Hopper as The Prophet
- L. Q. Jones as Loomis
- Michael O'Sullivan as Francis Elroy Duffy
- Joseph Sirola as Reno
- James MacArthur as The Preacher
- Bob Steele as Jenkins
- Bert Freed as Schmidt
- Jonathan Goldsmith as Tommy
- Tod Andrews as Defense Attorney
- Mark Lenard as Prosecutor
Production[edit]
Eastwood spent much of late 1966 and 1967 dubbing for the English-language version of the Dollars trilogy and being interviewed, something which left him feeling angry and frustrated.[5] Stardom brought more roles in the "tough guy" mold, and Irving Leonard, his business manager, gave him a script to a new film, the American revisionist Western Hang 'Em High, a cross between Rawhide and Leone's westerns, written by Mel Goldberg and produced by Leonard Freeman.[5] However, the William Morris Agency had wanted him to star in a bigger picture, Mackenna's Gold, with a cast of notable actors such as Gregory Peck, Omar Sharif, and Telly Savalas. Eastwood, however, did not approve and preferred the script for Hang 'Em High, but had one complaint which he voiced to the producers: the scene before the six-man hanging, where the hero is attacked by the enemies. Eastwood believed that the scene would not be believable if set in a saloon. They eventually agreed to introduce a scene with Cooper taking a prostitute upstairs during the hanging, and having the attack take place afterwards as Eastwood enters the bordello's bar.[6] Eastwood signed for the film with a salary of $400,000 and 25% of the net earnings to the film, playing the character of Jed Cooper, a man accused by vigilantes of a rancher's murder, lynched and left for dead, who later seeks revenge.[1][2][6]
With the wealth generated by the Dollars trilogy, Leonard helped set up a new production company for Eastwood, The Malpaso Company, something for which he had long yearned, and was named after Malpaso Creek, which flows through Eastwood's property in Monterey County, California.[7] Leonard became the company's president and arranged for Hang 'Em High to be a joint production with United Artists.[7] Directors Robert Aldrich and John Sturges were considered for the director's helm, but on the request of Eastwood, old friend Ted Post was brought in to direct, against the wishes of producer Leonard Freeman, whom Eastwood had urged away.[8] Post was important in casting for the film and arranged for Inger Stevens of The Farmer's Daughter fame to play the role of Rachel Warren. She had not heard of Eastwood or Sergio Leone at the time, but instantly took a liking to Clint and accepted.[8]
Filming[edit]
Co-producer Leonard Freeman arrived in Las Cruces, New Mexico, on May 25, 1967, to scout locations. That same day, Freeman located the tree to be used for the hanging in the opening scene, about 12 miles north of Las Cruces.[9] Filming began June 27, 1967, in the Las Cruces area, with additional scenes shot at White Sands.[8][9] The interiors were shot at MGM studios.[1][10] The opening lynching scene was filmed June 29, 1967, next to the Rio Grande.[1][9] The tree used for the hanging is no longer standing and the riverbed is now overgrown with thick brush.[9] Eastwood had considerable leeway in the production, especially in the script, which was altered in parts such as the dialogue and setting of the barroom scene to his liking.[11] Actor Bruce Dern has credited co-star Ben Johnson with accomplishing "the greatest single stunt ever performed in the history of movies", by riding full-tilt toward the hanging Eastwood while pulling out his knife, cutting the noose, dismounting, and catching Eastwood as he fell, all in a single take with no cut.[12] Unfortunately, no such shot appears in the film.
Reception[edit]
The film became a major success after release in August 1968, and with an opening-day revenue of $5,241 in Baltimore alone, it became the biggest United Artists opening in history, exceeding all of the James Bond films at that time.[13] It debuted at number five on Variety's weekly survey of top films and had recouped production expenses within two weeks of screening.[13] It eventually grossed $6.8 million in the U.S.[3] It was widely praised by critics, including Arthur Winsten of the New York Post, who described Hang 'Em High as "a Western of quality, courage, danger and excitement."[11] Variety gave the film a negative review, calling it "a poor American-made imitation of a poor Italian-made imitation of an American-made western."[14]
Audiences seem to agree with Arthur Winsten rather than Variety; the film has withstood the test of time. As of February 2016, Hang 'Em High has a 92% freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[15]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Hughes, p.18
- ^ Jump up to: a b Munn, p. 69
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Hang 'em High (1968) Theatrical Performance". the-numbers.com. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
- Jump up ^ "All-time Film Rental Champs", Variety, 7 January 1976 p 44
- ^ Jump up to: a b McGillagan (1999), p.159
- ^ Jump up to: a b McGillagan (1999), p.160-1
- ^ Jump up to: a b McGillagan (1999), p.162
- ^ Jump up to: a b c McGillagan (1999), p.163
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Thomas, David G. (2015). Screen With A Voice - A History of Moving Pictures in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Doc45 Publications. pp. 126–127. ASIN B018CYWZ4O.
- Jump up ^ Toole, Michael T. "Hang 'Em High". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
- ^ Jump up to: a b McGillagan (1999), p.164
- Jump up ^ Dern, Bruce (2007). Things I've Said, But Probably Shouldn't Have: An Unrepentant Memoir. New York: Wiley. p. 74. ISBN 0470106379. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
- ^ Jump up to: a b McGillagan (1999), p.165
- Jump up ^ Hughes, p.19
- Jump up ^ "Hang 'Em High (1968)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
Bibliography[edit]
- Hughes, Howard (2009). Aim for the Heart. London: I.B. Tauris. ISBN 978-1-84511-902-7.
- McGilligan, Patrick (1999). Clint: The Life and Legend. Perseus Books Group. ISBN 978-0-7867-0843-7.
- Munn, Michael (1992). Clint Eastwood: Hollywood's Loner. London: Robson Books. ISBN 0-86051-790-X.
External links[edit]
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hang 'Em High. |
- 1968 films
- English-language films
- 1960s Western (genre) films
- American films
- American Western (genre) films
- Films about capital punishment
- Films directed by Ted Post
- Films scored by Dominic Frontiere
- Films set in the 1880s
- Films set in Oklahoma
- Films shot in New Mexico
- Malpaso Productions films
- United Artists films
- United States Marshals Service in fiction
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