High Noon (film)
*High Noon* is a renowned Western film directed by Fred Zinnemann, released in 1952. The story follows Will Kane, the retiring marshal of Hadleyville, who must confront a vengeful outlaw, Frank Miller, on his wedding day. As the clock approaches noon, Kane grapples with the decision to stay and protect his town or flee with his new wife, Amy, who urges him to leave. The film, which unfolds in approximately real-time over its 85-minute runtime, explores themes of duty, integrity, and the moral dilemmas faced by individuals in crisis.
Gary Cooper stars as Kane, with Grace Kelly portraying his wife, a casting choice that sparked discussion due to their significant age difference. The film garnered critical acclaim, winning four Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Cooper, and was nominated for several others. Despite initial mixed reactions from audiences who anticipated traditional Western tropes, *High Noon* has since been recognized as a classic, noted for its unique approach to storytelling and character development. Its cultural and historical significance led to its preservation in the United States National Film Registry. The film's legacy includes influence on subsequent Westerns and adaptations, highlighting its lasting impact on the genre.
High Noon (film)
- Release Date: 1952
- Director(s): Fred Zinnemann
- Writer(s): Carl Foreman
- Principal Actors and Roles: Gary Cooper (Marshal Will Kane); Grace Kelly (Amy Fowler Kane); Lloyd Bridges (Deputy Marshal Harvey Pell); Morgan Farley (Dr. Mahin, Minister); Katy Jurado (Helen Ramirez); Ian McDonald (Frank Miller); Thomas Mitchell (Mayor Jonas Henderson); Lee Van Cleef (Jack Colby); Sheb Wooley (Ben Miller)
- Book / Story Film Based On: The Tin Star by John W. Cunningham
High Noon is a celebrated film directed by Fred Zinnemann, the acclaimed director of such other classic films as From Here to Eternity (1953), Oklahoma! (1943), and A Man For All Seasons (1966). Born in Rzeszów, Poland, in 1907, Zinnemann was considered a pioneer of the social realist style of directing which incorporates an edgy atmosphere by coordinating screen time with real time. While his career spanned nearly fifty years, Zinnemann’s films are noteworthy for their thematic consistency. Zinnemann’s films are all dramas in which the main protagonist, an ethical and principled person, is tested by disastrous events to reveal their motivation and true character.
High Noon’s screenplay was loosely based on "The Tin Star," a story by John W. Cunningham published in a magazine in December 1947. High Noon’s producer, Stanley Kramer, and screenwriter Carl Foreman both read Cunningham’s short story and decided to option it for a joint film project. High Noon became the title of the new film, which was also the provisional title for their 1949 film, Home of the Brave. Foreman paid $25,000 for the rights to Cunningham’s story.
The role of main protagonist Will Kane was offered to a host of actors including Gregory Peck, Charlton Heston, Kirk Douglas, Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift, and Burt Lancaster. Gregory Peck confessed years later that his greatest career mistake was turning down that role. The part eventually went to Gary Cooper. The role of Will Kane’s wife, Amy Fowler Kane, went to Grace Kelly after Kramer spotted her in an off-Broadway play. The casting of Grace Kelly stirred up some controversy due to the significant twenty-nine-year age difference between Kelly and her on-screen husband, Cooper.
Plot
Will Kane, the marshal of Hadleyville in New Mexico Territory, is unable to leave for his honeymoon with his new wife, Amy Fowler Kane. Kane has recently retired from his marshal’s post and plans to become a storekeeper. However, the news comes that the felon Frank Miller, whom Kane brought to justice, has been pardoned on a technicality, escaping the hangman’s noose. The news leaves Kane deeply troubled.
Miller has sworn to have his revenge on Kane, and he is expected to arrive on the train at noon with his gang. The town’s senior selectman encourages Kane and his wife to leave Hadleyville with haste. Kane’s first thoughts are to stay because the new marshal doesn’t arrive until the following day. Kane reluctantly packs and leaves for Clarksburg in a buggy. After travelling a few miles from Hadleyville, Kane begins to have second thoughts about his departure knowing that Miller and his gang will destroy the town and its citizens in the wake of his absence. Kane returns to the town despite his wife imploring him to leave. Amy issues Kane an ultimatum: either they both leave the town together or she leaves on the train at noon, alone. Many of the townsfolk are leaving and those who stay believe that if Kane leaves Hadleyville, Miller and his gang will leave them alone. Kane is not convinced, so he reclaims his marshal’s badge and stays with the intention of deputizing some community members to assist him in the upcoming confrontation. This proves to be challenging as everyone Kane approaches with the task denies him, everyone except for Harvey Pell, Kane’s former deputy who resigned after Kane did not recommend him as his successor. Pell is willing to help on the condition that Kane agrees to grant him the recommendation. Kane is disinclined to grant Pell his stipulation.
As noon approaches Kane broaches the subject with Pell again and it dissolves into a fistfight. Pell is rendered unconscious and Kane walks down the street to face off against Miller and his gang alone. Kane dispatches the first two gang members but is wounded. Amy returns from the train when she hears the gunshots. Amy kills a gang member but is accosted by Miller. Amy distracts Miller and Kane kills him.
Significance
High Noon took thirty-one days to film and has a running time of 85 minutes. The film was shot in approximate real time so that its 85-minute length corresponds to the story’s actual timeframe. Filming started during the early fall of 1951 in several different locations in California. Cooper was fifty years old when he was cast to play Will Kane, and his health and career were waning. Cooper suffered from stomach ulcers, lower back troubles, and a recurring hip problem which flared up frequently and compromised his walking. He was hesitant to do the fight scene with Lloyd Bridges, but Cooper proved his professionalism and eventually did the scene without the aid of a stunt double. Cooper’s many ailments got him out of the makeup chair. The haggard look that his character sported was etched into Cooper’s features without the aid of cosmetics.
High Noon was a critical success and the film earned seven Academy Award nominations. High Noon won awards for best actor (Gary Cooper), best film editing (Elmo Williams and Harry W. Gerstad), best music score (Dimitri Tiomkin), and best song ("Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin’"). High Noon was also nominated for Academy Awards in the best director, best picture, and best screenplay categories. According to High Noon producer Stanley Kramer, political coaxing was the reason for the film losing the Academy Award in the best picture category to Cecil B. DeMille’s circus picture, The Greatest Show on Earth. Carl Foreman, the writer of the screenplay for High Noon, was revealed as a member of the Communist Party during the time the Academy had to vote for best picture.
High Noon was also a commercial success, earning an estimated $3.4 million at the North American box office in 1952, more than enough to offset the film’s production budget of $730,000. The audience initially criticized the film for its radical pacifist stance. Filmgoers had come to expect all the classic Western elements to be present in High Noon such as chases, brawls, and gun showdowns and were let down when those features were mostly absent in the film.
In 1980, Lee Majors played the role of Will Kane in a made-for-TV sequel to High Noon called High Noon, Part II: The Return of Will Kane. A remake of High Noon starring Tom Skerritt as Will Kane aired on TBS Superstation in 2001. In 1959 director Howard Hawks and actor John Wayne, a staunch anti-Communist, made the film Rio Bravo as a response to High Noon.
High Noon is considered a classic in its genre, and in 1989, the Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the United States National Film Registry, distinguishing the film for its cultural, historical, and aesthetic significance.
Awards and nominations
Won
- Academy Award (1952) Best Film Editing ()
- Academy Award (1952) Best Original Score ()
- Academy Award (1952) Best Original Song ()
- Academy Award (1952) Best Actor: Gary Cooper
Nominated
- Academy Award (1952) Best Picture
- Academy Award (1952) Best Director: Fred Zinnemann
- Academy Award (1952) Best Screenplay (Adapted): Carl Foreman
- Golden Globe (1952) Best Motion Picture (Drama)
Bibliography
Dirks, Tim. "High Noon (1952)." Filmsite. American Movie Classics, 2016. Web. 7 Jan. 2016. <http://www.filmsite.org/high2.html>.
Drummond, Phillip. High Noon. London: British Film Institute, 1997. Print.
McGee, Scott. "Behind the Camera: High Noon (1952)." Turner Classic Movies. Turner Entertainment Networks, 2016. Web. 7 Jan. 2016. <http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/71579|71582/Behind-the-Camera.html>.
"Stanley Kramer." Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online. Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2016. Web. 7 Jan. 2016. <http://www.britannica.com/biography/Stanley-Kramer>.
Wood, Robin. Rio Bravo. London: British Film Institute, 2003. Print.