Man Without a Star

Trevor is wasted and the rest didn't interest me at all.

Everything we love in those "Old" Western Movies! Those were the days, Spartacus.

Kirk Douglas shines as a Western star in a late career King Vidor picture! American auteur director King Vidor's Western drama Man Without a Star (1955) is a sheer pleasure to watch now. Vidor's influential style is still present towards the end of his directing career with sympathetic characters and stylish shots. King Vidor's direction is truly astonishing for the middle of the 1950's with crazy shots out of nowhere. His tale of a roving cowboy with morals is fascinating. Producer Aaron Rosenberg was right to sign King Vidor on as director because of his fierce moral stance against barbed wire fencing, ruthless ranching practices, and mindless killing. Writers Borden Chase, D.D. Beauchamp, and Dee Linford create a tale of feuding ranchers, a principled wandering cowboy, a foolish hothead youngster, and a manipulative ranch owner lady. It's about a man trying to start fresh after being traumatized and learning to be brave again. I found the ranch war starting over ranch owners poaching grasslands for feeding cattle and the lethal dangers of barbed wire fencing closing off the open plains. You witness a brutal portrait of cruel, drunken cowboy ranch hands with no ethics or morals at all. Editor Virgil W. Vogel is really efficient with his sharp transition cuts and smooth fades. His slick hard cuts to wounded arms and chests or roving cowboys. Imagine if every great movie could be edited into a tight 89 minutes like Vogel does for Man Without a Star. Cinematographer Russell Metty uses far wide shots of open range plains and startling close-ups of a chest scarred by barbed wire to worn faces worried over gun duels and herding disputes. I like how the smooth and swift panning shots stay in clean wide and medium shots. Kirk Douglas is a serious Western star as Dempsey Rae. His cool confidence, kind manner, deep conflicted feelings, playful persona, knowledge of everything, and quickdraw mastery makes for an awesome Western hero. Kirk Douglas was born to lead Westerns as evidenced by his fantastic display of leadership, mercy, forgiveness, and bravery as Dempsey Rae. Kirk Douglas is excellent in Man Without a Star, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, and Last Train from Gun Hill. Womanizing, horse riding, quickdraw skills, banjo playing, sly singing, hard drinking, fist fighting, gun twirling, cattle branding, and fast aiming are just a few of Douglas' skills in Man Without a Star. Kirk Douglas proves he can do just about anything in Man Without a Star. Jeanne Crain is gorgeous as the devious redhead ranch owner Reed Bowman. She's a daring femme fatale for that era with dazzling blue eyes that are piercing like her vicious tactics to win over Kirk Douglas. I like that she is left alone after her cruel and ruthless business practices with no ethics. She's one of the villains really. Claire is a pretty blonde actress with a real fire to her line delivery as the escort Idonee. What a name and what a character. Her real love for Kirk Douglas' Dempsey is nice and she really lets him have it several times. William Campbell is absolutely terrible as the idiotic Jeff Jimson or "Texas." He's got to be the dumbest and most reckless character in cinema, rushing into fights and gun duels with a carelessness and bloodthirsty appetite. He's so stupid that it's funny and he plays well opposite Kirk Douglas' sterling cowboy with a heart of gold Dempsey. Campbell is the hardest part to watch, but he's genuinely such a naive and rash kid that I think he pulls off a truly detestable traitor and complete fool. Richard Boone is wicked as the easy to hate rancher villain Steve Miles. His blunt jests at Dempsey's fear of barbed wire and hogtying sequence are brutal to watch. Jay C. Flippen appears as the steadfast ranch foreman Strap Davis with a hardened sense of ethics to not desire another rancher's grass or cattle. He's pretty likable as Strap. Myrna Hansen is cute and lovable as Tess Cassidy, but she is just silly enough to like Texas the Roping Kid. Mara Corday is funny in her piano playing introduction as Moccasin Mary. Eddy C. Waller is really foolhardy as Tom Cassidy for putting in barbed wire and challenging better gunfighters. Sheb Wooley is fairly rough as the mean ranch hand Latigo. Frank Chase is nice as Little Waco, until his shocking run in with barbed wire. I swear, Man Without a Star is actually an anti-barbed wire propaganda piece and it's effective once you see the pain and damage it causes. Alexander Golitzen and Richard H. Riedel's striking art direction captivated me with vast grassy plains and intimate scenes between would have been lovers. The lush Technicolor palette is so vibrant and fun to look at here. John P. Austin and Russell A. Gausman's ornate set decoration shows off the wealth of the ranching lady owner compared to the poor wooden saloon and inn. Sound designers Leslie I. Carey and Joe Lapis let loud bursts of pistol gunfire echo out into the dusty air with clear power and force. I really enjoyed the dramatic Western theme song for the film entitled "Man Without a Star." The sweeping orchestral music alongside the plucky Western singing is very playful. Kirk Douglas' own singing and banjo playing is neat and a cute scene. Costume designer Rosemary Odell gives Jeanne Crain the most lovely blue and green dresses just like Claire Trevor's light blue outfits. Bud Westmore's flattering make-up gives the ladies neat curly hairstyles put up and cute blush with vivid red lipstick. I loved the way Westmore combed Kirk Douglas' golden locks. He looks particularly cool in Man Without a Star. Overall, I enjoyed The Man Without a Star for Kirk Douglas' stellar performance and King Vidor's fascinating directorial choices.

OK I will give the man a star. It was Rotten.

a great old western with kirk douglas

Above-average Western with some complex plot development; as so often, Kirk Douglas carries the show.

very weak, boring, useless, lame movie.

A typical no nonsense kinda western. Good performances

A rowdy, wonderful Western which sadly has gotten very little attention from both audiences and its own studio. This movie is not available on DVD in the U.S., an error which Universal seriously needs to rectify. Kirk Douglas gives one of his best performances as the title character, an easy-going drifter who befriends a young, impressionable runaway (William Campbell). The two of them wander into a town where they are hired to work on a ranch owned by a manipulative woman (Jeanne Crain). When the owner extends her herd further across the land, however, Kirk finds himself reluctantly embroiled in a range war. Douglas shines in this lively Western, as does Crain as the carnivorous rancher. Campbell is a bit annoying, though; he tries a bit too hard but grows more into the role as the movie progresses. Although it follows many Western conventions, 'Man Without a Star' is hardly routine; it's energetic, exciting, memorable, and often funny. Frankie Laine sings the title tune; Kirk sings and plays the banjo in the film, just like he did in '20,000 Leagues Under the Sea' the year before. Catch this under-appreciated gem when and if you can.

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