''Silver Lode'' is a 1954 American

Technicolor Technicolor is a family of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes. The first version, Process 1, was introduced in 1916, and improved versions followed over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black-and ...

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film directed by

Allan Dwan Allan Dwan (born Joseph Aloysius Dwan; April 3, 1885 – December 28, 1981) was a pioneering Canadian-born American motion picture director, producer, and screenwriter. Early life Born Joseph Aloysius Dwan in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Dwan was ...

and starring John Payne, Lizabeth Scott and

Dan Duryea Dan Duryea ( , January 23, 1907 – June 7, 1968) was an American actor in film, stage, and television. Known for portraying villains, he had a long career in a variety of leading and secondary roles.Gaita, PaulDan Duryea Biography."''Turner C ...

Plot

The film, with a similar plot to ''

High Noon ''High Noon'' is a 1952 American Western (genre), Western film produced by Stanley Kramer from a screenplay by Carl Foreman, directed by Fred Zinnemann, and starring Gary Cooper. The plot, which occurs in Real time (media), real time, centers ...

'', tells the story of Dan Ballard ( John Payne) and Rose Evans ( Lizabeth Scott), who are about to be married on the Fourth of July when Marshal Fred McCarty (Dan Duryea) and his deputies ride into town looking for Ballard. McCarty accuses Ballard of having murdered his brother and has come to arrest him. At first, the townspeople are on Ballard's side, but gradually they turn against him, especially when they believe that he has killed the town sheriff (Emile Meyer). Ballard tries to prove his innocence and expose McCarty.

Cast

* John Payne as Dan Ballard * Lizabeth Scott as Rose Evans *

as Fred McCarty *

Dolores Moran Dolores Jean Moran (January 27, 1926 – February 5, 1982) was an American film actress and model. Early years Moran was born named Jaqueline in Stockton, California, the daughter of James G. Moran and his wife, Esther Moran and attended ...

as Dolly *

Emile Meyer Emile Meyer (August 18, 1910 – March 19, 1987) was an American actor, usually known for tough, aggressive, authoritative characters in Hollywood films from the 1950s era, mostly in Westerns or thrillers. Career Meyer had an uncredited ...

as Sheriff Wooley *

Robert Warwick Robert Warwick (born Robert Taylor Bien; October 9, 1878 – June 6, 1964) was an American stage, film and television actor with over 200 film appearances. A matinee idol during the silent film era, he also prospered after the introduction ...

as Judge Cranston *

John Hudson John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...

as Michael 'Mitch' Evans * Harry Carey Jr. as Johnson *

Alan Hale Jr. Alan Hale Jr. (born Alan Hale MacKahan; March 8, 1921 – January 2, 1990) was an American actor and restaurateur. He was the son of actor Alan Hale Sr. His television career spanned four decades, but he was best known for his secondary lead ro ...

as Kirk *

Stuart Whitman Stuart Maxwell Whitman (February 1, 1928 – March 16, 2020) was an American actor, known for his lengthy career in film and television. Whitman was born in San Francisco and raised in New York until the age of 12, when his family relocated to ...

as Wickers *

Frank Sully Francis Thomas Sullivan (June 17, 1908 – December 17, 1975), known professionally as Frank Sully, was an American film actor. He appeared in over 240 films between 1934 and 1968. Today's audiences know him best as the dumb detective in the '' ...

as Paul Herbert, Telegrapher *

Morris Ankrum Morris Ankrum (August 28, 1897 – September 2, 1964) was an American radio, television, and film character actor. Early life Ankrum was born in Danville in Vermilion County in eastern Illinois, and pursued a career in law. After graduating ...

as Zachary Evans *

Hugh Sanders Hugh Sanders (born Howard William Sanders;"California, County Marriages, 1850-1953", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K8D1-6LP : Thu Oct 19 16:41:02 UTC 2023), Entry for Hugh Howard William Sanders and Janet Berenice Pu ...

as Reverend Field * Florence Auer as Mrs. Elmwood * Roy Gordon as Dr. Elmwood

Review

In its review, the ''New York Times'' wrote, "The script by Karen De Wolfe was a complete misfire." In his review of the American cinema, director

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November17, 1942) is an American filmmaker. One of the major figures of the New Hollywood era, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Martin Scorsese, many accolades, including an Academ ...

praises the movie for its daring exposure on

McCarthyism McCarthyism is a political practice defined by the political repression and persecution of left-wing individuals and a Fear mongering, campaign spreading fear of communist and Soviet influence on American institutions and of Soviet espionage i ...

, with the movie's villain even named McCarty.A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies (1995), Part III https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1Jd2TwXA5Y

References

External links

* *
American Film Institute
1954 films 1954 Western (genre) films American Western (genre) films Films about McCarthyism Films directed by Allan Dwan Independence Day (United States) films RKO Pictures films Revisionist Western (genre) films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films English-language Western (genre) films Films scored by Howard Jackson (composer) {{1950s-US-Western-film-stub