For any lovers of classic films out there, this one might be a little controversial. High Noon is recognized as one of the best westerns of all time, having been one of the earliest, innovative movies that inspired the whole genre. So, I watched it recently, and if I’m being honest, I thought it was a pretty bad movie.

The film centers on Marshal Will Kane, who has just gotten married in the opening scene and is about to leave town with his new bridge. However, he then receives word that a gang of deadly killers is about to come into town, with their leader arriving on the noon train. Kane then spends the majority of the movie trying to get people to help him take on the gang when they arrive, but no one does. So, he realizes he’s going to have to face them all alone, and realizes he’s probably going to die in the process.

I’m not gonna lie, it sounds like an interesting idea on paper, but man if I wasn’t bored throughout this whole movie. I really don’t like to hate on movies like this either, because I recognize that there is usually a good reason why they’ve been remembered as being such important or great films. So, I don’t want to take that away from High Noon. I won’t deny the impact that it had on film, and westerns in particular. And I won’t even try to argue with anyone that defends it and says how good it is. I just didn’t really like it myself, and it’s my job in a review to be honest about that.

This is one of those hard situations where I feel like the reviewer has to acknowledge that the problem is partially, if not mostly, with them. It’s not like I’ve never enjoyed a western, but it’s definitely one of my least favorite genres, so the deck was kind of already stacked against High Noon that I wasn’t going to like it. I also very much felt the disconnect as a modern-day viewer that I sometimes talk about in my reviews of older movies. Some movies manage to feel like timeless classics, but something like High Noon just never managed to resonate with me. I had sparks of interest during the movie, but for the most part I just thought it was really boring. I’ll never try to take away the mark that High Noon left on the film industry, and if you enjoy it then all the more power to you, but personally this one wasn’t for me.

2/5