Owen Devereaux (Glenn Ford) and Del Stewart (William Holden) have survived the Civil War together and it's obvious that Owen is slipping over the edge into insanity.
The viewer is shown this right off the bat because the first scene in the film is a massacre that Devereaux could have avoided. From that point on it gets even better.
The town council wants to elect Devereaux as a Judge and the leader Big Ed Carter (Ray Collins) makes that a reality. Devereaux wants to keep Stewart as his deputy and Stewart agrees only to try and keep his friend in line with the law.
There are many, many elements in this film including a man's inability to let go of the anger from war, returning soldiers treated as outlaws by the law and big business, the sanctity of marriage and much more.
Ellen Drew is Caroline Emmet, the young woman that Ford's Devereaux eventually marries. The relationship is strained to the max by the growing insanity inside of Devereaux. It gets to the point where even the bug business men who wanted Devereaux in office begin to doubt their own choice.
This western gem will hold your attention from start to finish and the direction by Henry Levin is right on the money. The rest of the cast includes Edgar Buchanan, Jerome Courtland and Jim Bannon.
The print from Mill Creek is beautiful and is simply a MUST for all western fans.
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