What happens when a reformed outlaw is forced to meet his old gang due to circumstances. That is the plot of this movie. Gary Cooper plays Link Jones, who was an outlaw, but left the visit and ran away four or five days to the west to get away from the killing and the lifestyle. He has started a family, and become a farmer, and left his old life behind. He is chosen to take money collected by the community, to go east and hire a school teacher.
He is making his way, but the train is robbed at the rewatering station. In a rush to get away Link is left behind, with two other passengers, and the money is stolen. Billie Ellis (Julie London) and Sam Beasley (Arthur O'Connell) are also stranded, and impose on Link to keep them safe. It is a week before another train comes by. Link goes to his old hideout, where he discovers the old gang, who also took his money and guns. The old gang leader, Dock Tobin (Lee Cobb) recognizes him, and takes him back in the gang to the chagrin of other members. He has a feud with Coaley (Jack Lord) after he attempts to make the woman disrobe. This lead to a classic Western fight later in the movie, in which Beasley takes a bullet for link, and Tobin kills Coaley. The climax is an attempted robbery of a bank, which turns out to be a ghost town with no money. The bottom line is Link returns to killing, killing the members of the gang, as the members other than Dock were intent on killing him.
I especially like Dock's character. He is the old man who is going senile, and is a little crazy. He is also the tough guy who shows off his own strength, and maintains his leadership in the gang. He is the uncle of Link, and a couple other cousins are in the gang. This is a movie worth watching. Negatives include the smoking of cigarettes, fighting and gun play--western violence.
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