SILVER CITY

US, 1951, 90 minutes, Colour.
Yvonne de Carlo, Edmond O'Brien, Barry Fitzgerald, Richard Arlen, Gladys George, Edgar Buchanan, John Dierkes.
Directed by Byron Haskin.

Silver City is an enjoyable, average but well-made western supporting feature of the early '50s. Edmond O'Brien is not exactly a romantic lead. Yvonne de Carlo is an enterprising miner's daughter rather than a glamorous heroine and Barry Fitzgerald, sporting some stubble, is the villain.

The film is set in the West, concerns the mining of silver, has the usual gallery of characters and confrontations from the West and has the climax with an elaborate chase.

Of its time, but with its straightforward narrative and characters, it is still quite entertaining.

1. Enjoyable western? Gallery of characters? Confrontations?

2. Colour photography, locations, the atmosphere of the period? The final chase?

3. The title and tie focus, mining, violence, greed? The frontier?

4. Edmond O'Brien as Carkin Moffatt: the clash with Charles, the hold-up, his complicity, betrayal, the chase, the train and the dive? His being ousted from the various jobs? Assaying silver in the city? The meeting with Candice and his interest in her? His honesty? Refusal to be the foreman? Jarbot and his pressure on the family? The arrival of Charles and Josephine? His decision to take the job? The confrontations in the town, devices for getting the men to work, starting the brawls? Clashes with Bill? Josephine and her attraction towards him? With Charles? Suspicions of the hired killer, his being hired to kill Moffatt? The confrontation? The pursuit of the killer in the sawmill? The happy ending?

5. Candice and her enterprise, with her father, his support, the question of the mine and its lease, getting Moffatt's support, the clashes with Josephine, her concern about the shooting, the sabotage at the wine, the happy ending?

6. Jarbot and his owning the lease, his greed, his henchmen, buying off the men, his use of Bill, the possibility of killing Moffatt, his not giving his consent, Bill and the confrontation, shooting hip? Bill as the young gunman, violence in the town, plans, setting up Charles against his wife, the plan to shoot Moffatt, his killing of Jarbot?

7. Charles and his honesty, love for Josephine, the marriage and its brittleness, his boycotting Moffatt, his influence, arrival in the town, with Jarbot, his suspicions of Josephine, clashes with Toffatt, the irony of his being killed?

9. The characters in the town: the men of the mill, the hotel and Gladys George as the manager?

10. American frontier, greed, law and order, violence? The frontier and its heritage?