tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post3348766973633155792..comments2024-03-23T03:57:15.055-07:00Comments on Caftan Woman: The Blogathon for RANDOLPH SCOTT: Hangman's Knot (1952)Caftan Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-73197894300476179442015-01-30T05:04:37.817-08:002015-01-30T05:04:37.817-08:00The "Encore" channel sounds like somethi...The "Encore" channel sounds like something I wish we had up here! Thanks for the reading and the kind words.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-59249281977686710622015-01-29T17:27:19.098-08:002015-01-29T17:27:19.098-08:00Great review, just saw it on Encore and enjoyed i...Great review, just saw it on Encore and enjoyed it immensely. Lee Marvin always played well off his co-stars in Westerns, whether it was John Wayne, Burt Lancaster, or Randolph Scott. I thought Donna Reed did extremely well in her part. rcoceanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17102201338319611538noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-58901379019757469552015-01-27T13:10:38.919-08:002015-01-27T13:10:38.919-08:00I think this is a movie you would really enjoy. L...I think this is a movie you would really enjoy. Lots of good work to appreciate.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-29538139694839363932015-01-27T13:10:00.818-08:002015-01-27T13:10:00.818-08:00There are lots of treasures to be found in classic...There are lots of treasures to be found in classic westerns and the filmography of Randolph Scott. Maybe this is the year they nudge themselves into your favourites pile.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-71854284704078117372015-01-27T13:08:23.794-08:002015-01-27T13:08:23.794-08:00Good luck! Here's hoping a whole lot of Scott...Good luck! Here's hoping a whole lot of Scott movies come your way soon.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-68073841070978316422015-01-27T12:23:30.066-08:002015-01-27T12:23:30.066-08:00Splendid review, and background on Roy Huggins. I...Splendid review, and background on Roy Huggins. I join the few who haven't seen it yet, but when I do, I'll know now what to look for. Thanks.Jacqueline T. Lynchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11047941886908178350noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-48361060463777308512015-01-26T13:39:09.615-08:002015-01-26T13:39:09.615-08:00One of the few Westerns I have seen so was happy t...One of the few Westerns I have seen so was happy to read your review. I too was very unschooled in the ways of Randolph Scott, and for a long time had him down as a bit movie player (he was in more than 100 movies I recently discovered!). Happy to see I wasn't alone in this oversight and it's great to see his films getting some well-deserved recognition. I have to say that this film wasn't quite as predictable as I thought it would be, although the relationship with the hostage (Donna Reed?) is a step too far for me! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-6293017771986810762015-01-26T10:50:51.894-08:002015-01-26T10:50:51.894-08:00Randolph Scott movies are rare on TV, but luckily ...Randolph Scott movies are rare on TV, but luckily I can find them on the internet... or in B-movie sessions in weird channels! Hangman's Knot sounds great, with a great cast, like Donna Reed and often forgotten Jeanette Nolan. I hope I can see this one soon.<br />Thanks for the always kind comments,<br />LeLêhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02419693749682458647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-19108670278846786422015-01-26T07:17:37.279-08:002015-01-26T07:17:37.279-08:00Thank you so much.
I agree with our bundling of t...Thank you so much.<br /><br />I agree with our bundling of the Scott films, placing "Hangman's Knot" at the top of the second list. A cut above and a notch below.<br /><br />Widmark is an offbeat choice. He is an actor I enjoy immensely but somehow my appreciation of his westerns never pushed him over to that list. Certainly something to consider. So many truly fine performances in westerns seem to go under-appreciated as some blind critics/fans think the hat does the acting. Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-41410263503114353502015-01-26T07:12:14.012-08:002015-01-26T07:12:14.012-08:00I love the idea of Huggins doing this to get other...I love the idea of Huggins doing this to get other directors off his back. No longer could they tell him what could or couldn't be done as he'd been there and done that.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-73992413658040765572015-01-26T07:11:11.176-08:002015-01-26T07:11:11.176-08:00Thanks, Rick. It is a movie I enjoyed before I re...Thanks, Rick. It is a movie I enjoyed before I realized who Huggins was, and particularly how important he was in my entertainment life. Of course, once I made that connection it made the movie even more special.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-88253054017059324892015-01-25T23:05:19.001-08:002015-01-25T23:05:19.001-08:00Great review. You really captured the tension as ...Great review. You really captured the tension as well as the beauty and like others here, I especially liked the line about Lee Marvin, even more the second time when you said ("Remember, trouble always seems to come from Lee Marvin.") I chuckled heartily because it's just so true.<br /><br />My top tier of Randolph Scott movies is, I must acknowledge, the usual one--the six films of the Ranown cycle (Budd Boetticher didn't consider "Westbound" part of this and I don't either) and "Ride the High Country." But in the next tier this is probably first among a few equals for me. It is really so fine, so well-done and I always wondered why Roy Huggins did not pursue directing his own scripts after this. He certainly could have.<br /><br />That question was finally answered for me in your quote from him that really made sense, that he wanted the other directors to know he could and then they'd respect his work. Though I would have liked a few more movies as good as "Hangman's Knot" I can't regret his career course. He created my two favorite television series of all time:<br />1 - The Fugitive (and)<br />2 - Maverick<br />and I say that having seen every episode of both shows. Really a prodigious talent.<br /><br />I was also interested in your favorite Western actors because I'm one more person here who agrees on Wayne, Stewart, McCrea and Scott as the top four. The first three can probably claim more for their non-Western roles than Scott, while superb would be an understatement for their great Western roles too, but it is Scott who may most believably<br />embody the Western hero in the late masterpieces--he is so resolute yet so understated, and when there is a tragic note he carries it with that heartbreaking stoicism that moves us so much. In any event, after those four so many are great in the Westerns they made, especially in the 50s, and Glenn Ford is a choice that I'd find hard to argue with, but I might hold out for Richard Widmark even if it's an offbeat choice: His Westerns are consistently strong through the classic period, and he's always great in them over a wide range of roles from hero to villain and lots of shades in between. Blake Lucashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02901650254109292800noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-91108333425104755912015-01-25T16:44:10.905-08:002015-01-25T16:44:10.905-08:00Excellent review, Caftan Woman! This is yet anothe...Excellent review, Caftan Woman! This is yet another Scott film I've yet to see, but it sounds great, and what a cast! You're right, Lee Marvin's presence in a movie always spells trouble for somebody. Very interesting to learn of Roy Huggins involvement. I've been reading Ed Robertson's books on MAVERICK and THE ROCKFORD FILES recently, which of course were two of Huggins biggest TV hits. What an interesting and talented man he was. Jeff Flugelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06127134815672151999noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-54627370809871237552015-01-25T09:14:00.746-08:002015-01-25T09:14:00.746-08:00This Western represents a fine example of the earl...This Western represents a fine example of the early writing of Roy Huggins, who created some of television''s finest series. I love your quote: "Trouble always seems to come from Lee Marvin." Ain't that the truth? You made a fine choice and did a fine job with your RS Blogathon selection!Rick29https://www.blogger.com/profile/08358116647815569722noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-65576229364716213552015-01-25T07:49:11.618-08:002015-01-25T07:49:11.618-08:00I like your rolling list. A lot of fine actors, a...I like your rolling list. A lot of fine actors, and actors who had to really work at it, gave their best in westerns. All deserve our applause.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-57943148871176559722015-01-25T07:47:49.549-08:002015-01-25T07:47:49.549-08:00"Hangman's Knot" truly delivers. I ..."Hangman's Knot" truly delivers. I think the faith that our star showed in our fledgling writer/director was all important.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-5126356660980121252015-01-25T07:45:44.945-08:002015-01-25T07:45:44.945-08:00I love the spin you put on your upcoming viewing o...I love the spin you put on your upcoming viewing of "Hangman's Knot". I'd bet actual money that this is one you are going to enjoy. I was hoping to find it on TCM's Donna Reed day coming up this week, but they let the side down.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-79141026788500617382015-01-25T00:29:40.400-08:002015-01-25T00:29:40.400-08:00BTW, meant to endorse your list of favourite weste...BTW, meant to endorse your list of favourite western stars. Scott, McCrea, Stewart and Wayne are my Top 4 (no question). No.5 might be Robert Taylor. But I think it might actually be a sort of rolling list where I don't want to exclude any of....Rod Cameron, Rory Calhoun, George Montgomery and a few more. Maybe they're all equal No.5!!Jerry Ehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13449056763533336724noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-37721664213698628502015-01-25T00:22:30.761-08:002015-01-25T00:22:30.761-08:00Great review of one of Scott's absolute finest...Great review of one of Scott's absolute finest westerns IMHO. The narrative tension is maintained terrifically throughout and Marvin makes a fine contribution. <br />I'm so glad you shared this tribute between Scott and Roy Huggins. The latter's contribution to film, but especially TV, was immense.Jerry Ehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13449056763533336724noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-36205770301765061752015-01-24T18:17:02.002-08:002015-01-24T18:17:02.002-08:00Another Scott Western I haven't seen yet -- an...Another Scott Western I haven't seen yet -- and a Roy Huggins film too! Donna Reed is always a welcome heroine as well. All this and Lone Pine too? I'm taking notes today. :) I guess the good thing about the ones I haven't seen yet is that I still have them to look forward to!<br /><br />Best wishes,<br />LauraLaurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09626109831176745957noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-62180556716004874382015-01-24T17:30:14.412-08:002015-01-24T17:30:14.412-08:00Randolph Scott is the first name that comes to min...Randolph Scott is the first name that comes to mind when I consider westerns. Part of that is due to the number and quality of his output and part of that has to do with the box office number one cowboy, John Wayne. I adore watching "Duke", but to me he was more than a cowboy star. James Stewart, Glenn Ford and Joel McCrea would round up a top five.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-3912719265613411572015-01-24T17:28:21.143-08:002015-01-24T17:28:21.143-08:00There are few things I enjoy more than a fine clas...There are few things I enjoy more than a fine classic movie ensemble.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-11777783353070501262015-01-24T17:27:54.534-08:002015-01-24T17:27:54.534-08:00Excellent point about the narrowing of perspective...Excellent point about the narrowing of perspective. It really worked on the tension level.Caftan Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05936895555808823221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-74471782442555610672015-01-24T14:04:27.858-08:002015-01-24T14:04:27.858-08:00Where would you put Scott within the pantheon of W...Where would you put Scott within the pantheon of Western cinematic heroes? I didn't realize so much of his career was in Westerns until I happened to look at his IMDB page one day, and I get the impression he was more than a B-movie guy.Richhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11376065182154885503noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-331373971294623620.post-72093848629760807602015-01-24T10:37:27.243-08:002015-01-24T10:37:27.243-08:00I love this Scott western. Thanks for your fine re...I love this Scott western. Thanks for your fine review. The cast was so good.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com