Truly Dreadful Film

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

"Part of Murphy's appeal to many people was that he didn't fit the "image" most had of a war hero. He was a slight, almost fragile-looking, shy and soft-spoken young man".(IMDb biography)It works wonders on "no name on the bullet" in which Murphy "underplays" and succeeds in being threatening ,disturbing,without the usual tricks.Anyway "no name on the bullet" is an offbeat western ,looking sometimes more like a thriller with a dash of Agatha Christie thrown in:we know "who'll do it" but we do not know who will be slain .And many people in town have an uneasy conscience .The killer tells the doctor his victims have all done something wrong (like in "ten little Indians";people who have read that book will realize that the ending -when you learn who the victim was- has something of Christie's detective story).Suspenseful from start to finish ,the "hero" epitomizing "immanent justice ,in an almost abstract way,which the last pictures (which break with old Hollywood traditions)reinforce ..At a running time of about 75 min it's another Arnold's tour De force ,almost in the same league as his classic "the incredible shrinking man".

John Gant is a hired assassin, whenever he rides into a town the whole townsfolk wonder who it is who is on his list. John Gant is a very shrewed assassin for he never gets arrested because he never draws first, he psychologically gets under his targets skins forcing them to shoot first, and John Gant always has witnesses. Today, John Gant has rode into Lordsburg, and from today things will never be the same again...In CinemaScope and Eastman ColorDirected by Jack Arnold, we open with a vision of sprawling hills and a vast landscape (DOP: Harold Lipstein), a man handsomely attired in pristine black clothing trots past on his shiny black horse, he gathers pace and gallops off over the hills, we next see him trotting into Lordsburg, elegance and grace oozing from his pores. This is John Gant, also known as Audie Murphy, and for me we are introduced to one of the greatest Western characters outside of the critics favoured lists of usual suspects.Audie Murphy had his critics, he himself hardly went out of his way to embrace stardom and pander to the ink scribblers, but here as Gant is a performance of icy cold wonderment that in my opinion proves any doubters wrong. Gant rides into Lordsburg and his mere presence sends the town into panic, friends and associates implode with suspicion whilst Gant just calmly floats amongst them with little leers and low speaking pearls of wisdom. As Gant forms a weird sort of friendship with Charles Drake's Dr. Luke Canfield, the picture gains some much needed heart, and once the finale arrives it helps to close the picture on a hugely rewarding note.The film reminded me very much of a Twilight Zone episode called The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street, it's a great story to work from {courtesy of Howard Amacker}, because it's morally suspicious and it has characters always on the brink of breaking the law through the sheer worry of their sins and dubious intentions coming back to get them. My only real complaints are that the film is far to short, not sure if it was down to budget or acting restrictions? But clocking in at just 77 minutes I personally feel that another 15 minutes was a must to fully flesh out the finale, and sadly the exterior filming of the gorgeous locale is sparse, which is most galling after the attention grabbing opening shots. However, the film still works a treat and comes highly recommended to even those who don't like Westerns. 8/10

In Paul Buhle and Dave Wagner's biography of blacklisted writer/director Abraham Polonsky, Polonsky tells them he had worked as a writer without credit on many films. But he would not divulge the names of all these films because he honoured agreements not to do so. These titles Polonsky took to his grave. Jack Arnold's excellent philosophical western, "No Name on the Bullet", repeats the classic Polonsky line from "Body and Soul": "Everybody dies!". In fact, this is the overt theme of "No Name on the Bullet" which explores the notion of life and death at great length. The retired judge is old enough to sacrifice himself for the town. His selflessness seems to diminish any high morals his fellow townsmen may have. Audie Murphy as the assassin Jim Gant recognises this, even though he did not kill him as he initially planned, recognises the old man's bravery and defiance when he refuses to accept Dr Charles Drake's offer to treat his arm. There is not a bad performance in this thoughtful and engrossing western and it shows how well Audie Murphy could act with a first-rate director at the helm. Jack Arnold's best film seems to have Polonsky's poetic touch. I wonder if someone out there can confirm if Polonsky was involved with the script of "No Name on the Bullet". Is my theory likely?

Audie Murphy is at his best in this western as the quiet gunslinger John Gant. The drama and personal emotions that this character brings to the screen only adds to the build up of John Gant. The friend ship that Gant and the Doctor (Charles Drake) develops is admirable in that they both have different values. When Gant compares himself to the Doctor the comparison is truly magnificent. Some of the lines will live forever. Thats my prescription physician you better have it filled, I might even have one for you store keeper. Thats sets the stage for who wants to die. Reminds me of the scene in Warlock. When Henry Fonds says "Well who's to do it".