The Gun Hawk

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On the outskirts of the relationship between Blaine and Reb there is the lawmen in pursuit, one is wise and has a soft spot for Madden, the other is angry and only sees death for Madden as a positive result. Into the mix comes Ruta Lee (ravishing in looks, staid in acting) as the love interest, though it's nice to report that this strand of the story never cloys and in fact enhances the Madden character arc. Robert J. Wilke and Lane Bradford file in for villain duties, with the former energetic and doing a nice line in brash outlaw who is destined for a fall. As Brooks rides into town, he finds a place once familiar and now drastically changed. In the meantime, he visits with an old friend, Frank Morgan, who sheds some light on what has been happening around town since Brooks has been gone. Brooks even finds out that his old flame, Virginia, is now married to the town sheriff, Jake Evans.

So he winds up bound for Sanctuary, a town that lives up to its name. It’s a town where he’s boss and where those on the run can hide out, under two conditions: They pay their way and they don’t kill one another. Along for the ride is a new, young friend, “Red” Roan (Rob Lauren.) Passing through town Madden gets involved in a fight between "Reb" Roan (Rod Lauren) and the Sully brothers (Lane Bradford, Glenn Stensel) over a poker game. Roan begins a hero worship of Madden much to the dismay of hard nosed sheriff Ben Corey (Rod Cameron). Corey and Madden it seems once had a father-son relationship but Corey was unable to prevent Madden from leaving town and becoming a well known gunfighter. Sonic Advance & Sonic Adventure 2: Battle Official Perfect Guide · Sonic Adventure 2: Battle Strongest Strategy Guide · Sonic Adventure 2 Hero/Dark Manual · Sonic Adventure 2 Perfect Guide · Sonic Adventure 2: Prima's Official Strategy Guide Both Cameron and Calhoun are shown to good advantage, Calhoun having the more complex part in The Gun Hawk. Also look for a nice performance by Rod Lauren as a young kid who both Calhoun and Cameron are courting. Yet another young man of promise. Written by Jo Heims (known later for Play Misty for Me), The Gun Hawk was the final film directed by Edward Ludwig, whose nearly 50-year career spanned over 100 shorts, television episodes and features, including the John Wayne hits The Fighting Seabees, Wake of the Red Witch and Big Jim McLain. Cast [ edit ]While having a drink in the saloon, a drunk (a barely recognizable John Litel) wanders in bagging for a drink. Turns out the old man is Madden's father. The Sullys learn of this and use the old timer to draw Madden out into the open. During the ensuing scuffle, the old man sacrifices himself to save his son. Artificial Chaos ( Artificial Chaos P-1, Artificial Chaos P-100, Cell, Float Type, Guard Type) · Boo · Boom Boo Calhoun may not have been the greatest actor, but he knew how to deliver the goods as a jaded gunfighter. What makes the role unusually interesting is that after a certain point, Calhoun knows he's going to die. In fact, he knows it before we do, and once we figure it out, his actions - such as his seemingly unfeeling treatment of a longtime girlfriend - make sense.

But Calhoun has another scheme in mind. He's the kingpin in a town called Sanctuary, an outlaw town. Calhoun's also got his girl friend Ruta Lee there as well. He'll need her presence as his gun hand is out of commission. Two veterans of the B western movie genre Rory Calhoun and Rod Cameron team up for The Gun Hawk. Cameron plays an upright sheriff who saw some promise in Rory Calhoun and wanted to make him his deputy. But Calhoun preferred the dark side and became a notorious gunfighter. Rory Calhoun does an excellent job in the lead role. His makeup for the climatic scenes is quite realistic and convincing. Rod Lauren was a singer of the day who had a brief acting career. Rod Cameron on the down side of his career was shortly to embark on making spaghetti western in Europe. Blaine Madden: “No you don’t, Ben. You’d have to crawl inside my guts to know that, and I ain’t got room in there for you.”It's the last movie directed by Edward Ludwig -- he would helm one TV episode three years later, then retire -- and there are a lot of troubles with it. Cameron moves and speaks as if his corset is hurting him, Jimmy Haskell's score makes this seem more like a long TV episode than an actual movie, and the script is busy and muddled. Ludwig directs as if the Production Code is still in effect. Saddest of all, it's John Litel playing Calhoun's drunkard father for a brief, inglorious moment on the screen. Sheriff Ben Corey, handing over a six-shooter: “Reb, I took this away from you last night while you were asleep. I didn’t want you to roll over and blow your big toe off.”

As I write this, The Gun Hawk enjoys a meager 5.8 IMDb rating. As you can see from my own rating, I think this is way too low.

There's also something fresh about the town of Sanctuary, where outlaws on the lam are safe from pursuit, as long as they keep their guns holstered. I'm not saying it's never been done before, but I've seen a lot of films in this genre, and the idea seemed new to me.

The role of Madden’s long-suffering lover Marlene is played by Ruta Lee, who got her film start in “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” and settled into a long TV acting career. When she hit the big screen, it was usually in a Western. She also appeared in “Sergeants Three” and the Audie Murphy vehicle “Bullet for a Badman.” The Gun Hawk is directed by Edward Ludwig and collectively written by Jo Heims, Richard Bernstein and Max Steeber. It stars Rory Calhoun, Rod Cameron, Ruta Lee, Rod Lauren, Morgan Woodward and Robert J. Wilke. Music is by Jimmy Haskell and cinematography by Paul Vogel. The performances of the lead actors are noteworthy. Rory Calhoun embodies the character of J.B. Brooks, the retired gunslinger, to perfection. His on-screen presence commands attention, and his portrayal of a tough ex-convict looking for redemption is convincing. Rod Cameron's role as the town sheriff is also well played, showing the character's determination, intelligence, and courage at every turn. And Ruta Lee's performance as Virginia, the feisty and determined woman who loves Brooks, is captivating. Corey attempts to arrest Madden in the town but is driven away by the townspeople. But then in spite of the tender loving care provided by his girl Marleen (Ruta Lee), Madden's wound becomes infected forcing him to.............................................................Usually I would call a western like "The Gun Hawk" a cliche western because here we have the classic western storyline of a well known outlaw trying to live his life peacefully but having to deal day in day out with the danger his notoriety brings. And to be honest there is plenty which is cliche about it from characters to drama but then considering this is nothing more than a b-movie it plays out in an entertaining manner reaching a nice dramatic climax. And one thing lifts "The Gun Hawk", makes it better than it really is and that is Rory Calhoun who delivers a performance superior to the movie and makes some corny scenes surprisingly touching. Sure, the movie has faults. It begins badly, with a cheesy title song, clumsy expositional dialogue in a sheriff's office, and a comedy-relief fight scene that's not funny. By that point I was thinking maybe I should turn it off. But soon after, it improved.