Bad Day at Black Rock

Pros: Performances by Tracy, Marvin, Borgnine
Cons: Script unravels after first half. Cartoonish bad guys. Hollywood indulging in Self-Pity.

The movie opens with a sleek train pulling into the sleepy desert town of Black Rock. This is a noteworthy occurrence, as nobody in the town can remember the last time the streamliner stopped in the all but dead town. A lone passenger, a man...

Pros: A cast that includes 4 Oscar winner, great cinematography, a tightly told story
Cons: Allegory may annoy some. Perhaps the ending. The full-screen version is sad.

The MGM video people are evil. Maybe not all of them, but certainly enough to incur my wrath. So they release John Sturges's 1955 film in a pleasant "Vintage Classics" video edition and since I don't think it's gotten a DVD release, that's how I watched...

Pros: Bold themes.
Cons: Tracy is too damn old.

A train rumbles through the vast wasteland that is the midwestern desert. The train unexpectedly grinds to a halt outside the small rundown town that is Black Rock. A middle-aged, one-armed stranger disembarks, much to the surprise of the conductor. ...

Pros: Near-perfect cast. Great direction and cinematography
Cons: Pace. Could have delved further into racial hostility during the period.

McCreedy to Train Conductor: "Oh I'll only be here for twenty-four hours" Train Conductor to McCreedy: "In a place like this, that could be a lifetime" As the red Streamliner snakes and hurdles through the desolate Arizona desert in ...

Pros: Tracy, supporting cast, some suspenseful scenes. Nice music, cinematography and direction.
Cons: Lacks significant character development (May have been the intent). Political themes may distract some.

Black Rock. A town out in the middle of nowhere in the California desert. Yet one day, shortly after the end of World War II, an exciting event occurs here. For the first time in four years, the streamliner makes a stop here. Out of it comes one man...

Pros: Fine directing, acting, cinematography.
Cons: Melodramatic at times.

Bad Day at Black Rock (1955) is a finely directed (John Sturges) and acted Western set in the present day (post-WW II), with a plot line and feel that resemble those of Fred Zinnemann's peerless High Noon (1952). (NOTE: The blurb...

Pros: Keeps you on the edge of your seat.
Cons: A bit slow in getting started and needs just a tad bit more story line. More actors would help too.

Ah .... the beauty of the desert plains. Especially with a red train that moves along in a photographic shot. That is what you see first in this film. Mr. McCreeny portrayed by Spencer Tracey is a one armed man. You can not tell at the beginning of this...

Pros: I find the texture of this movie irresistible.
Cons: It's only 81 minutes long. It's just over too soon.

The other reviewers of this movie have done a great job of describing the plot, characters and action of the movie so I'm not going to discuss those items. Besides, for me this movie isn't about plot or action, it's about texture. I'm captivated by the ...

Pros: great actors and great plot
Cons: was never adjusted to fit new TV screens

This is a great film with ever changing twists and turns on who the good guys and bad guys really are. Every aspect of the film was accurately displayed right down to each prop visible. Many actors in the film go on to stardom and fame later in their...