A Lawless Street (1955) Reviews

• Worthwhile Western

  abooboo-22001-07-15

  Sort of an early "Unforgiven" in some ways. Also similar to director Lewis' "Terror in a Texas Town" though thankfully not as goofy or campy. You get a real sense of the wild west slowly being tamed, of it making the uneasy transition from a violent, lawless land to a reasonably civilized place where law and order stand a chance. I liked Randolph Scott's metaphor for the town, that it's like a wild animal that keeps getting kicked, and sooner or later it's going to do more than just snarl and growl miserably; it's going to bite back. Scott makes a good, twinkle-eyed loner hero and Angela Lansbury is quite attractive as his leggy showgirl love interest, (though she would begin playing mothers of grown children just a few years later) but their romance is rather obligatory and uninspired. Both the villains are effective, Warner Anderson as the unscrupulous (what else?)womanizing businessman and Michael Pate as the sinister gloved gunman (Lewis seems to have a thing about gunman wearing gloves). Anderson's line deliveries are extremely flat and matter of fact, which just makes him that much more detestable somehow. He's like a greed machine, no heart, no emotion whatsoever. At first glance this may seem like no more than just another passable western, but it's got some meat on its bones. And Lewis really shines when it comes to building the suspense leading up to the inevitable bar room showdown between the bad guy and the good.

• weird western

  RanchoTuVu2005-02-21

  A town is at the crossroads between law and order and its commercial interests, saloon owner Cody Clarke (John Emery) and mayor Hamer Thorne (Warner Anderson) choose the latter in order to maintain the surging saloon business. In order to achieve their goal they have to get rid of the competent marshal played by Randolph Scott, and hire a gunman (Michael Pate) to take care of him. Scott is wounded and widely believed to have been killed, but comes back to settle scores, while his ex-wife (Angela Lansbury) who is now a singer and dancer in a burlesque company comes into town and does a quite revealing song and dance number. Directed by B film genius Joseph H. Lewis, the film has originality, style, and quite an interesting premise, though the opportunities slip by.

• Overcrowded

  dougdoepke2012-01-13

  No need to repeat the plot since it's a pretty standard one. Considering the talent involved, the results are more than a little disappointing. I agree with other critics—Scott looks tired and less motivated than his usual self. Plus, the unlikely pairing of him with an actress 30- years younger (Lansbury) only accentuates the problem. It's also a talky indoor western, perhaps to accommodate the many veteran actors in the cast, with only Donnelly (old Molly) showing any real spark. Those many speaking parts also make for an unwieldy storyline. And for some reason, cult director Lewis shows little engagement as the rather flat performances and impersonal climax demonstrate. Not everything is downside. Don Megowan's hulking gun-hater comes across as an interesting character, certainly no stereotype, in a role that should have been bigger. There're also a couple of unexpected twists that help spark interest. But, the overall results remain uneven, at best. Good thing for western fans that Scott soon hooked up with Buddy Boetticher and Ranown, a combo that knew how to get the most out of the aging actor in a series of memorable classics. But despite the presence here of Ranown's producer Harry Joe Brown, this is not one of them.

• Randolph Scott meets Jessica Fletcher

  bkoganbing2004-07-21

  Randolph Scott is the town marshal like Gary Cooper in High Noon. Only instead of four guys coming to town to kill the marshal because of an old grudge, here we have a trio of villains, Warner Anderson, John Emery, and Michael Pate. The first two have been hiring folks to do in Scott because they want a wide open and lawless town for the saloon business. They've finally settled on Pate who does beat Scott to the draw and folks think he's been killed. Warner Anderson is a particularly smarmy villain. He's got designs on Angela Lansbury who's a touring musical performer in town for a few performances. He's also been romancing the wife of the biggest rancher in the area played by Jean Parker and he says openly that it was only for his own amusement. That remark costs him dear in the movie later on. Scott has a particularly brutal fight scene with Don Megowan who's the brother of a man Scott kills in the first 15 minutes of the film. Ranks up there with his classic brawls with John Wayne in The Spoilers and Pittsburgh. I remember a Gunsmoke episode years ago where this particular plot line was used. Someone beats Matt Dillon to the draw and Doc Adams pretends he's dead and in the meantime works furiously to save his life. Here that role is taken by town doctor Wallace Ford. Both Randolph Scott and James Arness live to best the villain, but the story is how in both cases and I won't say more. A good cast of veteran Hollywood performers makes A Lawless Street a pleasure to watch. And Angela Lansbury has a musical number. What's better than that?

• Very good cast elevates a routine western

  Panamint2014-09-27

  You might notice that Randolph Scott is trying very hard in this film and is committed to a good performance, and this is one of his best. He tried noticeably harder in movies that he produced (understandably) like this one versus the studio-contract films he endlessly tromped through for many years. Scott, like many leading men, also noticeably worked well with respected superior actresses like Angela Lansbury here, as opposed to just random movie actresses and bimbos. Scott ups his game here and their scenes together are good. Excellent supporting players are on hand including the avuncular Wallace Ford, perennially versatile and noted actor Michael Pate, and others. John Emery, almost unknown today but part of the Hollywood fabric for a long time, makes a too-rare Western villain appearance as a rotten saloon owner. Middle age and many years of sins are etched in Emery's face. He is perfect for this role. Some fans will undoubtedly remember Emery from the sci-fi classic "Kronos". Angela Lansbury- what can I say but just note how she distinguishes and elevates this movie. You know what I mean- she's Angela Lansbury. So the formula routine plotting and the clichés are uplifted in the end result of "A Lawless Street". I can recommend it for Western fans and for fans of the individual actors involved.