No Name On The Bullet (1959)

NO NAME ON THE BULLET (1959)

 By Ralph Santini - ***

“No Name On The Bullet” was Jack Arnold’s third period Western and quite possibly his best of that genre. It stars real-life WWII veteran Audie Murphy, brilliantly cast against type as vicious gunman John Gant who’s on his way to kill someone in Lordsburg, New Mexico. The only catch with that is whom is he going to kill? Well, you might find out, but I won’t tell because I’d consider it a huge spoiler. What I can tell that might thrill you in this review is that it causes severe paranoia in Lordsburg on John Gant’s account. It ranges from a nervous hotel owner, Henry Reeger (Simon Scott, well cast and fabulous), corrupt businessman Earl Stricker (Karl Swenson, the voice Merlin the Magician in Disney’s Sword in the Stone), his arrogant clerk (Warren Stevens, excellent), Stricker’s own Union-leading enemy Chaffee (John Alderson) among many others. In fact not even the town’s own Sherriff, Buck Hastings (a terrific performance by Willis Bouchey), can be able to stop the vicious young killer Gant.
                However, Gant befriends a brave physician, Dr. Luke Canfield (Winchester ‘73’s Charles Drake) who even intents playing with him a game of Chess. Unlike most of Lordsburg’s citizens Dr. Canfield is not afraid of Gant, even if he recognizes of mean and cruel Gant is. On top of that he is dating a retired Judge’s (an excellent portrayal by Edgar Stehli) young daughter, Anne Benson (the cute Joan Evans) whom her father is equally brave towards Gant himself. In fact Judge Benson knows an important way to get rid of Gant for good. Anyhow, I’m not telling that solution.

The point is that “No Name on the Bullet” is one underrated little western; I thought it was wittingly first rate. Murphy delivers as the no-good gunslinger who causes lots of panic in Lordsburg and the rest of the cast portraying the town afraid of him are superb. Equally winning is the dark tone set for this slick screenplay that has this psychological western with very few gunshots included. Even the story as I have described is effective because we don’t have any other clichés used in more routine westerns.