7/10
Good revenge western with magnificent duo protagonist : James Garner/Earp and Jason Robards/Holliday playing the famous gunfighters
20 June 2006
The film takes place from October 26, 1881 to April 15, 1882 . Tombstone , Arizona , at the OK Corral , hoodlums from evil Ike Clanton (Robert Ryan , he was 57 at the time that the film was made , though his role Ike was only 34 years old) confront gunplay against Wyatt Earp (James Garner) , his brothers Virgil (Frank Converse played Earp's elder brother, in spite of the fact that he was ten years James Garner's junior) , Morgan (Melville) and joining forces with an ill-fated Doc Holliday (Jason Robards) . Members from Clanton gang result dead and as revenge Ike orders kill to Earp's brother . A furious Wyatt Earp swears vengeance and with help his friend Doc will do pay one for one the killers his brother.

This traditional western deals what happens later the gun-play at Tombstone . It's a sequel from superior version and more famous actors (Douglas and Lancaster) by the same director ¨Gunfight at the OK Corral¨(1957) . Prior to production , United Artists had made it quite clear to director John Sturges that none of the primary roles were to be filled by the actors who played the same characters in Sturges' previous Wyatt Earp film . Wanting to distinguish this film from the previous one , they demanded different actors be cast in the roles . The main character is a historical figure , in this case the sheriff Wyatt Earp who participated the most known duel occurred in the western town of Tombstone in 1881 that has been brought to the big screen many times as in the classic "My Darling Clementine" in 1946 directed by John Ford with Henry Fonda and Victor Mature , the famous "Gunfight at O.K. Corral" (1957) by specialist John Sturges who would resume the same story in this "The Hour of the Gun" (1967) ; the demystifying "Doc" (Frank Perry, 1971) with Harris Yulin and Stacy Keach or the more modern "Tombstone: The Legend of Wyatt Earp" (George P. Cosmatos, 1993) with Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer and ¨Wyatt Earp¨ (Lawrence Kasdan, 1994) with Kevin Costner and Dennis Quaid . ¨Hour of guns¨ packs an enjoyable and glimmer cinematography by Lucien Ballard . This thrilling film contains a spectacular and atmospheric musical score by the great Jerry Goldsmith . The motion picture was professionally directed by John Sturges.

The picture was based correctly on real events , thus : In 1879 Wyatt and his brothers and Doc Holliday arrived in Tombstone . Virgil became the town marshal . Trouble brewed up among the Earp gang and Clanton-McLaury faction which resulted the explosive showdown that lasted thirty seconds and Virgil and Morgan were badly wounded . Less than a year after the incident , Morgan was killed in an ambush . In response Wyatt and Holliday tracked down and shot the two man they considered to be Morgan's killers, and were forced to elude a pursuing posse in Colorado . Far from fitting the popular description of a stand-off among good guys and bad guys some historians consider the incident OK corral to be nothing but cold blooded murder of the Clanton and McLaurys some of whom were unarmed,by the Earps and Doc . The Earps always maintained the show down was fought in self-defense . Wyatt Earp lived on until 1929 but will always be remembered as the hero of OK Corral , however Doc , an alcoholic dentist turned gambler and gunman, will die soonest .
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