Shane (1953)
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A mysterious drifter becomes a hired hand for a family of homesteaders facing a ruthless cattle baron.
The story
Set in the Wyoming Territory in 1889, the film follows Shane, a laconic but skilled gunfighter with a mysterious past who rides into an isolated valley. He is hired as a farmhand by hardscrabble rancher Joe Starrett, who is homesteading with his wife, Marian, and their young son, Joey. Starrett informs Shane that a war of intimidation is being waged on the valley's settlers by a ruthless cattle baron, Rufus Ryker. Ryker has hired various rogues and henchmen to harass the homesteaders and force them out of the valley, despite their legal claims under the Homestead Acts.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Shane, a skilled gunfighter with a mysterious past, is hired as a farmhand by Joe Starrett, a homesteader in the Wyoming Territory. Ryker, a ruthless cattle baron, is attempting to seize the land by force. After a series of confrontations in town where Shane defends the homesteaders against Ryker's men, Ryker hires a notorious gunfighter, Jack Wilson. After Wilson kills a homesteader, the settlers find new resolve to stay. Ryker invites Starrett to a meeting to negotiate, but it is a trap. Calloway, one of Ryker's men, warns Shane of the double cross. Shane intervenes to protect Starrett, knocking him unconscious. Shane engages in a final shootout, killing Wilson, Ryker, and Ryker's brother, but is left wounded. Before riding out of the valley, Shane bids a final farewell to Joey, who watches him leave.
- First release year
- 1953
- Runtime (minutes)
- 118
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- George Stevens
- Writers
- A. B. Guthrie Jr. · screenplay; Jack Sher · Additional dialogue
- Cast and characters
- Alan Ladd · Shane; Jean Arthur · Marian Starrett; Van Heflin · Joe Starrett; Brandon deWilde · Joey; Jack Palance · Jack Wilson
- Genres
- Western; Revisionist Western
- Themes
- Conflict between homesteaders and cattle barons; Violence; Sacrifice
- Tone and mood
- Dramatic; Serious
- Premise and plot tags
- Western; Homesteading; Gunfighter
- Source material / true-story basis
- 1949 novel of the same name by Jack Schaefer
- Content notes
- Violence
- Reception
- The film was both a critical and commercial success, noted for its Technicolor landscape cinematography, editing, performances, and contributions to the genre. It was listed in AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies and was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 97% · review count: 39
- Awards and nominations
- Academy Award · Best Cinematography – Color · Winner
- Production trivia
- It was the first film to be projected in a 'flat' widescreen 1.66:1 ratio.; Alan Ladd's shooting demonstration for Joey required 116 takes.; The film was the last feature film and the only color film of A. B. Guthrie Jr.'s career.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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