The shootout endings of both John FordÆs (1939) Stagecoach and Fred ZinnemannÆs (1952) High Noon pit a single man against multiple enemies. In the former, the escaped criminal ôThe Ringo Kidö faces the three Plummer brothers, while in the latter; Marshal Will Kane faces four tough killers. Despite the differences in how these gunfight finales are played out, there is a commonality to both climactic endings. At the end of both films, the lone funman abandons bivilized society with a woman to escape what each finds hypocritical and unfulfilling.
The climactic ending of Stagecoach pits escaped criminal ôThe Ringo Kidö against the three Plummer brothers, who have killed his father and brother. The filming of the shootout between Ringo and the brothers helped set the formula for classic Hollywood shootout scenes. Using a long-shot, we see the three Plummer brothers advance menacingly out of the darkness in the middle of the townÆs main street. The dark silhouette of Ringo moves into the scene in the foreground. We can see from RingoÆs vantage point the three Plummer brothers in the dark background at the end of the street. The opposing sides move step-by-step toward each other. After taking five steps toward each other, Ringo throws himself to the ground and fires off the three bullets he has in his gun, killing or mortally wounding all three. Dallas, a prostitute Ringo loves, runs toward the shot yelling ôRingo, Ringo, Ringo!ö (Ford, 1939). She is happy to discover Ringo alive. Ringo is to go back to prison, but Curly and Doc contrive to let Ringo and Dallas escape. As Ringo and DallasÆ coach rides off into the distance, Doc says to Curly, ôWell, theyÆre saved from the blessings of civilization,ö (Ford, 1939).
In High Noon, Marshall Will Kane must face four tough criminals in a gunfight without any support or assistance from the others in town. His deputy, a retired sheriff, and none of his friends or th...