Blood on the Moon

Rock solid western about the moral ambivalence of the frontier, where no meeting is free from tension, one person unsure of the other's allegiance and motivation. Even friends and family are equally capable of deceit. It's all wrapped a bit neatly in the end, but the journey is packed with beautiful scenery, exciting action sequences, and a few notable performances, with two particular supporting treats from Brennan and McGraw.

Unfortunately the female cast really brings this film down, but thankfully most of the male cast, in particular Mitchum, Brennan and McGraw, imbue their characters with sufficient grit and determination to vividly depict the tragedy of the homesteaders versus cattle owners. As we all know, it is very difficult but imperative to end a film such that there is a consummation of experience for the viewers, in this regard Wise fails miserably.

This dark, psychological western is, as often noted, quite a bit like a film noir set in the American west. Mitchum is incredibly well suited to the genre, coming across as an imposing John Wayne figure with a well of psychological depth. Preston is a wonderfully smarmy villain. Visually, the film blends the best of both genres with a lot of deep, chiaroscuro scenes as well as some grand, western vistas. Walter Brennan shows up as one of the homesteaders and that's always a good thing.

Em honra do centenário de Barbara Bel Geddes. Como era de se esperar de um filme fotografado pelo Musaraca, esse western noir psicológico tem todo um clima do melhor do noir, enquanto trabalha questões da América profunda. BlurayRip RARBG.

Blood on the Moon (1948) is one of those movies that I wish I'd loved more. Had so much going for it, and starting so great with Robert Mitchum & Barbara Bel Geddes showcasing their shoot-intimidation. Excellent first meeting! The story is fine too, but the pacing wasn't really elevating what it had going for it.

Fair western that dabbles with noir, but opts instead to come up with a pretty convoluted plot (and plot twists) to carry the movie.

The western-noir ambiance has potential but it's not realised well enough in this one. It's not helped by the lackluster plot, either.

Star Rating: ★★★

I found this while looking for other noir/westerns and was somewhat let down. The movie is decent enough but it lacks in the noir elements I was looking for.

Film Noir and Western are two of my favorite genres and Mitchum is one my favorite actors, so this should be awesome. There are definitely some Noirish elements; especially the cinematography which makes good use of light and shadows with a lot of action taking place at night time. Mitchum's protagonist is not a typical clean cut hero although I hoped the character to be even more flawed. It's definitely worth a watch for fans of both genres, but not the ultimate combo that I was hoping for.