The Hard Man
The Hard Man
NR | 01 December 1957 (USA)
The Hard Man Trailers

A Texas Ranger turns deputy sheriff; a woman wants him to kill her cattle-baron husband.

Reviews
MamaGravity good back-story, and good acting
Dorathen Better Late Then Never
Micah Lloyd Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.
Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.
score-10 Just the thing for a lazy Sunday afternoon - like all those TV westerns from 50s/60s which this reviewer found when perhaps more impressionable - when men were Men, spoke deep, dressed clean and drew sixguns easy fast. The story/plot in detail is (surely ?) corny ridiculous soap - to this nonAmerican anyhow - but, once that is accepted, this film can entertain as a straight "shoot 'em, cowboy" with a hero in the Hollywood tradition of the (semi-official) vigilante from the Lone Ranger to the Dark Knight. Definitely competently acted and made q well enough, this film is a nice reminder of how the fun Western used to be. Canadian Lorne Green went on to greater fame; going by this movie, Madison and French were unlucky not to do same.
Michael O'Keefe Steve Burden(Guy Madison)usually brings them in dead, maybe being easier than bringing the bad guy in alive. He actually loses his job for being too quick on the draw. The last man he was forced to kill was a friend from his past, who may have actually been framed for murder. The Sheriff of El Solito hires Burden to be his Deputy and he begins searching for the man who framed his friend. He thinks he has found that man...Rice Martin(Lorne Greene),who seems to have the town under his thumb. Martin's attractive wife Fern(Valeri French)warns Burden that her husband has hired gunmen to put him down.Madison seems to be a run-of-the-mill good guy. Greene(better known as Ben Cartwright, the Bonanza patriarch)makes for an overbearing villain. Also in the cast: Barry Atwater, Rudy Bond and Robert Burton. THE HARD MAN is no great shakes, but good enough to hold your attention.
swithers54 This is a better western than some made in the 50's. Guy Madison is good as the reluctant fast gun. Lorne Greene (pre-Bonanza) is excellent as a thoroughly ruthless land baron. Valerie French is pretty. Myron Healy who has been in countless pictures is not even credited but is the reason for Guy Madison to go to the town where Lorne Greene is the boss. Madison does a good job of showing how a lawman can sometimes be as ruthless as the outlaws if not careful. He is forced to kill his friend and then finds out the friend may have been framed as a killer. He rides to the town where his friend committed the crime and runs into a lot of road blocks (most notably Lorne Greene's character) as well as a beautiful woman that he is not sure of.
Terence Allen The Hard Man does not stand out as anything unique, but it is an entertaining western that can hold your interest during viewing. Guy Madison does fine as the stalwart lawman/gunfighter brought in to clean up the town. Valerie French has the requisite beauty as the femme fatale, although it sounds as if her voice was dubbed by another actress. The greatest revelation about the Hard Man is seeing a pre-Ben Cartwright Lorne Greene play a ruthless, utterly despicable villain. This was made several years before Bonanza began, and Greene makes the most of playing the bad guy. This alone makes the movie worth watching. The Hard Man is a fine Western to watch to pass the time. The only thing noteworthy is to watch this while comparing Greene's character to his future Ben Cartwright role.