Develiker
terrible... so disappointed.
Dynamixor
The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.
Benas Mcloughlin
Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.
Anoushka Slater
While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.
bsmith5552
"Yellow Sky" is an uneven black and White western that has the look and feel of a "film noire".A gang of outlaws headed by James "Stretch Dawson" and including gambler "Dude" (Richard Widmark), Bull Run (Robert Arthur), Lengthy (John Russell), Half Pint (Harry Morgan), Walrus (Charles Kemper) and Jed (Robert Adler), ride into a dusty town and rob the local bank. While fleeing the sheriff's posse, Jed is killed and the others head for the salt flats/desert.Against all odds, the group comes upon the ghost town, Yellow Sky. There they meet the feisty young "Mike" (a pistol packing Anne Baxter) and her Grampa (James Barton). Dude is the first to suspect that the pair are hiding something. He discovers a gold mine and with the others plans to steal the booty.Meanwhile the normally stern Stretch takes a liking to "Mike". He negotiates with Grampa to share the gold 50/50. However Dude and the others have no such plan to share the loot. Stretch too plans to double cross the old man. But when he sees Grampa talking with visiting Apaches and convincing them not to attack, he sees that the old timer plans to keep his part of the bargain and therefore he will keep his part.A showdown between Stretch and the others results in Dude and the others taking over. The others pin Stretch, "Mike" and Grampa in the old man's cabin.This film has all the trappings of a "Film Noire" complete with low light
B &W photography, many nighttime scenes, a dark murky landscape and a sort of "femme fatale" in the person of the "Mike" character. The biggest problem I have with this story is the cop out Hollywood ending. The film should have ended with the climatic shoot-out.Gregory Peck is as always, the stern leader of men which makes the ending of the movie a little hard to swallow. Widmark, who was just starting out makes the perfect double crossing oily villain. Anne Baxter in tight jeans and carrying a six shooter...what else is there to say.
sol-
Forced to ride for days through the desert after a daring bank robbery, a group of outlaws arrive at a foreboding ghost town in this atmospheric western from Lamar Trotti and William Wellman - who wrote and directed 'The Ox-Bow Incident'. While not as well known as the 1943 Henry Fonda western, 'Yellow Sky' offers an almost equally compelling tale of greed, trust and betrayal. The first few scenes are particularly striking with the outlaws ruing how they "can't even buy {themselves} a drink of water" despite lugging all their gold across the desert. The film benefits from some excellent, wide open exteriors too that emphasise just how lost they are before coming across the ghost town. Their experiences at the town prove even more interesting as they find that the two remaining residents are sitting on a fortune in gold, which they ironically still want, forgetting their earlier regrets of lugging gold across the desert minus water. There is a romantic angle that does not really gel; the fact that none of gang leader Gregory Peck's colleagues are fleshed out in much depth also lessens the impact of the rift that develops between them, but generally speaking, the film remains compelling right to the end. Anne Baxter makes for a surprisingly feisty female lead, James Barton offers solid support as her grandfather, and the tale benefits greatly from the dilapidated ghost town sets.
Alex da Silva
Gregory Peck (Stretch) leads his band of outlaws to rob a town before being forced to take exile through the desert until they come upon the ghost town of Yellow Sky. Here they come across Anne Baxter (Mike) and her grandfather James Barton (Grandpa). The gang soon work out that these two have a fortune. Greed takes over.The film is a slight let-down in the action and tension department. Peck and Baxter are the best of the cast while outlaw Richard Widmark (Dude) is wasted. His character seems to be half missing and just about sparks into some kind of interest right at the end of the film. Too late – we don't connect with him anymore because he has been so boring and disappointing up to that point. Fellow outlaw John Russell (Lengthy) gives more of a performance as an adversary to Peck.It is a well made film and there are some quality moments of dialogue but the film cried out for more action and more involvement from the Apaches. They were sorely missed.
standalone-magazine
Greed...is the first word that comes to mind when ever, I think about this film. It's a film that makes you think about (right and wrong) as the storyline continues to unfold. Stretch played by (Gregory Peck) and his gang stumble into a town that seems to be deserted. But as they soon learn, there is still a couple of people who still live there. A very lovely girl named Mike played by (Anne Baxter) and her grandfather (James Barton) still live in this ghost town. But why?....Is the question that haunts Stretch and his band of me. As the film unfolds, the truth is revealed about 'why' these two stayed behind. Stretch..begins to have a soft-spot for (Mike) and she also begins to fall for him. But, Dude..played by (Richard Widmark) and (Half Pint) played by Henry 'Harry' Morgan have other plans in mind. But as they come to find-out (Mike) is pretty good with a shot-gun. The expression on (Richard Widmark's face are priceless.) Stretch soon comes to realize that he must do the right 'thing' rather than the wrong 'thing' to safe the woman that he now loves. It's a great tale that any movie-buff will enjoy. And (Anne Baxter) really does a good job in this film. You'll enjoy...Yellow Sky.