TrueJoshNight Truly Dreadful Film

Nonureva Really Surprised!

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Donald Seymour This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

classicsoncall So I'm watching the movie, and with the title in mind, I'm wondering what connection the story line had to an actual Springfield Rifle. You think maybe the film makers threw that in as an afterthought, presumably to capitalize on Jimmy Stewart's success with "Winchester '73"? That's what I've read anyway, and that might explain things. One thing for sure, after hearing it repeated a number of times, I think we all get the business about the rifle being effective on a ratio of five men to one.Now if you've ever seen Chuck Connors in "Branded", the early scene of Lex Kearney (Gary Cooper) being courtmartialed and drummed out of the army for cowardice and gross neglect of duty will look familiar. What was unusual though was seeing him painted with a yellow stripe down his back! Did they really do that? Anyway, that's a pretty good set up for Kearney's turn as a counterintelligence officer for the Union Army once things get going.You know, there was a very cool move that I'm willing to bet was unintentional during the battle with McCool's (David Brian) outlaw bunch. During the fight, Pete Elm (Lon Chaney) shoots Captain Tennick (Philip Carey), and because Tennick's horse was on a bit of a hilly incline, when the horse buckled, he fell on top of Tennick and rolled right over him! I bet they couldn't reproduce that scene in a million years again without hurting man or horse. I had to rewind that part a couple of times just to marvel at it again. There's another interesting point to made of that sequence as well. After the fight was over, Kearney has more greasepaint on his face than when he started! Well be that as it may, the main point of the story had to do with establishing a counter espionage unit within the Union military, a point of contention early on when it was revealed the Confederate Army was using one during the Civil War, and it was thought beneath the dignity of the Union to do the same. I guess there's nothing like success to pave the way. In it's own little piece of the story, I guess the Springfield Rifle earned it's place in history too.

denis888 Gary Cooper is a real gem here, his cool, casual, collected, calm and concentrated demeanor builds a tremendous suspense. This is a classical western movie, albeit in a Civil War setting, and the theme is that of traitors, secret agents, spy circle, horse stealing and valiant conduct on a battle field. Phyllis Thaxter, Lon Chaney, Jr. ,Philip Carey and Fess Parker all play great parts here, in lavish Colorado nature, among majestic mountains, spellbinding rivers, dusty stones, great horses and huge sky. The film is a real thrill and holds tight all 90 minutes, never boring, never slow, never a dull moment. Gary Cooper shows a knack for horse riding, and his delivery is impeccable. This is a very good movie and a real gem of a genre

Uriah43 Gary Cooper plays the role of "Major Lex Kearny" who is tasked with getting a desperately needed herd of horses to the Union army. On the way there he encounters a large group of raiders and rather than risk the loss of men decides to retreat and allow the raiders to have the herd. Although he was out-numbered 4 to 1, his superiors feel that he should have put up more of a fact and as a result he is tried in a court-martial for cowardice and drummed out of the service. Now,rather than divulging what happens after that and risk spoiling the movie for those who haven't seen it, I will just say that I thought that this was a good Western movie with events that don't always happen as one might expect. And while it's an entertaining film, Gary Cooper is the only actor worth mentioning as far as performances are concerned. All in all, this was a decent movie which fans of this genre will probably enjoy. Slightly above average.

padutchland-1 I've heard it said that the Springfield Rifle was Warner Brothers answer to Winchester 73. That sounds plausible to me as the only reason to title the movie Springfield Rifle. Use of the rifle came in at the end of the movie but had very little to do with the rest of the film. At least in Wincester 73, Jimmy Stewart and others kept crossing the path of the titled rifle. Winchester was a better movie all around. Still, Springfield Rifle is well worth seeing if you are a fan, like me, of the old Westerns of the 1950s. In this one, Gary Cooper gets himself dishonorably discharged from the US Army for running from the enemy. I'm not going to tell you the why, who or how of it as I don't want to spoil any of the plot for you. Some things I can mention is that Coop is hired by the horse thieves who are outsmarting the military at every turn. His idea is to get the goods on who is doing the stealing and tipping off the "bad guys." He learns that they are in cahoots with the Confederate Cavalry to deny horses to the Union troops. Enough said on that count so that you can enjoy the movie without knowing what is coming up. Cast wise it was an interesting mix with some old hands to add their know-how. Coop was his usual self but he was showing his age and health at about 51 years old. This came out later, the same year as High Noon and he was starting to look a little rough in that too. But High Noon was his comeback picture after declining from his peak years. In Springfield Rifle, Phyllis Thaxter played the role she was usually saddled with, the wife of the male star. She did a good job with a role that didn't have much meat on it. You may remember her playing the wife of Glen Ford and adopted mother of the first Christopher Reeve Superman. I remember her outstanding job as Van Johnson's wife in 30 Seconds Over Tokyo. In Springfield Rifle she spills the beans and gets several people killed, but everyone is kind enough not to mention it. David Brian was smooth as a leader of the rustlers and Philip Carey was his usual self as a Union captain openly hostile to Cooper's part as Lex Kearney. Carey played his part well as you would never guess that.... oops, you will have to watch it to find out. Paul Kelly was the CO of the fort and added his long time experience as a supporting actor to the story. Did you know he spent 2 years in San Quentin for beating someone to death? Wow! Anyway, that brings us to a couple of interesting parts. One of the "jayhawkers" was played by Lon Chaney, Jr. He did an admirable job as always and the poor guy never seemed to get the roles he deserved. He was always in his father's shadow. One of the Confederate soldiers I knew instantly. Who wouldn't know him if you were a fan of Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier. Yep, Fess Parker himself was a member of the CSA band who were buying the horses and assisting the jay-hawker horse rustlers. He had a few speaking parts in it and was likable even as a horse thief. This is another sad case of someone being denied better parts. Poor Fess had a hard time breaking the type casting as Davy Crockett and later as Daniel Boone on TV. Guess sometimes you can do too good of a job. It was also nice to see the familiar faces of Guinn "Big Boy Williams, Alan Hale, Jr. (Skipper from Gilligan), Martin Milner (Route 66, Kent Family Chronicles) and James Brown (Lt. Rip Masters of Rin Tin Tin). Kearney's son was played by Michael Chapin and although he didn't make it big in show biz, you may remember his sister Lauren as Kitten on Father Knows Best. For a movie that didn't really become a classic, it was fun to watch and loaded many actors whose talent was never fully utilized by the studios. I don't think the movie won any major awards, and frankly shouldn't have. Still, it is great 1950's shoot-em-up cavalry action and worth the time to watch. If you get the chance, and you like Westerns, be sure to enjoy it.