Rent Blood on the Moon (1948)
3.5 of 5 from 64 ratings
1h 28min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- Jim Gray (Robert Mitchum) has been summoned by his old friend Tate Rilling (Robert Preston), who needs another set of guns to help in a dispute with his neighbour, John Lufton (Tom Tully). But Tate's got more on his mind than a simple feud: his scheme is to drive Lufton off his land and he doesn't care how he does it. Jim reluctantly supports Tate at first but, disgusted by his greed, switches sides. Joining Lufton - and his feisty daughter Amy (Barbara Bel Geddes) - Jim finds himself squaring off to his old friend.
- Actors:
- Robert Mitchum, Barbara Bel Geddes, Robert Preston, Walter Brennan, Phyllis Thaxter, Frank Faylen, Tom Tully, Charles McGraw, Clifton Young, Tom Tyler, George Cooper, Tom Keene, Bud Osborne, Zon Murray, Robert Bray, Erville Alderson, Ruth Brennan, Harry Carey Jr., Iron Eyes Cody, Ben Corbett
- Directors:
- Robert Wise
- Producers:
- Theron Warth
- Writers:
- Lillie Hayward, Harold Shumate
- Studio:
- Odeon
- Genres:
- Action & Adventure, Classics, Drama
- Collections:
- 21 Reasons to Love, 21 Reasons to Love..Modern Westerns, Top 10 Films By Year, Top 10 Films of 1948
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Reviews (1) of Blood on the Moon
Western Noir. - Blood on the Moon review by Steve
Leisurely genre mash up which works best for its mood of dark pessimism. It takes the classic western theme of a range war but the cattle gangs parallel the corrupt semi-legitimate gangsters of film noir. And it's photographed by RKO noir legend Nicholas Musuraca. This is an extraordinarily gloomy experience.
Robert Mitchum plays a laconic drifter recruited to provide muscle for Robert Preston's mob of shady cowboys seeking to defraud the government on a contract to provide beef for 'Indian' reservations... and be the fall guy. Only the stranger ultimately sides with Barbara Bel Geddes and her law abiding homesteaders.
When the two male stars get round to the inevitable fist fight, Mitchum breaks the ceiling light so they can scrap in the dark. The ambience of noir is primary. Unfortunately the narrative often drags. Robert Wise was a fine genre director, but despite a few interesting set pieces, this doesn't often engage.
And given the longueurs, Mitchum's extremely passive performance is more narcotic than hypnotic. There are periods where nothing is happening. However the set design and costumes leave an impression of realism not typical of studio era westerns. Plus the Arizona locations. But this one is mainly for fans of atmosphere.
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