Matialth Good concept, poorly executed.

Konterr Brilliant and touching

Arianna Moses Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Freeman This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

adrian-43767 BROKEN LANCE is a run of the mill Western elevated by Spencer Tracy's unfailingly high acting standards. Screenplay is OK, with an ending that requires much suspension of disbelief, and with a vested anti-racism message which, back in 1954, must have been unusual and even necessary. Film critic Leonard Maltin sees it as Shakespeare's King Lear in the male version and in the West. He may have a point, though one could argue that the parable of the prodigal son also comes to mind, except that that son is of mixed race (Wagner) who is returning from doing time, and brother Widmark resents him to the point of short-changing him in terms of inheritance.Widmark begins well enough but gradually goes wide of the mark, and by the end his character is overblown with self-pity, hatred, greed, envy, and many other sins, to the point of trying to shoot his half-brother (the whole sequence is pathetic and lets the film down badly). Needless to say, by comparison Wagner comes across as an angel, not least because he has done three years in jail by taking the blame for a misdeed by his father, Tracy, thereby sparing the latter that time behind bars. That situation in effect gives Wagner the plum part in the movie but, sadly, apart from the moment when he throws a wad of money into a spitoon, he misses the opportunity. I would have loved to see Marlon Brando in that part. Katy Jurado, playing Tracy's second wife and the daughter of an Indian chief, is Wagner's mother. Her weak acting is particularly exposed when she comes face to face with Tracy. The other two brothers hardly have a thing to say, and sound dumb when they open their mouths. Jean Peters is beautiful, which is a plus, but her role is rather limited. The actor who plays her father is convincing, but his part is too short to be noteworthy.Photography and settings are first class, and give this movie a kind of GONE WITH THE WIND look at times. I have now seen this film some five times, and to me it ends with Tracy's death. The remaining 20+ minutes are painful to watch without him, especially the thoroughly unbelievable sequence where Widmark tries to do Wagner.

clanciai There is much symbolism here. What on earth is the meaning of that lonely dog running across the desert in the very opening scene? Don't worry. It will come back for two more appearances, once when one of the duller boys tries to shoot it, averted by Joe, and to conclude the film with a proper exit. And it's not a dog.The other great symbolism is indicated by the title, the broken lance, which isn't explained until in the end but is actually the major theme of the film: the racism problem between whites, Indians and Mexicans.It takes some time before Spencer Tracy makes his entry, and when he does you are well prepared. He has already been introduced on a portrait at the governor's, an imposing self-glorious portrait that boasts his mightiness, which is torn away from him shred by shred during the course of the film by his own fallibility. But what a long and grand fall, and how great it makes this character! It could really be described as a Lear of the Western. But this is not a western. It's a family drama and more like a Greek tragedy than anything else, though masked as something of regular western, but the characters go much deeper than what they show.Richard Widmark as the oldest son who has been misused all his life by his father is actually the villain, but you must understand him and you can't really judge him, just as Joe can't either. Joe is more complex as the youngest brother, son of an Indian woman and not of the mother of the others, and he is constantly brooding and has reasons enough for it. Robert Wagner is almost as good as Richard Widmark and Spencer Tracy, while only Jean Peters falls a little behind.The central scene, though, and what triggers the drama in the middle of the film is the tremendous settlement between Tracy and the governor, E.G.Marshall, whom Tracy made a governor and reminds him of, but that doesn't help. You can feel Tracy's explosion within although he barely shows it, which only makes it the more tremendously awesome.His most majestic scene though is his last one. This is Spencer Tracy's film flanked by all the others at their best, which add to make this film one of the best of all westerns, although it's much more than a western.

duerden60 Dear me this is a western in name only. With all the star names I expected a lot more. Hugh O'Brian totally wasted with hardly any lines. None of the sons would have put up with the bullying overbearing prick of a father! Maybe the movie was aimed at women as it had so many male stars but this bloke thought it a disappointing watch to say the least. Perhaps I am one of the few people who think Spencer Tracy, whilst an excellent actor in some of his films, perhaps westerns are not his forte. I don't even like 'Bad day at Black Rock' which I found rather silly. If 'Broken Lance' was remade today, we would have an entirely different movie with perhaps a more realistic storyline.

andyevel6 This 1954 Cinemascope flick, full of action, was inspired by Shakepeare's King Lear (as was West Side Story by Romeo and Juliet) and you can appreciate that in the script adaptation (which won an Academy Award). There's some great acting in it. Tracy, Peters, Wagner, Widmark and Katy Jurado (also nominated as best supporting actress for the film) are all top rate. Dmytric directed a very special western (that is much more than just a simple western because it has character). The film, his direction and most of its players should have been considered for Academy Awards. Nominated were also the cinematography and the musical score (which won). If you like westerns, definitely see it. If you don't, you should consider some of its other outstanding assets: Its theme, plot, suspense, no-nonsense romance, bigot-ism, action, family betrayal and the exceptional combination of great cinematography, with top level direction and acting. This was movie-making at its best. They don't make them like that anymore!