Laikals The greatest movie ever made..!

Inclubabu Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.

SparkMore n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.

BelSports This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Eric B I found Good Day to be a really entertaining B movie for weekend afternoon viewing. Like many B movies, it has a fairly simple plot (pretty similar to an episode of Bonanza or Big Valley but that's good enough for me). No major spoilers in this review but hit a few plot points.The plot involves a group of bank robbers that hold up the local bank and kill the sheriff as they escape. Fred MacMurray reluctantly assumes the role of sheriff and captures a young former resident who was a friend of his daughter and arranges for him to be hanged.The cast is a solid one. Besides MacMurray, there is Robert Vaughan in a pre- Man from UNCLE role. Others notable costars include popular western star James Drury,Denver Pyle, Bing Russell and Howard McNair (Floyd from Andy Griffith). Like many B movies, this strong cast overcomes any drawbacks from a fairly routine Western plot.The mood of the townspeople plays a protagonist against MacMurray. They want blood at first, but then sour on the idea of hanging a former resident.I always liked Fred MacMurray's more serious roles form 40s and 50s before his Absent Minded Prof roles and My 3 Sons. He is excellent in this movie.It's not as complex as a John Ford, Mann or Sturges "A Western", but it is a B Western that most Western fans should enjoy.

Spikeopath Good Day for a Hanging is directed by Nathan Juran and adapted to screenplay by Daniel B. Ullman and Maurice Zimm from the story The Reluctant Hangman written by John H. Reese. It stars Fred MacMurray, Robert Vaughn, Joan Blackman, Margaret Hayes, James Dury and Wendell Holmes. It is filmed in Columbia Color with cinematography by Henry Freulich. After claiming his daughter's childhood sweetheart killed the marshal of Springdale during the aftermath of a bank raid, the new marshal, Ben Cutler (MacMurray), finds himself in conflict with his family and the townsfolk who question the motives of his testimony. Good Day for a Hanging is one of those films that you feel that with a few tweaks it could have been a bona fide great 50s Western. As it is, in spite of some viable complaints from those who have bothered to review it, it's still a hugely enjoyable broody Oater. Film hinges on MacMurray's moody and stoic performance. Ben Cutler finds himself fighting a lone battle in getting outlaw Eddie "Kid" Campbell (Vaughn excellent) on to the gallows. Campbell's standing in the town is high, he's fondly remembered and after laying on a truly heartfelt plea of innocence during the trial, practically everyone is convinced that he is innocent, even the members of the Cutler posse who were there when Campbell gunned down the old marshal! And with those closest to Ben also firmly against him hanging Campbell, he is being pulled apart emotionally. It's a nicely etched turn from MacMurray, full of inner torment and believable bravado. Juran constructs some very good passages in the story, the opening robbery is very tense, the court case deftly handled with its observations of how manipulation of the law can happen, and the building of the gallows outside Campbell's cell - and the subsequent morbid interest of the townsfolk - really puts an edge on proceedings. Unfortunately the final outcome to the excellent mood building is undone by an unconvincing turn of events, and it feels very rushed. It's a shame because it just needed someone to step forward and suggest changing the ending from that of the source material. You have to think that the likes of Boetticher and Mann would have put a different spin on it. Still, and I note and agree that some of the dialogue is out of time for the era, this is way above being an average B Western. At the time Variety wrote in their notices that the colour wasn't right for the tone of the picture. To some degree I agree that shadowy black and white would have worked a treat, but in this High Def age you can really see the benefits of Freulich's photography, it's beautiful, but I viewed it from UK TCM HD Channel, which invariably means I'm seeing it different to those in 1959! I fully endorse this to Western fans who haven't seen it, and especially to MacMurray and Vaughn fans. It has problems, and yes it's kinda like a poor man's version of High Noon - Ruth (Ben's love interest played by Hayes), even suggests that Ben throw his marshal badge in the dirt - yet it's a mature throwback well worthy of viewing investment. 7/10

Panamint Basic flaw of the townsfolk: that "just a boy" is incapable of being a hardened criminal. Since when? There are a lot of hardened young criminals. Maybe the producers were trying to distort the Billy the Kid legend?And if you listen carefully you will hear this "just a boy" repeated over and over. As late as minute number 59 on the DVD it is said again by the Marshal's fiancé. Even later almost at the end a group of citizens take up a petition to the governor for clemency (based ultimately back to the "he's just a boy so he..." idea). This simple theme dominates the movie. Was the scriptwriter on a hard focused crusade or something?Nevertheless, MacMurray is great and demonstrates why he kept coming back decade after decade in excellent dramatic roles. Joan Blackman had beauty, charisma, fine acting, was in some quality movies; why did she have such a short starring career? Young method actor Robert Vaughn demonstrates a lot of technique and you can tell how serious he was in those days.The paint of the trim INSIDE the courtroom is literally black, obviously a clumsy attempt to convey injustice. Once again, we are hit with a sledgehammer to drive home the single-minded crusade theme of this movie.But overall the very good acting by all participants keeps this movie interesting and overcomes the deeply flawed concept.

whpratt1 This film starts out with a typical bank robbery which has been cleverly planned until a bank employee shoots at one of the robbers and the city Marshall is killed by a young guy named Eddie, (The Kid). Ben Cutler, ( Fred MacMurray) shoots some of the robbers and half of the money is returned. Ben Cutler claims that the Kid killed the city Marshall and he intends to bring him up on trial and a death sentence. The results of the trial change the direction of the film and it takes on in another direction which makes this a very interesting film. Fred MacMurray was able to show his great acting ability as a Western Marshall and he gave an outstanding performance.