StunnaKrypto Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Tedfoldol everything you have heard about this movie is true.

Lollivan It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

classicsoncall If there's a clunkier line in a film than the one in my summary above, I've yet to hear it, and I have a pretty good ear for dialog. If I was watching this on a DVD instead of Encore Westerns, I certainly would have replayed it to hear again."The Lawless Breed" is loosely based on the life of Western outlaw John Wesley Hardin. I'm no expert, but the way he's portrayed here makes him out to be a somewhat misunderstood hero, all the while attempting to stay one step ahead of the law. Even in this picture, the number of his self-defense victims seemed to challenge the law of averages, and it's probably safe to say that the real Hardin, with over forty dead men to his credit, probably killed a few of them under questionable circumstances.Rock Hudson, who I generally wouldn't call to mind as a Western movie hero, comports himself well enough in the film's lead role. However his age and matinée good looks probably work against the picture's credibility, as the character he was portraying was supposed to be only about twenty years old at the beginning of the story. Likewise, he seemed to get over Jane Brown's (Mary Castle) death rather quickly, conveniently having saloon gal Rosie (Julie Adams) to run off with when the heat was on.At least the picture had some of the high points of the historical Hardin's life correct. In 1874, he killed Deputy Sheriff Charlie Webb in Comanche, Texas. Using the alias John Swain, he did open a grocery store, but in Gainesville, Florida, not Polland, Alabama. For Hardin, it was a quick line of work, as he was recognized on the very first day his store was open by a couple of cattlemen. As the movie depicts, he was captured by the Texas Rangers, spent time in Huntsville Prison, and was pardoned after roughly fifteen years. However he used his prison time to study law, and actually became a lawyer upon release. His practice floundered though, prompting him to write his autobiography. On August 9th, 1895, John Wesley Hardin was shot by a lawman with a grudge, an event the film makers wouldn't put Rock Hudson through with his leading man charisma and future star potential.

FightingWesterner This alleged biopic of famous outlaw John Wesley Hardin may be short on accuracy, but it's long on Hollywood and western myth-making. Once again the great director Raoul Walsh gives us an entertaining, fast-paced, and action-packed tale that pushes all the right buttons, portraying Hardin as a misunderstood young man and a victim of circumstance.The only real minus is that near the end, it begins to slow down a bit, ending with a so-so climax. The first hour or so makes it definitely worth watching though.Rock Hudson is quite likable in one of his first starring vehicles and leading lady (number two) Julie Adams is quite stunning. One thing I'll never quite understand is why Adams never became a bigger star.

zardoz-13 Rock Hudson made his starring debut in Raoul Walsh's western saga "The Lawless Breed" about the life of notorious gunman John Wesley Hardin. "Circus World" Bernard Gordon penned the screenplay ostensibly based on Hardin's autobiography. Hudson delivers a robust performance, even to the point of playing Hardin as an older man. Nevertheless, not even a veteran director like Walsh who knew his way around oaters could do much for this solemn, rather dreary affair about the evils of lawlessness. The supporting cast is good, especially John McIntire who plays a duo role, and Julia Adams plays Hardin's dancehall girl wife. Glenn Strange, Hugh O'Brien, and Lee Van Cleef are a devilish trio that dog Hardin for the first half-hour until things settle down. The second half deals with Hardin being imprisoned for his crimes."The Lawless Breed" opens at the state penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas, as an older, but wiser John Wesley Hardin (Rock Hudson of "Bend of the River") leaves jail Sentenced to 25 years, Hardin has been paroled after 16 years. Before he climbs aboard a train to take him back to Alabama and his horse breeding ranch, Hardin stops off at the local newspaper office. He gives the editor a copy of his handwritten autobiography and asks him to read it and get back to him. Consequently, "The Lawless Breed" reverts from a chronological sequence of events to a flashback and remains that way for most of its 83 minutes.During the first half, we learn that John Wesley is a reckless boy who doesn't get along with his preacher of a father that loves to wield a bullwhip on his son. Wes Hardin's father was a preacher and a circuit rider. According to Wes, his father "was a strong, God-fearing man who carried his Bible like a six-gun and fought with the devil wherever he found him." When his intolerant father discovers that his son has purchased a revolver from his winnings at poker, he whips him and then storms out of the barn. An orphan who lost her family during the Civil War, Jane Brown (Mary Castle) has been living with the Hardins and cooking for them. Wes and she grew up together and he calls her as "the prettiest girl in Texas." Wes promises Jane that he wants to get a place of their own with green grass, water that runs all year around and a white painted house.Later that evening, after curfew, Wes rides into Bonham to sell his law books after his father has given him a whipping. He sits in on a card game with three fellows, among them Gus Hanley, and beats them. Gus objects that he didn't deal him a certain card. Gus (Michael Ansara of "Soldiers Three") pulls his pistol, but Wes beats him on the draw and kills him. Holding the shotgun-toting barkeeper at bay, Wes exits with his winnings. No sooner does he leave the saloon than he runs into trouble from the army of occupation. The Yankee troops try to corner him in town, but he eludes them. Gus' three brothers, Ben (Glenn Stranger of "House of Frankenstein"), Ike (Hugh O'Brien of "Red Ball Express"), and Dirk (Lee Van Cleef of "High Noon") show up to claim Gus' corpse. The U.S. Army vows to bring John Wesley to trial. Dirk steps forward and warns the army officer. "Mister, you ain't going' to need no witnesses," Dirk stipulates," 'cause there ain't going to be no trial." After he escapes from Bonham, Wes rides out to his Uncle John's ranch. John Clements is half brother to John Wesley's father. Wes joins Clements and his sons Jim (Dennis Weaver of "Gunsmoke") and Joe (Richard Garland) on a cattle drive to Abilene. The Hanleys Brothers trail Wes to Abilene and Wes kills Dirk in a gunfight. Walsh stages this brief shoot-out in a way bolsters the drama because the wind is blowing hard and objects attached to the surrounding buildings are making a lot of noise. Afterward, Wes resumes gambling in the saloon while he awaits the completion of a wedding dress for Jane. Wild Bill Hickok (Robert Anderson of "High School Hellcats") gets the drop on Wes, but Wes outfoxes the legendary lawman and Hickok allows him to stay in town for an hour.An hour later, Wes pulls out and returns to his father's ranch. Jane refuses to elope with Wes because she has promised Wes' father that he will marry them. Wes' father refuses to marry them until Wes is cleared of killing the Hanleys. The Army is pulling out and J.C. Hardin calls on a judge to clear things up. Wes agrees to turn himself in, but Ike prods a lawman, Sheriff Charlie Webb (George Eldredge of "Dead Reckoning"), into arresting Wes. When Wes resists arrest, Webb shoots him in the back. Wes kills him and Ike Hanley and heads back to his father's ranch. Jane refuses to have anything to do with Wes because he is a killer. The posse shows up at the Hardin ranch. The wounded Wes manages to escape but one of the posse kills Jane by accident. Hardin and his new girlfriend settle in Alabama under assumed names and live peacefully until certain Texans decide that Hardin must be found at any cost and incarcerated. Hardin receives a 25-year sentence, but the governor releases him after 16 years.Presumably, Universal Studios didn't give "The Lawless Breed" a big budget because there are no major set-pieces. The narrative plays out in saloons, ranches, and on the trail, but there aren't any sprawling scenes of carnage, etc. Formulaic pretty much summarizes the narrative. John Wesley is presented as a man wronged for a murder that he did not commit. His youthful vigor got him into later trouble and somebody in his life important to him died when a posse attacked his home.

shell-26 It was made to a formula and revolves around most of the cliches in the Western handbook but it was hard not to enjoy this film.It is based on the life of the famous Texan John Wesley Hardin. His youth was shaped by the Civil War and by his preacher father. When his father forbids him to practise shooting young Wes reckons its about time to leave home and seek his fortune. Almost immediately he kills a local gunslinger and plunges into the life of a rootin tootin cowboy, gambler and outlaw.It has a classic opening a dignified man walking out of the prison gates, shaking hands with the warden and sniffing the air of freedom. It has an equally recognisable ending, back at the ranch to see how his wife and family have managed during the long years of incarceration. The final scenes of the film are lovely, it won't spoil the film to say he learned from his experiences and lived a long and happy life.There is nothing new in this film. Although it claims to be an autobiography, it is one of countless 1950's Westerns with a theme of a young man seeking adventure and finding redemption. The real strength of the movie is its star Rock Hudson, barrel chested and manly, who shoots, rides, kisses, gambles and drinks as well as any of his contemporaries. One of the baddies is a young Lee Van Cleef who easily steals scenes from his fellow wrong-doers.It won't change your life, the way "Shane" might have done but it won't hurt you to watch it, and to remember Rock Hudson in the way he should be remembered.