Hangman's Knot

Hangman's Knot
Theatrical poster
Directed by	Roy Huggins
Written by	Roy Huggins
Produced by	Harry Joe Brown
Starring	Randolph Scott Donna Reed Claude Jarman
Cinematography	Charles Lawton Jr.
Edited by	Gene Havlick
Color process	Technicolor
Production company	Scott-Brown Productions
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release date	November 15, 1952 (1952-11-15)
Running time	81 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$1.25 million (USA)[1]

Hangman's Knot is a 1952 American Western film written and directed by Roy Huggins and starring Randolph Scott, Donna Reed and Claude Jarman.^[2] The film is about a group of Confederate soldiers, unaware that the Civil War is over, who intercept a shipment of gold escorted by Union cavalry troops and are then pursued by a renegade posse. Hangman's Knot was filmed on location in the Alabama Hills in Lone Pine, California.^[3]

In the Spring of 1865 in Nevada, a small band of Confederate soldiers disguised as civilians intercept a shipment of gold bars that is being escorted through the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountains by a contingent of Union cavalry troops. Following a heated battle that kills all the Union soldiers, Confederate Major Matt Stewart learns from the dying Union officer that the war ended a month earlier. Stewart and his men transport the gold as planned to the scheduled rendezvous with Captain Petersen, who has been scouting the area disguised as a traveling peddler. When Petersen confirms that he knew the war was over but made no attempt to tell the men, hot-headed Rolph Bainter shoots him dead, in anger over the unnecessary deaths of their own men during the ambush. The men briefly debate what to do with the gold. As ranking officer, Major Stewart decides they will take the gold bars back to the South to help finance their country's reconstruction.

The following day, Stewart disguises himself and uses Petersen's covered wagon to transport the gold and his men out of the area. Soon they are stopped by a group of drifters posing as a posse looking for the gold thieves. Stewart persuades the posse's leader, Quincey, that they've been caught elsewhere. Stewart and his men continue on, but the mules bolt from the wagon and the rebels are forced to commandeer a stagecoach carrying a former Union war nurse, Molly Hull, and her companion Lee Kemper.

Quincey's posse chases the stagecoach to a station house in the Sierras, capturing one of Stewart's men, Cass Browne, who they take with them. Stewart and his men take the stage passengers, the aging station agent, Plunkett, and his daughter, Margaret Harris, hostage. Mrs. Harris hates the Confederates because her only son was one of the Nevada Volunteers who the Confederates had wiped out, and her husband had been killed at the Battle of Gettysburg. One of the Confederates, Egon, responds that Jaime had seen his parents murdered during Gen. Sherman's march through Georgia. Quincey's posse surrounds the station house, and Stewart tells them the gold was left out on the trail, but they are reluctant to go back unless they are sure of it. As night descends, the posse tries to lure the Confederates out by threatening to hang Cass, but Stewart is able to rescue him using the remaining sticks of dynamite from their ambush.

The following day, Kemper offers Stewart a plan of escape in exchange for two gold bars. Giving Stewart an Indian token, Kemper explains that his good trading relationship with the local Paiute Indians and this token will guarantee fresh horses and safe passage out of the territory. He also knows by the approaching clouds that a brief torrential rainstorm will soon arrive and provide Stewart and his men cover for their escape. Stewart agrees to the plan. Later, while Molly is in another room, caring for the seriously wounded Egon, Rolph tries to rape her. An enraged Stewart stops him, and beats him in a fistfight. When an angry Rolph tries to shoot Stewart, young Jamie Groves shoots him dead, and Molly shows her feelings for Stewart.

During the night, Quincey and his men have been digging a short tunnel under the station house. Just when they break through and reach a trap door in the floor, Cass stops them from entering. Frustrated, Quincey decides to burn the station house down and orders his men to torch the roof. As the fire burns through the roof, Kemper's predicted thunderstorm arrives. In the confusion, Kemper tries to escape with his two gold bars and is shot dead by the posse. When Cass sneaks outside to scatter the posse's horses, he is also killed. As Stewart and Jamie prepare to escape, Molly begs Stewart not to take the gold. Outside in the chaos of the storm, Quincey and his men begin shooting at one another. Believing Stewart had told the truth about the whereabouts of the gold, the surviving members of the posse race each other into the night.

With the posse gone, and respecting Molly's wishes, Stewart and Jamie surrender the gold bars to Plunkett. Margaret and Plunkett offer a home to young Jamie, who promises he will return. Major Stewart also promises Molly that he will return to her after he is repatriated in Virginia, and the two embrace.

• Randolph Scott as Major Matt Stewart
• Donna Reed as Molly Hull
• Claude Jarman, Jr. as Jamie Groves
• Frank Faylen as Cass Browne
• Richard Denning as Lee Kemper
• Lee Marvin as Rolph Bainter
• Glenn Langan as Captain Petersen
• Jeanette Nolan as Mrs. Margaret Harris
• Clem Bevans as Plunkett, the Station agent
• Ray Teal as Quincey
• Guinn Williams as Smitty
• Monte Blue as Maxwell
• John Call as Egan Walsh^[4]
• Edward Earle as Union Captain (uncredited)

• Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA
• Corriganville Movie Ranch, Simi Valley, California, USA^[3]

In his review in The New York Times, A. W. wrote that the Western genre film is "given handsome, credible and edifying treatment" by writer-director Roy Huggins in Hangman's Knot, calling the film a "taut, action-filled adventure".^[5]

As a director, Mr. Huggins has centered his cast in plausible situations. The six-shooters and Winchesters are rarely allowed to cool down, the talk is pertinent and there are enough corpses around at the finale to satisfy the most exacting fan. And his principals are human withal. Randolph Scott, as the leader of the embattled Confederates is a troubled but heroic man uncertain as to how to honorably dispose of the loot. Donna Reed, as a Union nurse nabbed as a hostage, is utterly natural as her hate is changed to admiration when she comes to know her captor better. Richard Denning is a weak opportunist as her civilian escort and Claude Jarman Jr., as the callow member of the band; Lee Marvin as the lustful killer and Frank Faylen, as a casually brave "Reb," contribute more meaningful delineation than is usual for this type of muscular play acting. Although "Hangman's Knot" is only loosely tied to its title, it is a tight little entertainment which does justice to this film form.^[5]

In her review in Allmovie, Tana Hobart called the film a "well done, tense western with a good, dry sense of humor."^[6] In his review in DVD Verdict, Judge Paul Corupe called the film "a pretty fair Technicolor b-western bookended with some exciting action sequences."^[7] In his review for Reel Film Reviews, David Nusair wrote that Hangman's Knot is "surprisingly fast-paced for a film of this sort, and though there's an almost incoherent rain-soaked battle towards the end, the film essentially remains entertaining throughout."^[8] Nusair also notes the "real chemistry" between Scott and Reed.^[8]

• List of American films of 1952

Media related to Hangman's Knot (trailer screenshots) at Wikimedia Commons

• Hangman's Knot at IMDb
• Hangman's Knot at AllMovie
• Hangman's Knot at the TCM Movie Database
• Hangman's Knot at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films