An offbeat and claustrophobic Western in limited budget with too much talking and a little bit boring, until a thrilling finale in which eventually the Apache Indians attack and pursue the thieves. Several bandits head for Mexican frontier decide to carry out a stopover and arriving in a ruined village in the middle of desert, called Quantez . They are the following ones : A unexperienced and green but eager newcomer gunslinger : John Gavin, a white man who was raised by Indians : Sydney Chaplin, a nasty and ambitous pistolero : John Larch, a beautiful woman with a dark past : Dororhy Malone, and the veteran and wise gunfighter : Fred MacMurray. Shortly after, there arrives a minstrel : James Barton who reluctantly joins the motley group of thieves . The cutthroats start to accuse and confront each other concerning the stolen loot and soon the gunplay and killing begins. Meanwhile, Apache Indians led by Michael Ansara are lurking around and about to attack. They rode to Quantez town.. Half-way to freedom but all the way to hell!!!
A classic and traditional Western in psychological trendy of the 50s in the wake of Yellow Sky or High Noon. Developed almost entirely at a lonely location in a desert, as it has much in common with a theatre play. The limited budget shows, and the whole psychologist thrill that you depend on the interior sets and relationship among them, the subsequent confrontation, as well as the excessive dialogues are not built up well enough. It is an offbeat Western which doen't work too well but has its moments of interest here and there . Stars Fred McMurray who gives a good acting as a good thief. This is one of a clutch of acceptable horse operas Fred made in the Forties , in the late of 50s and early Sixties, such as : A gun for coward, Good day for a hanging, Texas Rangers, The trail of the Lonesome Pine, At gunpoint, and this Quantez. Although he also played other genres as drama, adventure, warlike, Children fiilms as The happiest millionaire, The shaggie dog, Son of the flubber, The absent-minded professor, The princess come across, The Caine mutiny, Dive bomber, Above suspicion, The miracle of the bells, among others. He is finely accompanied by a fine cast as the recently deceased Dorothy Malone, the usual villian John Larch, the Charles Chaplin's brother, Sydney Chaplin and a fresh John Gavin, next to take a long career as a main star.
It contains colorful and brilliant cinematography in Technicolor by Carl Guthrie. As well as attractive and agreeable musical score by Herman Stein, Universal's regular , including enjoyable songs. As the song The Lonely One is sung by James Barton behind the credits, and the song True Love sung by Dorothy Malone. The motion picture produced by Universal Pictures along with Gordon Kay was professionally directed by Harry Keller. Harry was a good craftsman who directed a lot of Westerns and several episodes of TV series.
