The parallels between Day Of The Badman and High Noon are way too obvious to be ignored. However one big important distinct difference is there. Gary Cooper
was the former marshal of Hadleyburg and had no responsibilities. Coop comes
back to answer a personal challenge from the four outlaws on their way to deal
with him.
Fred MacMurray is a judge and a guilty verdict has been rendered on Christopher Dark and the usual punishment is hanging. But a whole mess of his swaggering relatives led by Robert Middleton have come to town and so
intimidate the citizenry. Individually and collectively thy appeal to MacMurray
for a lesser sentence.
Go throughout the cast and you'll see equivalent roles for the various characters in High Noon. One additional role is that of Marie Windsor who is
her usual vicious vixen and girlfriend of Dark.
Even the widow of the man Dark killed, Peggy Converse is intimidated enough to change her mind and plead for a lesser sentence. John Ericson stands out
as the sheriff ho hasn't got the character for the job.
In the late 50s Fred MacMurray made a series of westerns and he does well as
the upright judge. Remember he's not a gunman like Cooper and in a sense that makes him braver than Coop. Day Of The Badman is clearly the best of
MacMurray's late 50s westerns.
In the end he even has one more friend than Coop did.
