Hell Bent for Leather

The most decorated combat soldier of the war,Audie Murphy, plays the part of a man,falsely accused of being a gangster by a marshal .This embittered cop has been searching for the true culprit for months and he needs to find one ,his claim to fame.Stephen Mc Nally is the stand out ,the audience realizes little by little he has gone completely nuts ,heading the posse on his victim's trail.The girl the horse-trader meets (Felicia Farr,better known for her part in " kiss me ,stupid" )and who takes up his cause is some kind of outcast for her father was not a good man .She was taken in by neighbors but she has not really been received at the community :she takes care of the children when the inhabitants attend the service.

This is a modest but entertaining western with good suspense and a great finale when the wrong and the right man meet in the mountain.

Very entertaining western directed by George Sherman (who did Big Jake with John Wayne and produced The Comancheros 1961). The actors are excellent. We get Audie Murphy and Stephen McNally back altogether 8 years after Duel at silver creek 1952, but here they are enemies. Felicia Farr acts in her last western. And very good supporting cast with Jan Merlin as Travers, John Qualen and Bob Steele among others.

With a very good screenplay, I really liked the character, Stephen MacNally plays. The three main actors are perfect, and they carry the movie. So if you have the luck to have the opportunity to see this movie: GOOOOO!

Audie Murphy plays Clay Santell ,a horse dealer whose hospitality to a stranger who stumbles on foot and on the verge of collapse into his camp is to have his horse stolen by the man in question.Santell wounds his assailant who drops his lavishly embossed shotgun as he flees Santell's camp.The man is Travers ,a wanted outlaw .and the local townsfolk believe Santell is Travers,based on his having the gun .Corrupt Marshall Deckett (Stephen Mc Nally)takes him into custody ,knowing full well he is not Travers but hoping to pass him off as the outlaw ,and boost his reputation as the man who saw Travers hung.

Santell escapes ,taking with him a young woman ,Janet Gifford ,and Deckett and a posse set out in hot pursuit. Can Santell avoid capture and clear his name ?That is the central issue of this modest but brisk Western that benefits from some striking location shooting and some decent performances especially from McNally and that splendid character actor Robert Middleton .

Based on a novel by pulp Western maestro Ray Hogan this moves briskly and energetically and will appeal to most devotees of the genre.

If you like Audie (which I do) you will come to find a comfortable familiarity with many of his movies. Hell Bent for Leather is one of those movies. Doesn't really stand out from the pack but is an enjoyable film.

Its all about Murphy righting the wrongs as he does so well.

It fun as most of his material is :)

Behind the lurid title lies a moody, good-looking psychological western shot in colour & CinemaScope against the imposing backdrop of the Alabama Hills.

There moody, good-looking Audie Murphy gets a less than warm welcome from ferrity-faced Jan Merlin, doll-faced widow Felicia Farr, saturnine Sheriff Stephen McNally and mean-looking Robert Middleton; never quite sure who it's safe to do a deal with.