The Tin Star is the second movie coming out this month from Arrow Video that stars Neville Brand as the heavy. Previously we reviewed The Scarface Mob that had Brand playing Al “Scarface” Capone in the Roaring Twenties. Now he’s back playing a Wild West bad guy in The Tin Star. Who was this gruff actor? He was born in Griswold, Iowa during the summer of 1920. While serving in the Infantry during World War II, Brand received a Silver Star, a Purple Heart and other military honors. Brand used his G.I. Bill money to attend acting schools. He starred Off Broadway in Jean-Paul Sartre’s The Victors. He got out to Los Angeles and achieved a career playing tough guys in Westerns and crime flicks. He starred as the prisoner leading the rebellion in Riot in Cell Block 11. He became the first Butch Cassidy with Alan Hale Jr (The Skipper on Gilligan’s Island) as the Sundance Kid in The Three Outlaws. He was constantly guest starring on TV shows from the ’50s to the ’80s and even starred in Laredo. He battled Killdozer. Brand was a force on the screen. He’s the kind of guy who could go up against Henry Fonda and Anthony Perkins in The Tin Star.
Morgan Hickman (Once Upon A Time In The West‘s Henry Fonda) rides into town with a spare horse. The locals aren’t happy to notice a dead body draped over the second horse. Hickman willingly admits he killed the guy, but it’s all legal since he was collecting the bounty. He drops by the jail to get Sheriff Ben Owens (Psycho‘s Anthony Perkins) to certify his kill in order to collect the money. Owens isn’t happy that Hickman decided to go with the Dead option on the Wanted Dead or Alive poster. The town’s doctor (Wagon Train‘s John McIntire) certifies it was the right man. The locals don’t want a bounty hunter in their town which eventually leads renting a room in the house of Nona Mayfield (Friday The 13th‘s Betsy Palmer). Her reputation won’t be ruined in the town since she had a son (Lawrence of Arabia‘s Michael Ray) with an Indian. The person who wants a reputation is Sheriff Owens. He’s new to law enforcement. His girlfriend (The Delicate Delinquent‘s Mary Webster) wants him to give up the badge since her dad had it before him and he’s not enjoying any retirement benefits. The town’s menace, Bart Bogardus (Neville Brand) doesn’t think highly of the new guy with the badge either. He almost takes out Sheriff Owens if Hickman wasn’t quicker on the draw. Since the bounty hunter was a former lawman, Owens seeks him out as a mentor. Appears there’s not much of a training program to get a tin star. The learning process gets interrupted when the McGaffey brothers (including The Good, The Bad and The Ugly‘s Lee Van Cleef) rob the stagecoach. Doc goes to a remote fan to deliver a baby for a homesteader (Frank Cady, Sam Drucker on Green Acres). When he’s riding back into town, the doc unwittingly helps an injured McGaffey brother. He doesn’t get paid for his services. Owens puts together a posse only to have it hijacked by Bogardus. Can Owens and Hickman bring back a sense of justice or will the town turn into mob rules?
The Tin Star might seem like a normal Western that your dad watches on a Saturday afternoon, but there’s so much more to it thanks to the cast. You have Jason Voorhees’ mother and Norman Bates sharing the screen. Any fan of horror should be more than eager to want to see what went down on the dusty streets with those two. Besides Killdozer, Neville Brand was in Without Warning and Tobe Hooper’s Eaten Alive. Lee Van Cleef gave Snake Plisskin hell in from John Carpenter’s Escape From New York. Even with such a cast, it’s not a horror film although the ending involving two nooses dangling from a tree is a bit nightmarish.
While The Tin Star isn’t a film people immediately talk about when discussing Hollywood Westerns, it deserves to be part of the conversation. Besides the amazing cast, the story of the rookie sheriff and the mentoring bounty hunter works. Director Anthony Mann has quite a few visual tricks that make the film more than the usual shoot ’em up. The destruction of a remote farmhouse mixes charging cattle with burning hay comes at you like a 3-D effect. There’s a scene in the jail where a window blind flies up and reveals the lynch mob outside that’s startling. Even more impressive is the posse on horseback led by Bogardus tearing into town. The Tin Star is golden viewing.
The Video is 1.85:1 anamorphic. The movie was shot in the VistaVision process which makes the black and white imagery look sharp in the 1080p transfer. You can see the names on the wanted dead or alive posters in the sheriff’s office. The Audio is LPCM 1.0 mono, LPCM 2.0 stereo and DTS-HD MA 5.1. Going beyond mono seems to enhance Elmer Bernstein’s score. The movie is subtitled in English.
Audio Commentary by film historian Toby Roan gets into the Western edge of the film. He gives plenty of choice tidbits about the film, cast and crew. He points out how Henry Fonda had taken five years off from acting in movies to focus on the stage. This was one of his comeback film. The film was shot on the Western Street at Paramount’s lot. The used the same street in High Noon and Bonanza episodes. “It’s now a parking lot,” he informs us. He also explains the VistaVision process.
Apprenticing a Master (27:34) lets author and critic Neil Sinyard talk about the structure of the script. He gives a sense of director Anthony Mann’s career. He points out what’s going on during the finale of the movie.
Beyond the Score (31:37) has Peter Bernstein talk about his dad Elmer Bernstein. He went to school with other film composers’ children. It felt normal to have a dad who scored movies. When he was having issues with his piano lessons, his dad didn’t pressure him. He didn’t have to be a musician although Peter ended up as one. Elmer was extremely busy working and didn’t see much of the kids. Peter would go to scoring sessions to hang with his dad. I can’t think of a better bring your kid to work day than seeing the Magnificent Seven bring orchestrated. Peter did end up orchestrating for his dad and playing bass. I had the chance to drive Elmer Bernstein when he came to my film school. He was a great conversationalist.
Original theatrical trailer (2:05) promises the double teaming of Henry Fonda and Anthony Perkins. They remind us that Fonda’s bounty hunter wasn’t beloved. Perkins isn’t too loved either as the sheriff. It’s about outcasts. Neville Brand looks menacing in his clips.
Image gallery includes Promotional (12:55) with posters, lobby cards, press kit, advertising for newspapers & newspaper listings, Stills (14:25) of press photos and French Photocomic (170 stills) which was what people did before VHS.
Double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sam Hadley
Six postcard-sized reproduction artcards that are suitable for framing.
Illustrated collector’s booklet contains an essay by Barry Forshaw, and original press notes.
Arrow Video presents The Tin Star: Limited Edition. Directed by Anthony Mann. Screenplay by Dudley Nichols. Starring Henry Fonda, Anthony Perkins, Betsy Palmer, Michel Ray, Neville Brand, John McIntire, Lee Van Cleef & Frank Cady. Running Time: 93 minutes. Rating: Unrated. Release Date: April 30, 2024.
