This Golden Age western started off in an almost light-comedic vein, despite its more serious subject matter of the dispute between cattle-men and homesteaders in post US Civil War Texas, which introduces us to the dominating character of Roy Bean (Walter Brennan) as judge, jury and executioner of anyone who comes across his path. Sure enough, across his path, moseys drifter Gary Cooper's Cole Harden, caught stealing the horse of one of Bean's gang, but picking up on the judge's infatuation with theatrical star Lilly Langtry, bluffs his way out of a near-certain hanging and begins an uneasy friendship with his new benefactor on the strength of a supposed past acquaintance with the famous actress..This odd pair bonds over a few bottles of the local snake-eye, but the film deepens and darkens with Cooper's involvement with the god-fearing homesteaders and in particular the doughty daughter of the occupiers' elderly patriarch and after a peace largely brokered by Cooper breaks down with the renegades burning down their rivals land and homes, it's obvious that Coop can't stands no more and sets himself on a collision course with the Judge in a showdown at, of all things, a theatrical performance in town by the one and only Miss Langtry.I'm not sure the story needed the fantastical involvement of Lily, unless the real Roy Bean was indeed her number one fan, but the rest of the film plays just fine. Cooper is his usual gawky, bumbling ordinary average Joe, who has more steel about him than you'd think, while Brennan steals the show with that so-distinctive voice and a performance of rare verve and charm. Doris Davenport I wasn't familiar with but she isn't overawed by the two star names as the feisty daughter.You can usually count on William Wyler to deliver a solidly entertaining movie, cleverly mixing in elements of action, drama and comedy to good effect. Master cameraman Gregg Toland as usual delivers some fine tableaux in black and white, especially the fire scene, this last perhaps inspired by a similar one in the previous year's blockbuster "Gone With The Wind" and there's another excellent scene where Cooper gets into a fight with a local rancher, with no exaggerated sound effects in literally, quite a dust-up between the two.I liked this film the more it progressed and in particular featured two fine lead performances at its heart.

Entertaining and Glossy Hollywood Product, this Time its a Western. Stagecoach (the one that put John Ford and John Wayne on the map), the Previous Year, Made it Clear that Westerns were an Untapped Gold Mine for an A-List Production. This One was Given the Golden Treatment and it Could Hardly Fail. Gary Cooper and Walter Brennan, Cinematographer Gregg Toland, Nevin Bush Pushing the Pen, and All the Money in the World. What's Not to Like. Well, More than Competent in Many Respects, the Movie also Smacks of a Prefabricated Production. It's a Good Looking bit of Stiffness. Expected Things Happen Expectedly, the Humor, the Tension Between the Sodbusters and the Cattlemen, the Mating of Two Handsome People, and it All Happens with the Rigidness of Some Sort of Cooking Recipe.That was the Hollywood Studio of the Time. Take Very Few Chances and Never Go Off Script. It Works in an Assembly Line Kind of Way. But the Art Suffers. That Type of Production is Fine for Making Cars but Creativity is Hardly a Concern.So Viewers can Enjoy what's Here and They Did and They Do. There are a Few Unexpected Subtleties that can Surprise. For Example Gary Cooper Fingering His Wallet "Inserting" the Lock of Hair. But Overall, the Sympathetic Ending for the Judge is an Abrupt and a Cheat Considering what had Gone Before. Again it's a Studio Concession for a Satisfying Conclusion that Destroys Any Semblance of the Assertion of the Beastly Character that was On Display for the Previous 100 Minutes.

We here in Texas have always HATED corn. If you have steak, who needs vegetables? America is fat (morbidly obese) today because high fructose CORN syrup is sneaked into almost every product in our groceries. Roy Bean tried to nip the creeping evil of Big Corn in the bud during the time he appears in this libelous Big Corn Lobby smear campaign film, THE WESTERNER. As Roy knew, any grain or vegetable requires many illegal southerners to harvest. Folks like Col. Travis and Jim Bowie DIED in order to kick them out of here (they even had the unmitigated gall to try to free our Intercontinentals!). Heroes such as Davey Crockett, Sam Houston and corn farmer-Hanging Judge Roy Bean tried to insure Texans a future steady diet of good old American steak. But rascals with names like Abe Lincoln and Michelle Obama have crammed fattening corn products down our throats instead as the decades roll by. At the end of this film, the FAKE westerner played by Gary Cooper ASSASSINATES Roy Bean so the Yankee fat cats behind Big Corn can have the last laugh. If you feel a twinge of unease watching your 400-pound 12-year-old waddling toward the fridge tonight, blame Gary Cooper and Big Corn!!

Released in 1940 - The Westerner is a really excellent tale concerning the land disputes in Texas (between the cattlemen and the homesteaders) getting way out of hand.At the heart of this classic Western yarn rests the complex relationship that unexpectedly transpires between Judge Roy Bean and a lanky stranger named Cole Harden (who's a suspected horse-thief).Walter Brennan, as Judge Roy Bean, is a fascinating character who's burdened with a strange sense of morality and a fanatical obsession for the international stage actress, Lily Langtry.Brennan won a well-deserved Oscar for his wonderful portrayal of Bean.As a classic cowboy flick, you really need to see The Westerner to fully appreciate all of its subtle charm and rugged appeal.