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Gunsmoke

Play trailer Poster for Gunsmoke Released Feb 11, 1953 1h 19m Western Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 2 Reviews 59% Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
Hired gun Reb Kittridge (Audie Murphy) goes to work in Montana for Matt Telford (Donald Randolph), who is looking to take over Dan Saxon's (Paul Kelly) fertile cattle land. What Reb doesn't bargain for is becoming a landowner himself after winning Saxon's property in a card game. Suddenly, he must work with Saxon and daughter Rita (Susan Cabot) to run the cattle to a rail line in order to make a mortgage payment. To stop him, Telford hires Reb's former partner, Johnny Lake (Charles Drake).

Critics Reviews

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Tony Sloman Radio Times This routine western stars Audie Murphy as a gunslinger who has a change of heart when he's hired by a landowner to kill a rancher. Rated: 2/5 Jun 16, 2020 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews An efficiently made and exciting Western. Rated: B+ Jun 27, 2007 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Nick F Audie Murphy Westerns are usually well-crafted reliable entertainment but inevitably some will be better than others, and Murphy’s 1953 movie Gunsmoke is a case in point. Murphy plays a hired gunman sent to force a rancher to sell his ranch to a rival, but Murphy quickly establishes that the rancher (played by Paul Kelly) is a nice guy and the villain is really the man who hired him, a creepy ruthless character (Donald Randolph) who will stop at nothing to get Kelly’s land and cattle. Helping Murphy switch sides is the rancher’s pretty daughter, convincingly portrayed by Susan Cabot. The solid cast also includes Charles Drake, Mary Castle and Western stalwart Chubby Johnson, all underpinning an action-packed drama well-directed by Nathan Juran, and which delivers plenty of tension and excitement as the finale unfolds. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 06/03/25 Full Review Audience Member It’s very rare that I give a movie a five out of five star rating but this one just impress me that much. It was really good yes I highly recommend it James Welch, Henderson, Arkansas August 21, 2023. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/21/23 Full Review keith w To call these Westerns "routine" underrates them imo. There is a strong storyline, plenty of action but not too much and the outside shots can be beautiful - plus a nice twist at the end. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member One of his best movies. Sad his acting is underrated. It has everything including a gorgeous man. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review Audience Member good Technicolor western from universal Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member Routine Audie Murphy western, more about his star persona than the story as it isn't exhilarating stuff. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Gunsmoke

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Cast & Crew

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Nathan Juran

Director

Audie Murphy

Reb Kittredge

Susan Cabot

Rita Saxon

Paul Kelly

Dan Saxon

Mary Castle

Cora Dufrayne

Charles Drake

Johnny Lake
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Gunsmoke

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Movie Info

Synopsis Hired gun Reb Kittridge (Audie Murphy) goes to work in Montana for Matt Telford (Donald Randolph), who is looking to take over Dan Saxon's (Paul Kelly) fertile cattle land. What Reb doesn't bargain for is becoming a landowner himself after winning Saxon's property in a card game. Suddenly, he must work with Saxon and daughter Rita (Susan Cabot) to run the cattle to a rail line in order to make a mortgage payment. To stop him, Telford hires Reb's former partner, Johnny Lake (Charles Drake).
Director
Nathan Juran
Producer
Aaron Rosenberg
Screenwriter
D.D. Beauchamp
Production Co
Universal/Universal Int, Universal International Pictures
Genre
Western
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Feb 11, 1953, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 5, 2019
Runtime
1h 19m