Verdict
Summary
A downbeat but solid little western with a rock solid Palance in the lead in a role he was perfectly suited for, The Lonely Man gave him a shot at playing an appealing, complex antihero while also allowing him to play slightly romantic opposite Aiken, who was a beautiful newcomer to the screen. The film builds to a satisfying shootout climax, and the film’s sense of sinful loneliness of its protagonist lingers like a lesson after the film is over. A solid effort for fans of westerns, this is a good one.
Plot:
An outlaw returns to a town he left behind more than a decade ago, and tries reconnecting with the son he never knew.
Review:
Jacob Wade (Jack Palance) rides into a little nothing town where everyone seems to rememebr him … except a lanky young man leaning over the bar at the saloon, a handsome lad named Riley (Anthony Perkins) whom he confesses to that he is his father. Riley is insulted by this and goes on to tell Wade that the boy’s mother committed suicide years ago, no thanks to Wade having abandoned them without a trace. Wade, having filled his coffers with stolen money, is also going blind, and wants to make amends before his ugly past catches up to him, and so he does his best to appeal to Riley and the boy’s transition into adulthood by offering him a chance to create a future without violence. They ride off into the country where Wade has a lady friend named Ada (Elaine Aiken) waiting for him in a little ranch house, and the three of them try to make a go of it catching and taming wild mustangs, but what Wade doesn’t realize is that another band of outlaws (played by Lee Van Cleef, Elisha Cook Jr., and Neville Brand, among others) wanting to get revenge on whatever sins he committed against them are out hunting for him and will be catching up soon …
A downbeat but solid little western with a rock solid Palance in the lead in a role he was perfectly suited for, The Lonely Man gave him a shot at playing an appealing, complex antihero while also allowing him to play slightly romantic opposite Aiken, who was a beautiful newcomer to the screen. The film builds to a satisfying shootout climax, and the film’s sense of sinful loneliness of its protagonist lingers like a lesson after the film is over. A solid effort for fans of westerns, this is a good one. From director Henry Levin.
Kino Lorber brings The Lonely Man to Blu-ray in a brand new HD master from a 6K scan of the 35mm VistaVision original camera negative, and it comes with an audio commentary by a film historian and the trailer, as well as a slipcover.
