The Arizonian: Just Another Day in Silver City

Is it worth your time?

If you have a soft spot for the kind of western that doesn't try to reinvent the wheel, then yes, catch The Arizonian. If you need your movies to be gritty, modern, or unpredictable, you’ll probably find this one a bit like reading a familiar book for the tenth time. It’s honest, simple, and hits all the notes you expect.

Richard Dix plays Clay Tallant, and he wears that marshal badge like he’s trying to hold up his pants with it. He’s the composite hero, a little bit of Earp, a little bit of everyone else you’ve seen in these types of flicks. It’s not revolutionary, but there’s a comfort in how he just walks into a room and expects the bad guys to fold. Usually, they do.

I found myself watching Tex Randolph, the reformed outlaw, more than the main guy. There’s something twitchy and real about how he navigates the shift from being a bad guy to a slightly-less-bad guy. He feels like a human being in a movie that’s mostly made of cardboard cutouts.

The dialogue is snappy enough, I guess. It doesn't have the weirdly dry, experimental feel of something like Silent Years. It’s functional. It gets you from the saloon fight to the final showdown without any extra fluff.

Odd bits and pieces:

• The opera house scenes have this weird, hollow echo, like they filmed them in an empty tin can.
• Watch the way the extras in the background pretend to be busy. Half of them are just standing there, staring at the camera crew.
• The pacing hits a weird lull in the middle where it feels like they just ran out of things to say and decided to let the horses do the heavy lifting.

It’s not as interesting as The Fighting Edge in terms of sheer intensity, but it’s got a steady heart. The movie doesn't try to be profound, which is its biggest strength. It’s just a story about a guy who wants to fix a town, and honestly, that’s plenty. 🤠

Also, the lighting in the final act is surprisingly moody for something from this era. You can actually see the dust motes dancing in the sun during the standoff. It’s a nice, small detail that most people probably missed because they were too busy checking their watches.