At just 78 minutes, little screen time is wasted in this splendid tight suspenseful western which rewards repeat viewings. Randolph Scott plays the unbending tough all American hero to perfection, while his alter ego the villainous Richard Boone is another piece of perfect casting. Based on The Captives a short story by Elmore Leonard which gives the story it's rugged and brutal texture even though the west it portrays is the usual 1950's comfort western setting, a far cry from the authentic west, but then this great little movie is selling a mythical legend not a history lesson. The direction by Budd Boetticher with a script by Burt Kennedy are both way above the average, to produce a western, that might only of been a B picture, but lives long in the memory, after far more expensive film's are long forgotten. Enjoy 8/10!

I looked forward to seeing this film in the pantheon of the Scott-Boetticher films. I had so much enjoyed SEVEN MEN FROM NOW and anxiously awaited my viewing of this. Not to be a nitpicker but Scott looks less interested and the supporting cast other than Richard Boone who is fine lets the film down a bit. I think the presence of Gail Russell and Lee Marvin in MEN tips the scales. Also it has the same plot contrivance of traveling lady with a weak husband that works so much better in the SEVEN MEN film. Maureen O Sullivan's performance is almost out of the silent film era. She is way over the top in a few scenes. This film is not bad by any means and holds your interest but just doesn't quite measure up to standards.

Cowboy Randolph Scott loses his horse in a bet and hitches a ride with an old friend atop Maureen O'Sullivan and her vile husband's stagecoach. At the stage depot, they're kidnapped and held for ransom by three outlaws, including charismatic leader Richard Boone and trigger-happy psycho Henry Silva.The Tall T (What does that mean?) is another fantastic and fantastic looking western from director Budd Boetticher, whose work I cannot recommend enough. Cinematography and locations are top-notch, as is the suspenseful script by Burt Kennedy, based on a story by Elmore Leonard.The villains are great, with two excellent performances by Richard Boone, who's quite likable for a nasty killer and by Henry Silva, who's just plain nasty. Actually, Silva is one of the best actors ever to specialize in heavies.The exciting climax is a bit more violent and sexually charged than usually found in 1950's movies.

Pat Brennan (Randolph Scott) has a small spread that he works by himself, miles from nowhere. On a ride into town to buy a bull, he stops by the stagecoach station for some easygoing conversation, and promises to by the stationmaster's young son some candy. Once in town, he meets an old friend, the coach driver (always-awesome Arthur Hunnicutt) who is in the process of insulting sleazy Willard Mims (John Hubbard) for marrying into money in the form of plain-jane old maid Doretta (Maureen O'Sullivan), daughter of the richest man in the area. Instead of buying a bull from Tenvoorde, his old boss, Brennan allows himself to get suckered into betting that he can ride it and thus win it for free, but instead loses his horse and gets a dunking. He's walking back towards the coach station when he gets picked up by a private stage, driven by muleskinner Ed (Hunnicutt) and carrying the newlywed Mims. Unfortunately, something has happened at the station....After a couple of reels of easygoing fun and character development, we're in a different world as The Tall T rapidly shifts from lighthearted and almost comedy mode to a grim hostage drama, as Brennan and the Mims have to figure out how to stay alive after being captured by Frank (Richard Boone) and his two gunslinging helpers Chenk (with an i) (Frank Silva) and Billy Jack (Skip Homeier). A simple enough plot, but as with Seven Men From Now Boetticher and screenwriter Burt Kennedy kick this tale up several notches by making the chief outlaw every bit as interesting and watchable as Lee Marvin's Masters was in the previous film. Frank is closer to Brennan's age, clearly fairly smart and somewhat educated, always ready with a flip, brief comment - in fact in the early scenes his to-the-point dialog almost mirror's Scott's usual taciturnity - and he clearly sees a kinship between himself and the rancher, which helps to keep Brennan alive and the story with it.As in the earlier film, the woman has made a poor choice of husbands, though in this case we know pretty much from the start that Sims is despicable, and it's quite clear that he values his own skin more than this plain-jane he's married just for her father's dough; he is the one who comes up with the idea to ransom them all for daddy's money, and is quick enough to leave when offered the chance, without her. When he gets his, it's clear that the outlaws consider him lower than themselves, and Frank says as much to Brennan. Brennan has no answer - honor to him is felt and lived, not talked about; he knows that Frank isn't - or wasn't - as low deep down as his two henchmen (especially Silva's truly psychotic character, played with gusto by this specialist in scumbags) - but he knows that as Frank stays with them, he's brought down to their level, not keeping them from sinking. And this is what seals his fate, ultimately; if there was a chance for redemption there, he long since passed it by.Beautifully filmed in Lone Pine, CA - the same location as Seven Men From Now and two further films in the series - once again Boetticher is in command of all the elements. The performances are uniformly fine, with Boone especially fantastic - the violence is quick, sometimes unexpected, no more than necessary but all the more potent for that. The score by Heinz Roemheld is stirring and romantic and seems to belong to a "bigger" film, but then this film is bigger than its budget and running time would suggest. Another terrific entry in the cycle.