As westerns go "Death of a Gunfighter" is not the cliche actioner than you probably first think of when the word western crops up. It still has those moments of western action but this is not about cowboys and Indians or a stranger who rides into town. Nope "Death of a Gunfighter" is more about the changing face of the west as motor vehicles start to appear on streets and those with power want to attract big business and people to the town, moving away from their past and not caring if they make and break laws to achieve it. In fact this storyline of town's men doing what they like in order to feather their own pockets wouldn't be out of place set now with town councils making decisions which go against what they agreed and against what the public want. But there is also a further element to "Death of a Gunfighter" as their old fashioned town Marshal provides the stumbling block as he upholds the law and because of the secrets he knows no one can really touch him legally.

Times are changing in the Texan town of Cottownwood Springs not only does it have a train station but there are street lights and a motor vehicle. But whilst the towns elders and businessmen want for the town to move forwards there is one sticking point, Marshal Frank Patch (Richard Widmark - Cheyenne Autumn) who has been in charge for twenty years and his old fashioned style of law keeping doesn't fit in with their plans. Having been offered the job for as long as he wants it Frank has no plans to resign even when they demand him to call it a day. And because over the years Frank has kept secrets for many of those who are now in charge they fear that he will start spilling those dark secrets and so plan to kill him in order to get rid of him once and for all.

It has to be said that when you start watching "Death of a Gunfighter" the landscape of the town is quite a surprise or at least a surprise when you are used to a western town being small and dirty. Here we get a picture of a town at the turn of a century which is changing, there is the train line but also a motor vehicle, there are street lights and several businesses some of which appear to have electricity. It immediately makes you pay attention because this is a very different western landscape than most westerns inhabit.

Now on face value "Death of a Gunfighter" comes across like a tale of an old stuck in his way Marshal trying to resist change. We watch as he still rides his horse around at night as he does his rounds whilst the rest of the town almost goes on about their business oblivious of existence. But it develops into more than just this simple tale as following Marshal Patch shooting someone dead in self defence you have the towns power men, the business owners trying to come up with a way to get rid of him. And what is not such a shock is that when they discover that they are not going to oust him legally are willing to kill him to get their way.

All of this makes "Death of a Gunfighter" seem quite ordinary and familiar with the tale of the Marshal having to deal with those who dislike him. But it adds to the mystery because Marshall Patch appears to know everyone's secrets and as such there are those such as Andrew Oxley who are fearful that he might start revealing everyone's dirty little secrets. On one level this is quite good as it adds a bit of mystery and you do wan't to know what patch has on the various people who would love to see him gone. But sadly when one of the mysteries is revealed it ends up surprisingly contrived and a little over the top. The same can be said of a mysterious romantic sub plot as well as a more obvious one which sees Patch finally tell local Madam Claire Quintana how he really feels about her.

Whilst you get this multi-layered storyline there is plenty of typical western action. Now frankly most of this is uninspiring and often borders on the posturing as we have Patch dealing with things the old fashioned way. But it also has some surprises and in all honesty the big climax is pretty spectacular as things come to ahead.

As for the acting well whilst there are some nice performances from Lena Horne, John Saxon, Carroll O'Connor and Morgan Woodward who really is the epitome of an evil businessman "Death of a Gunfighter" is Richard Widmark's movie and another impressive performance. What makes Widmark's performance as Marshal Patch so good is in the small detail such as the way his back slightly hunches as he tiredly walks across the street. It makes Patch a believable character of an old Marshal who is tiring of the fight. But then you also have the quiet confidence as his knowledge of everyone makes him pretty sure that no one dares try to sack him. All of this and more makes Patch and interesting character and one which you want to see win out what would now be seen as corporate greed.

What this all boils down to is that "Death of a Gunfighter" is an interesting western and one which explores different ideas to your typical western. The combination of the changing face of the West with an old style Marshal who thanks to the secrets he keeps has a hold over various business men makes for an interesting movie. It may seem almost cliche with various moments of action but then wows you with the spectacular "High Noon" style ending which really is the one thing you will remember from this movie, well that and another solid performance from Richard Widmark.