Rating: 
Summary: A Western With Issues
Review: I was prompted to watch High Noon by Dennis Prager's Nationally syndicated radio program, The Dennis Prager Show. I must admit, I missed most of his conversation about the film, but I figured if the intelligent Dennis Prager spent a weekend watching an old western instead of devouring some lofty tome, there must be something to it.Indeed there was, and is. High Noon is a classic western, with a clear demarcation between good and evil. What I found interesting however, was how relevant the issues within this sampling of the old-fashioned western genre are today. Quite simply, the story is about the dilemma societies face when confronted with truly evil people intent on doing harm to others. Based on the shootout in the end (traditional western stuff here) one might think the answers are simple. But the well-crafted script leads the viewer through the myriad of perspectives on issues such as capital punishment, duty, courage and honor, societal apathy and the agonizing personal decision to stand up for what one thinks is right. A truly well-done cinematic dissertation on the issues that spark public debate today. I recommend the movie not just for those reasons stated above, but also because its just a plain-old well-done movie and story. It defies its age. A classic for all time.
Rating: 
Summary: Not overrated
Review: For the previous review, High Noon took place from the morning and ended at noon the same day, so 5pm never occurred.
Rating: 
Summary: Worst Western "Classic" Ever
Review: American Heritage magazine called it one of the most overrated Westerns of all time and I couldn't agree more. When I read a plot summary of this movie, I could not wait to get it home and watch. I could not believe how disappointed I was. The plot had so many details and layers that could have been explored, but no. It fails on almost every level. The only saving grace is that Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly look good in it. Also, I appreciated the unself conscious approach to references to an interracial romance that ended before the beginning of the movie, something quite remarkable for a movie from the early fifties. Everything else is just off the mark. I still can't believe that Tiomkin's song became so popular. There are so many holes in this most boring of scripts. What really shocked me was the subpar cinematography and production values, especially for a film that they obviously had spent a lot of money on. The story takes the course of a single day, but there were so many continuity problems in terms of lighting(i.e. 5pm looked like noon and noon looked like dusk). Grace Kelly spends the entire film wandering around and pouting. Cooper and Lloyd Bridges were absolutely disappointing. I gave it two stars only because it was a very influential film and became its own archetypes for many films to come. This movie represents all the ills that come from a film industry that was oppressed by production codes and McCarthyism. Don't waste your time. Go with an Eastwood, Ford, or a Leone picture.
Rating:
Summary: Gary Cooper's Greatest Role
Review: What a marvelous movie this is and Gary Cooper's defining role in a 40 year stellar career. He is perfectly cast in the role John Wayne turned down because he thought it was "anti-American." But Duke's loss is our gain, because it's hard to imagine anyone played Sheriff Will Kane like Cooper. The cinematography and direction are sublime, the tension as good as anything Hitchcock came up with. Grace Kelly has a small part but is effective, as is the always brilliant Thomas Mitchell. The soundtrack by Dimitri Tiomkin is memorable, with the haunting opening song, "Do Not Forget me, oh my Darling." This is one of the greatest westerns ever made, alongside "Shane" and "The Searchers." Simply superb!
Rating:
Summary: High Noon: Hollywood's High Watermark
Review: Through its understated score (featuring Tex Ritter, father of actor John Ritter), severe scenery and compelling plot and theme, High Noon provides an experience that sets it light years apart from other westerns of its day. The snap of the inevitable gunfight has a stark meaning most films lack because High Noon develops its intensity with a slow, yet powerful deliberateness that has frankly yet to have been equaled. Quite frankly, High Noon sets the standard for cinematic drama and is a must see for anyone who takes film seriously as an art form.
Rating: 
Summary: An aimless movie
Review: I watched this movie with great anticipation, however, i was so dissappointed. There was no plot, and Gary Cooper, a find actor gave one of the worst perfomances ever recorded on film. The one bright spot in this movie was Grace Kelly, and I wish this film hadn't been re-edited, which cut a lot of Grace Kelly out. The title song which won the Oscar, is played insesently, which cause it to loose whatever quality or charm it had. Overall, this movie was so utterly boring and inane that it is one of the greatly overated films of its time.
Rating:
Summary: one of the greatest westerns ever made
Review: Wow, what can you say about High Noon that hasn't been said...except you won't be dissapointed with the DVD version. Well worth it.
Rating:
Summary: The Greatest Movie Ever Made
Review: "High Noon" is an American morality play. Gripping, original moral conflicts charge every scene. Starting with the clash between Kane's self-interest--actually fighting the gunslingers--versus the wishes of the townspeople--to be abandoned, each conflict builds in greater intensity until the clock strikes high noon--when it's simply raw virtue against naked vice. What drama! If you never see another movie, see "High Noon." (I only wish the DVD had been letterbox!)
Rating:
Summary: The Greatest
Review: High Noon, for me, is the greatest film ever made. Its beautifully structured, very spare script is a model of craftsmanship. Gary Cooper turns in an extraordinarily intense performance as the ill-fated Marshall. As some of the reviews on this page show, there are as many different angles to High Noon as there are viewers. The mark of an enduring classic is whether new generations can see their own concerns and fears and hopes in it. I'm 27, and High Noon speaks to me, brilliantly.
Rating:
Summary: My favorite Film
Review: I first saw High Noon on a double bill with McCabe & Mrs. Miller in the mid seventies, when I'd first moved to Chicago after college. I was impressed at the time, thought it a brilliant film, and wondered why the hand-out sheet from the revival house (long gone) was so contemptuous of it. Almost 25 years later, I've managed to read up on all the negative High Noon material: That it's not a "real" western, that its an anti-western(? ), that real westerners didn't act that way, that it wasn't made by Howard Hawks or John Ford, so it must be lousy, blah-blah-blah. Nonsense, all of it, carping from those with some strange agenda. Judge it for what it is, and what it is is a brilliant film. A film so bleak in its view of the human condition that by the final frame, each and every character has had every belief and tenet he or she lived by, completely shattered. Forever. High Noon has continued to grow over the decades. Reading John from NYC's review on this page, about how the feminists have embraced it, makes me eager to watch it again, from this perspective. It is my favorite film.
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