Guns and gun lore; of not shooting a man in the back, of not shooting a man who doesn’t draw on you first; the instant finality versus the belligerent stumbling through bullets; the impossibility of catching bullets in your teeth versus the high likelihood of a metal cigarette case in the breast pocket saving your life… If guns were Shakespeare’s poison, he’d have been unstoppable.

THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE

John Ford

1962

James Stewart, John Wayne, Vera Miles, Lee Marvin, Edmond O’Brien

Screenplay by James Warner Bellah and Willis Goldbeck; adapted from the short story by Dorothy M. Johnson

Title: THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE

Year: 1962

Director: John Ford

Cast: James Stewart, John Wayne, Vera Miles, Lee Marvin, Edmond O’Brien

Writing: Screenplay by James Warner Bellah and Willis Goldbeck; adapted from the short story by Dorothy M. Johnson

Genre tags: WESTERN