In one of the first revisionist Westerns to question conventional representations of heroism, Gary Cooper stars as a newly married marshal about to retire from his post who is forced into a last showdown with a murderous outlaw. As the clock ticks in real time toward the fateful confrontation, the marshal must face his nemesis alone, his most trusted allies in the town having dismissed his cause as futile and chosen to abandon him. Screenwriter Carl Foreman was blacklisted not long after the film’s release, and his script directly reflects the rising tide of distrust in Hollywood caused by Senator Joseph McCarthy and the HUAC hearings.