When the sheriff's son is placed on trial for murdering a stagecoach driver, the sheriff desperately searches for the real killer - and finds the trail leads back to his boy.When the sheriff's son is placed on trial for murdering a stagecoach driver, the sheriff desperately searches for the real killer - and finds the trail leads back to his boy.When the sheriff's son is placed on trial for murdering a stagecoach driver, the sheriff desperately searches for the real killer - and finds the trail leads back to his boy.
Kathleen Nolan
- Kathi Walden
- (as Kathy Nolan)
Robert B. Williams
- Sheriff Joe Tilyou
- (as Bob Williams)
Marjorie Bennett
- Nettie Holcomb
- (uncredited)
Paul Brinegar
- Gun Salesman
- (uncredited)
Buck Bucko
- Juror
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAlthough shot in the 1.37:1 aspect ratio (for later television airing) the theatrical aspect ratio of this film is 1.85:1 widescreen. Most modern 16x9 (1.78:1) televisions have a "zoom to width" picture option, essentially allowing the viewer to see it as the director and cinematographer intended. It is easy to spot films shot this way since all the titles and credits will still fit when properly cropped (they stay in the "middle" of the frame), and there is an unusual amount of "headroom" above the actors in medium and close-up shots when viewed uncropped. Quite often "mistakes" like seeing equipment in the top or bottom of the uncropped frame would never have been seen by a theater audience.
- GoofsIn addition to the 1891 silver dollar being an obvious fake, it was said to be minted in St. Louis. There has never been a U.S. Mint in St. Louis.
- Quotes
Judge: Now this is going to be a fair trial... conducted legally. A boy's life hangs in the balance.
Irate Townsman at Trial: That's about the only place he'll hang!
- ConnectionsReferenced in The Exiles (1961)
Featured review
Not much of a Western, but a pretty good whodunit
I'll watch anything with Sterling Hayden in it, even the stuff he isn't so good in and the terrible stuff that he's the best thing in, just because when he's good he's wonderful and because he's one of my great heroes, not in the movies, but in life. I expected The Iron Sheriff to be one of the many less than good little pictures Hayden did during the mid-Fifties. As a Western, that's just what it is -- less than good. Cheap look, cheap sets, cheap costumes, poor action sequences (what little there are of them). In a world where Lonesome Dove and Deadwood exist, this is the kind of Western it's really hard to sit through. Except: it's actually got a pretty good plot angle, and the way it works out is interesting and believable (for the most part). It's much more of a murder mystery than a Western, perhaps no surprise coming from the pen of longtime Perry Mason writer Seeleg Lester. Hayden is the titular sheriff, dead set on proving his son innocent of murder. But the more he looks, the more evidence he finds of his son's guilt. Ultimately he has to face the age-old dilemma, choosing between love and honor. The film works out the story well and fairly satisfyingly, plot-wise, though the film-making is nothing to write home about. The script and some performances by people I normally don't care for much in movies (and whom I reevaluated after this) -- people like Mort Mills and Constance Ford -- make this one far more interesting and worth catching than I'd expected. It's one of Hayden's least impressive jobs, no matter how much I admire him. But the picture is sort of okay. Especially if you like a good detective story.
helpful•171
- JimB-4
- Jun 29, 2008
- How long is The Iron Sheriff?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Runtime1 hour 13 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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