Firecreek (1968)

James Stewart is Johnny Cobb, farmer and part-time sheriff in the sleepy little town of Firecreek.

It’s a town where one day resembles the next. At least it is until a gunmen named Larkin (Henry Fonda) and his four men ride into town.

Wounded in a northern range war, Larkin needs some rest. In Firecreek, his men sense a town where they can rule the roost for a day or two.

Cobb and his neighbors, who have congregated for a mid-week church service, ignore warnings of impending trouble, figuring the gunmen will soon ride on.

But when night comes, so does real trouble.

One of the gunmen decides no one will mind if he forces himself on an Indian woman named Meli.

But Arthur, a feeble-minded stable boy, interrupts the rape and accidentally shoots and kills the gunmen.

Larkin’s men want to string him up immediately. Cobb takes the young man to jail, sure it was an accident.

But what will happen when he has to leave town because his wife is about to give birth?

James Stewart as Johnny Cobb, concerned about a pregnant wife and five unruly strangers who arrive in Firecreek (1968)

Henry Fonda as Larkin, leader of a quintet of hire guns who have just arrived in Firecreek (1968)

Reviewz;

One of the best American-made Westerns of the late 1960s at a time when Spaghetti Westerns were all the rage and most of the stateside oaters seemed like a rehash of films we’d seen before.

The script builds tension from one incident to the next between the townsfolks and the gunmen. The viewer senses something bad is about to happen.

But the scenes are unique enough to keep viewers guessing. Like the middle-of-the-street wake for the dead gunmen, with him sitting in a chair by a fire, drink in hand.

The inclusion of Leah, a pretty young girl who holds a $5 coin under her tongue and is so anxious to grow up; Earl, the hot-headed gunmen convinced he can buy anything in town for $5; and Dulcie, as the bitter woman who’s never found a useful man, are bit characters that add debt to a film where Stewart shines the brightest, even at an advanced age.

J. Robert Porter as Arthur, the simple-minded stable boy in FIrecreek (1968)

Inger Stevens as Evelyn Pittman, who finds herself caring for a wounded gunman named Larkin in Firecreek (1968)

Directed by:
Vincent McEveety

Cast:
James Stewart … Johnny Cobb
Henry Fonda … Larkin
Inger Stevens … Evelyn Pittman
Gary Lockwood … Earl
Dean Jagger … Whittier
Jack Elam … Norman
James Best … Drew
Brooke Bundy … Leah
J. Robert Porter … Arthur
Ed Begley … Preacher Broyles
Jay C. Flippen … Mr. Pittman
Barbara Luna … Meli
Jacqueline Scott … Henrietta Cobb
Morgan Woodward … Willard
John Qualen … Hall
Louise Latham .. Dulcie

Runtime: 104 min.

Larkin’s men — James Best as Drew, Jack Elam as Norm, Morgan Woodward as Willard and Gary Lockwood as Earl — in Firecreek (1968)

Brooke Bundy as Leah, her head turned by a young gun named Earl and the dollars in his pockets in Firecreek (1968)

Memorable lines:

Earl: “A husband come along with the kid?”
Meli: “No.”
Norman, laughing: “Town ain’t been as quiet as it looks.”

Larkin: “I usually figure my women. You come harder.”
Evelyn Pittman: “I’m not your women.”

Whittier, indicating the people of Firecreek at a wake: “Look at them out there. They look frightened because there’s something new and strange in town. Disturbed because today didn’t turn out like yesterday.”

Johnny Cobb: “Maybe nobody can keep you from leaving this time, but I’m following. I’m following. And when we get to a marshal, I’m gonna charge you with murder. Wherever you go, Larkin, I’m following. And I’m going to watch all four of you hang.”
Larkin spins and shoots Cobb in the leg: “Worrying over that leg will slow you down.”

Larkin: “Lessen I learned a long time ago. Man worth shooting is a man worth killing.”

Jacqueline Scott as Henrietta Cobbs, who goes into labor just as trouble arrives in Firecreek (1968)

Barbara Luna as Meli, the mother of Johnny Cobb’s half-breed nephew in Firecreek (1968)

Louise Latham as Dulcie, ready to punish daughter Leah for her sinful ways in Firecreek (1968)

Dean Jagger as Whitteier, one of the old-timers to settle in Firecreek in Firecreek (1968)

Jack Elam as Norm, a Larkin man setting eyes on a pretty girl named Leah in Firecreek (1968)

Henry Fonda as Larkin, deciding a leg wound might slow a part-time sheriff’s pursuit in Firecreek (1968)

James Stewart as Johnny Cobb and Ed Begley as Preacher Broyles, reacting to the rude behavior of Larkin’s men in Firecreek (1968)