Who else but Clint Eastwood can carry a Western like this? I have seen many movies of John Wayne (personal favs. Stagecouch (1939) and The Searches (1956)), but I almost always prefer this man with no name to ubercool and overweight cowboy Wayne. Clint has become a great director off late but we can see his directing genius as early as this movie which came more than 35 years back.
Stranger comes to town, has an agenda in mind and carries his plans out meticulously. Sounds familiar and most of the Westerns have this theme. But when Clint is the stranger, things are a bit different. He is probably the most remorse-less cowboy I have ever seen portrayed. The rough rider comes out of the prairies and dissapears back into them. In High Plains Drifter, which Clint himself directed, a gunfighter comes to the small mining town of Largo, and tries to bring the people together in their fight against three outlaws who are about to attack the town. This is the basic premise on which is built more intrigue and a hidden motive. In the process of bringing townmen together, Clinton tears the town apart, creates more problems than he solves and ultimately seeks his revenge without a trace of compunction.
High Plains Drifter is probably the darkest Western Clint ever directed. Unforgiven (1992) is a close second and surely more mature in terms of direction but this movie is a beast. The hero is a ghost, does not blink before opening his gun, treats women like dirt and leaves without a trace. We are not told what his motives are until the second half by which it becomes clear about his plans in Largo. The movie is full of excellent dialogue and non-stop surprises. The screenplay is tight without a dull moment. There is no love in this movie. Only vendetta and Clint delivers it in full style. A must watch for any fan of Clint Eastwood and/or Westerns. This is one of the great film-noirish westerns from the 70s.
