More Dead Than Alive

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More Dead Than Alive
More Dead Than Alive poster.jpg
Movie Poster
Directed by Robert Sparr
Written by George Schenck
Produced by Aubrey Schenck
Hal Klein
Starring Clint Walker
Vincent Price
Anne Francis
Mike Henry
Beverly Powers
Paul Hampton
CinematographyJack Marquette
Edited byJohn F. Schreyer
Music by Philip Springer
Production
company
Aubrey Schenck Productions
Distributed by United Artists
Release date
  • January 15, 1969 (1969-01-15)
Running time
101 min.
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

More Dead Than Alive is a 1969 American Western film directed by Robert Sparr and produced by Aubrey Schenck. It was filmed at Agua Dulce, California. [1]

Contents

Plot

A killer named Cain is released from prison after 18 years and wants to settle down as a rancher without ever having to touch a gun again. But no one will give him a job and people are after him for his earlier crimes. He finally takes an offer from showman Ruffalo to perform as "Killer Cain" in his traveling shooting show. However, after 18 years without practice, Cain is not as good as he once was with a gun. He tries to find redemption and peace when he falls in love and eventually marries Monica Alton, an artist from the east who came out west to paint. Yet Cain's reputation continues to dog him; Luke Santee tries to settle an old score, while Billy Valence, a young rival sharpshooter (with mental issues) in Ruffalo's show, is looking to build his reputation by killing Cain. Billy snaps and shoots Ruffalo.

Cast

ActorRole
Clint Walker Cain
Vincent Price Dan Ruffalo
Anne Francis Monica Alton
Paul Hampton Billy
Mike Henry Luke Santee
William Woodson Warden
Beverly PowersSheree

Critical reception

Reviewer Howard Thompson of The New York Times in 1969 praised the performances of Clint Walker and Anne Francis, but did not care for the movie, saying "More Dead Than Alive is a dogged but dinky little Western with the perfect title." He described Paul Hampton in the role of Billy as an "incredibly poor young actor" and concluded that "the title still fits: 'Dead' western." [2]

See also

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References

  1. More Dead Than Alive (1969) - Filming locations
  2. Thompson, Howard (May 1, 1969). "Movie Review - More Dead Than Alive - 'Dead' Western - NYTimes.com". movies.nytimes.com. Retrieved March 27, 2011.