“The
Man Who Shot Liberty Valance” is a western drama, based on the story by Dorothy
M. Johnson and Directed by John Ford.
While
Senator Ransom Stoddard (James Stewart) returns home to Shinbone for the
funeral of Tom Doniphon (John Wayne), he tells the story behind his sojourn to
a local newspaper editor, about how he had arrives in the town many years
before, as a young lawyer, and how he first met local outlaw Liberty Valance
(Lee Marvin) when the stage he was on was robbed.
After
the holdup Stoddard was left with nothing more than a few law books to his name
so he had to get a job in the kitchen at the Ericson's restaurant and there he
met his future wife, Hallie (Vera Miles) but he has both a friend and a love
rival in Tom Doniphon.
All
this is against the backdrop of the territory vying for Statehood.
Eventually
Stoddard is selected by the townspeople as a representative, with his main
rival being Valance, who does not take defeat well and terrorizes the town, but
when he destroys the local newspaper office and attacks the editor, Stoddard
calls him out, though the conclusion is not quite as straightforward as legend
would have it.
Other
notable cast members in this classic western are Edmond O'Brien, Andy Devine,
Ken Murray, John Carradine and Jeanette Nolan.
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