Bad Day at Black Rock

Audience Reviews

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Kylo S Apr 7, 2019 BDABR is a flawless film. Spencer Tracy is the one-armed man coming into town on the only train to search for a Japanese war hero. But the town hides a dark secret and John Sturgess and cinematographer William C Mellor capture reflections on Tracy in windows or framed in doorways - all highlighting his increasing entrapment in a town slowly closing in on him. While the theme is racism or fear of the 'other' this is really about how hatred eats away at us shown in a town turning against itself, unable to survive its dark heart. Robert Ryan, Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, Walter Brennan, Dean Jagger and Anne Francis are the incredible support cast (Alan Ladd's agent passed on the script!) to Tracy who fearlessly beats a path to the truth, even when it seems inevitably to lead to his own demise. The genius of creating a world where a man is trapped in a town surrounded by desert gives a feeling of terror. Finally the town is forced to face its demons to free itself and move on. Perhaps our need to hate comes from survival. But it will always find an outlet. Hate of the other, hate of ourselves, hate of a film, book, political viewpoint. Like BDABR it will lead to the same outcome: Stagnation and rotting from within. See more

Leia W Mar 12, 2019 Fantastic! Spencer Tracy is outstanding as the outsider that comes to a small town in the dry, dusty southwest that's hiding something. And he's just the man to find out what it is! Just a tour de force in how a film can build tension and suspense while you're waiting for what's going to be revealed. Then a great climatic ending with an unexpected twist that I didn't see coming. Tracy is bolstered by a great cast of seasoned character actors including Anne Francis, one of my favorites. Also, fabulous sets and stunning scenery that gives a real feel for a claustrophobic small town in the wide open desert. "Bad Day at Black Rock" is definitely a film worth seeing! See more

Rey S Mar 10, 2019 Cheap and poorly done. The plot is thin and executed with extreme simplicity. This is the worst of early television: the kind you would turn off. There is no suspense here and no "racial gangs" since none are mentioned and none materialize. Everyone is caucausian and the "hated" minority is supposedly one dead Japanese person. We are supposed to be afraid of this gang of "racists". Maybe we should be more afraid at how this town is nor run like the normal American town. In fact, this movie could have been an episode of the Twilight Zone had it been written better. As it is, it is trite, the acting from Tracy is bad as usual, and how can we believe the premise to this simplistic plot? It's a loser. See more

Jan 17, 2019 The best movie character ever portrayed: Robert Ryan as Reno Smith!

Harry S Nov 19, 2018 Superb slow burning thriller with suspense and tension filling every scene. Spencer Tracy fabulously leads a wonderful cast as the one armed mystery man visiting a darkly secretive town. See more

Poe R Aug 13, 2018 A no-nonsense modern-day Western from director John Sturges with one-armed city veteran Spencer Tracey walking into the shady outback town of Robert Ryan and goons. Sturges raises the tension effectively as the drama plays out like a reworking of High Noon along with some other interesting spins on the genre. Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine and Dean Jagger also appear in early roles. See more

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Bad Day at Black Rock

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