The (Native American) wife of marshal Matt Morgan (Kirk Douglas) is raped/murdered by two young/white men while on a ride w/ their 7 y.o. son. The killers leave behind a saddle w/ the initials “CR” on it; Matt recognizes this as property of Craig Belden (Anthony Quinn), his old friend. Craig (now a cattle baron in the town of Gun Hill) is sympathetic to Morgan’s situation, until he realizes that one of the murderers is his own son, Rick (Earl Holliman). Craig refuses to hand over his son to Matt, but the lawman is determined to capture Rick and his friend (Lee) by the 9PM train. Soon, Matt learns that the townspeople (incl. the sheriff) won’t cooperate; Craig’s henchmen are looking to kill him! He finds ally in Linda (Carolyn Jones), a single woman he met on the train.

Sheriff Bartlett: Far as I’m concerned, you can go out on the street and get yourself killed anytime you want to, but, you know something, 40 years from now the weeds’ll grow just as pretty on my grave as they will on yours. Nobody’ll even remember that I was yellow and you died like a fool. That’s your long view, son. Always take the long view.
Marshal Matt Morgan: I’ve got two warrants, and I’m gonna serve them. I’m leavin’ town with two men, and the long view is this: don’t try to stop me!

This drama (directed by John Sturges- best remembered for his Westerns) has dark/realistic elements; as this was made in the late ’50s, Hollywood was opening up more. The movie (which is available to stream for free) starts w/ a (tense/harrowing) chase which results in a wife/mother being attached; her young son is able to ride away. Later on, Linda breaks up w/ Craig, revealing that it was his (physical) abuse which resulted in her hospitalization. It’s rare to see such a woman character in the Western genre!

[1] …something of a coup having two heavyweight stars of the period like Kirk Douglas and Anthony Quinn playing the central roles. […]

With more than a nod to Delmer Daves’ “3.10 To Yuma” (1957), LAST TRAIN FROM GUN HILL is a splendid well structured dramatic western with equally splendid performances from Douglas and Quinn. The supporting cast are good too! […] Adding greatly to this taut western drama is Dimitri Tiomkin’s outstanding music.

[2] Earl Holliman showed great promise in an early role as the spoiled rotten son of Mr. Belden. I’m surprised that he did not become a bigger star as a character actor throughout his career. And the late Carolyn Jones turned in a strong performance as Linda. Definitely up there in the same ranking of great classic westerns and one of the best efforts of John Sturges.

[3] …impressive in the script, and through John Sturges’ steadfast professionalism, is how there’s the tension between law and the personal, the immediate draw of a gun draw to solve anything, and the bitterness of real vengeance…

-Excerpts from IMDb reviews