I dug this out and watched it again recently, it's a phenomenal Western. I think what makes it feel so gritty and urgent is the unexpected rage that Jimmy Stewart gives off in the film. Anthony Mann really did know how to get the most out of his actors. I class the director/star pairing similar to that of Budd B and Randolph Scott. Both stars had made westerns before but the ones they made with these directors stand head and shoulders above the rest. Peckinpah and Scott was another fantastic pairing.
