Springfield Rifle (1952)

A lot of fun.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

See it- This is a diamond in the rough. It is relatively unknown but a must-see for Gary Cooper fans. Cooper plays his usual character of a man on a mission to redeem himself, but this is not a typical western. Exciting from start to finish, it's the story of the inception of counterintelligence used by the Union in the Civil War. It is not necessarily James Bond with a cowboy hat. It is still very much a western, and a refreshingly good Civil War movie for a change. Movie buffs will also get a kick out of a young Fess Parker. Full of twists and lots of battle scenes, it's a good old-fashioned, fun movie. 4 action rating

...as indeed I was as to who exactly the bad guys are and what side he is actually on."Springfield Rifle" is a Civil War cavalry picture in a sub - sub John Ford vein with a tired - looking Mr Cooper as a Union officer pretending to be a Confederate or a Confederate officer pretending to be a Union officer.One of the two anyway.It's certainly overly complicated with lots of clandestine meetings,secret codes and people being thrown into prison only to escape with slightly worrying ease the moment the fortunately slow - witted guards' attention is distracted. The eponymous firearm doesn't get a mention until 2/3rds the way through the film and by then I'd forgotten all about it. Apparently its rate of fire is five times that of all other rifles;an invaluable tool indeed and one that must not be allowed to fall into the hands of the Confederates - or was it the Unionists?To tell you the truth I had lost track by then. Whichever,Mr Cooper and whatever side he was actually on triumphed,you won't be entirely surprised to hear. He is reinstated to his former rank and hundreds of thousands of Yankees and Rebs can continue to slaughter each other enthusiastically. In 1952 it was what passed for a happy ending,I guess.

Tonight I watched "Springfield Rifle" for the third time in my life--but it's the first time in over 25 years. The reason I wanted to see it again was to see if the movie was as enjoyable as I remembered.The film is set during the US Civil War and takes place out West in Colorado. Soon after the movie's start, an officer (Gary Cooper) makes a questionable decision in the face of the enemy and orders his men to run and abandon their horses. As a result, there is a court martial and he's thrown out of the Cavalry for cowardice. Afterwords, Cooper shows a lot of anger and contempt for his old unit and he gets himself arrested. However, he and two Confederate sympathizers escape jail and make towards a band of thugs who work for the South--stealing horses as well as raiding Union supplies and attacking the men.Now it's VERY obvious to anyone who's seen lots of westerns that Cooper is actually working under cover to infiltrate this band of irregulars (i.e., non-military men who fight). This is western movie plot #3--and it's been repeated many, many times--by the likes of Tim McCoy, Randolph Scott, Roy Rogers and many others. Can the film use an old and familiar plot and make it interesting? Well, yes. Cooper was quite good and the rest were fine, as it had a nice ensemble cast of excellent supporting actors (such as David Brian, Lon Chaney, Jr., Guinn Williams and Paul Kelly). However, the big star was the GORGEOUS color cinematography which really made a B-movie plot look into a solid A-picture.So is it a great film? Nah...but it certainly is enjoyable and fun--plus there are a few unexpected angles that manage to punch up an otherwise ordinary plot. Sometimes you don't need an earth-shattering plot--just a well-made film that manages to entertain--and this one sure does.

1952 was a great year for westerns. Besides "High Noon" there was "Hangman's Knot", one of Randolph Scott's best, "Bend of the River", "Viva Zapata", "Rancho Notorious" and so many others. And there was "Springfield Rifle" with an unusual story about spying during the civil war. Cooper is Major Kearney, an officer for the Union, even though he was born in Virginia. He refuses to fight the enemy when they steal the horses they are taking, because they are outnumbered. He is dishonored and branded a coward. There is no end to his humiliation. As it turns out he is really a spy going undercover to find out who is the spy in the Union, responsible for stealing the horses and sending them to the Confederates. He does not tell his wife about it, so she ends up spoiling everything. He should have known better, you don't hide such a secret from your wife!!! The film also shows the Springfield Rifle, which had a new system for loading and gave a superiority to the men using it. This was one of the best westerns directed by De Toth.