Plot

A marshal tries to bring the son of an old friend, an autocratic cattle baron, to justice for his role in the rape and murder of the marshal's Native American wife.

The wife of marshal Matt Morgan is raped and murdered. The killers leave behind a distinctive saddle, that Morgan recognises as belonging to his old friend Craig Belden, now cattle baron in the town of Gun Hill. Belden is sympathetic, until it transpires that one of the murderers is his own son Rick, whom he refuses to hand over. Morgan is determined to capture Rick and take him away by the 9.00 train; but he is trapped in the town alone, with Belden and all his men now looking to kill him.—David Levene <D.S.Levene@durham.ac.uk>

An attractive American Indian woman and her young son are in a wagon, passing through a secluded, wooded area. They nervously pass by two dismounted, shiftless cowboys who are killing time by guzzling whiskey. The woman glances apprehensively over her shoulder as the two men mount up and follow along. As the men draw even with the buggy, they begin harassing the woman, asking her to stop and have a drink with them. She picks up a buggy whip and lashes one of the cowboys, Rick Belden (Earl Holliman), across the face, then whips her horse into a dead run. With the drunken cowboys in hot pursuit, the speeding wagon careens over onto its side and throws the woman and boy out. The woman frantically orders the boy to flee as the leering cowboys strip off her clothes and assault her. The boy takes one of the cowboys' horses and escapes. He gallops into the nearby town where his dad, Marshal Matt Morgan (Kirk Douglas) is busy entertaining some local urchins with tall tales from the "old days." Morgan rushes out into the street to meet the distraught boy, who can't verbalize what just took place. Morgan mounts up on the horse with his son and races back in the direction of the overturned wagon. Morgan discovers the nude body of his wife, who has been raped and murdered. He tearfully recovers her body and returns to the waiting horse, when he notices that the animal carries a beautiful silver-trimmed saddle emblazoned with the initials "CB." Morgan recognizes the initials.

Later that same day, Rick Belden is drinking whiskey at a saloon in the town of Gun Hill. One of the saloon girls notices the deep cut on his face from the whiplash he received earlier. She teases him, saying that it does her good to see him getting scratched for a change. Belden slaps her to the floor and drunkenly confronts the startled saloon patrons who object to his behavior. Before anything worse can take place, a ranch hand named Beero (Brad Dexter) enters the saloon and tells young Belden that his father wants to see him immediately. It seems that the hotheaded Rick took something of his father's without permission. The men return to the Belden ranch where Rick is confronted about the missing saddle by his father, Craig Belden (Anthony Quinn). Rick lies and claims that their horses were stolen along with the valuable saddle. When his father notices the deep laceration on his son's face, he beams proudly and makes light of it. Beero sarcastically remarks that Rick would do better to fight with men. An offended Craig Belden goads his weakling son into fighting Beero and defending the Belden family name. Rick tries to beg off, but Craig insists. Beero easily fends off the hapless Rick, knocking him to the floor twice before Craig stops the fight. Craig Belden is revealed to be a tough, self-made and ruthless patriarch whose blind tolerance of his son's outrageous behavior has already ruined the boy.

Having identified the fancy saddle, Marshal Morgan explains to his deceased wife's Indian father that he and Craig Belden are old friends. The old man wants revenge, and Morgan vows to get it. He then boards the train to Gun Hill to return the saddle and ask Belden which of his men were involved in his wife's murder. On the train, he meets a woman named Linda (Carolyn Jones). She recognizes the saddle and warns him about Craig Belden and his powerful influence in Gun Hill. When the train arrives, Beero is waiting to take Linda straight to Belden's ranch. She declines and checks into a hotel instead. When Morgan steps off the train with the saddle, Beero confronts him. Morgan tells him to let Belden know he is coming. Morgan hires a rig and starts out for the Belden ranch. Beero has already ridden ahead and warned Belden that someone is on the way with his saddle. An enraged Belden arrives at the ranch house and is shocked to encounter his old friend Matt Morgan. They drink to old times and Belden discloses that although he has become prosperous, he lost his wife nine years ago. Now it is just him and his son. Morgan inquires how the saddle had gotten lost and Belden tells him that his son Rick and a friend named Lee Smithers (Brian Hutton) had passed through Pawley (Marshal Morgan's town) a few days ago. He explains that they were drinking in a saloon on Sunday when someone stole their horses and saddles. Morgan tells him that his wife was murdered that same day, and that one of the murderers was using Belden's silver saddle. Belden offers to help in any way he can and asks Morgan how we will be able to identify the killers. Morgan explains that his nine-year-old son had been present that day, and that he had witnessed his mother lashing one of the men's cheek open to the bone. A sudden look of recognition crosses Belden's face, and Morgan sees it. He accuses Belden's son of the crime, explaining that neither of the town's saloons are open on Sunday, making Rick Belden a liar. Belden nervously tries to deny his son's involvement and warns Morgan to leave Rick alone and get out of town at once. Morgan replies that he will be on the last train out of Gun Hill at 9 PM, but that Rick and his friend will be going with him to stand trial.

Back in town, Morgan gets no cooperation from the citizens of Gun Hill. They are terrified of Craig Belden, who owns half the town. The corrupt sheriff makes it clear that he won't help.

Belden confronts his son and Lee, telling them just who it was that they killed. They claim that the death of Morgan's wife was an accident, and then dismiss her as "just an Indian squaw." Belden angrily banishes Lee from his ranch and warns Rick that Matt Morgan is no one to trifle with. Rick protests that he isn't afraid and rashly insists on going into town. Craig Belden insists that he take Beero and another man along.

Morgan searches the town for Rick, but runs into immediate resistance. One of three men seated in front of a saloon remarks that he wouldn't arrest any man for killing an Indian; they would pay him a bounty instead. Morgan knocks him out with a forearm to the jaw. The other two men decline to test him. In the saloon, a friendly bartender warns him to leave Rick alone. The only person willing to help Morgan is former saloon girl (and Craig Belden's erstwhile mistress) Linda. She advises Morgan to look for Rick in the saloon across the street. Morgan stealthily climbs up the side of the building and sneaks in the window of an upstairs bedroom, where a startled saloon girl is sleeping. Simultaneously, Rick interrupts his card game and heads upstairs to pay a visit to the girl. Morgan gets the jump on him and knocks him out cold with the butt of his gun. He heaves Rick across his shoulder and starts down the stairs, gun drawn. Two saloon employees go for their shotguns before Morgan shoots them down. He orders Rick's cardplaying friends into a store room, but one of them ducks behind a table to fight back. Morgan fires through the table and wounds him, then locks everyone up in the store room. Out on the street, he runs into the corrupt sheriff, who doesn't challenge him but tells him he will never get away with it. Morgan goes into a hotel and forcibly coerces the reluctant manager into giving him a room. He handcuffs Rick to the bed and settles in to wait on the 9 o'clock train.

Belden soon arrives with twenty men and tries to reason with Morgan. When it becomes obvious that Morgan is serious about putting Rick on the train, Belden orders his men to open fire through the windows of Morgan's hotel room. Shots rain in from the surrounding rooftops, but Morgan returns fire and kills two of Belden's men. He also shoves the bed holding Rick in front of one window, limiting Belden's options. Belden is afraid to rush the room and possibly wound his son.

Belden enters the saloon and confronts Linda about not returning to his ranch. It is revealed that she has been away at a hospital recovering from a beating administered by Craig Belden. She complains that Rick constantly makes up lies about her, fueling Craig's jealousy. She asks Belden if he is finally willing to marry her, but he admits that Rick is the obstacle. She knows that Belden will always choose his son over her. On a saloon bet, Linda walks over to her hotel and goes up to the room where Morgan is holding Rick. He admits her to the room and quietly asks for her help. He needs a shotgun to make good on his escape plan. Undecided about helping him, Linda returns to the saloon and encounters a drunken Lee Smithers, who callously admits to raping and killing Morgan's wife. Linda throws her drink in his face and storms out. She notices a shotgun behind the bar.

As dusk falls, Belden decides on a desperate move. He tells Morgan he is coming up to talk, man to man. Morgan agrees, but the unarmed Belden arranges for two of his gunmen to trail him up the stairs. While Morgan is distracted by his conversation with Belden, the two men creep down the hallway. One of them makes a noise and Morgan reacts just in the nick of time, shooting one of them and driving the other back down the stairs. Belden throws something at Morgan but misses. An angry Morgan drives him from the room.

In the meantime, Linda slips behind the saloon bar and retrieves the shotgun, hiding it under her shawl. She takes it to Morgan, knowing she will pay a steep price. As Morgan calculates a way to get Rick to the train platform, Lee Smithers sets fire to the rear of the hotel, hoping to drive Morgan into the open. Morgan is forced to unshackle Rick from the bed, and a fierce struggle over the shotgun ensues. Morgan wins the battle, and as the hotel burns down Morgan handcuffs himself to Rick and descends the stairs with the sawed-off, double-barrelled shotgun pressed under Rick's chin. Belden and his men are stymied. Morgan warns that if one shot is fired he will decapitate Rick with the shotgun. Morgan and Rick mount a buckboard and start slowly toward the train platform. Belden, his gunmen, and Lee Smithers trail the wagon slowly down the street, waiting for an opening.

Just as the train pulls in, Morgan shrewdly eases the wagon across the tracks in front of the train, separating himself and his prisoner from the rest of the crowd. Only Smithers is on the same side of the tracks as Morgan and Rick. Running out of time, Smithers makes his move. He taunts Morgan, daring the lawman to draw against him. Smithers finally pulls his gun and fires at Morgan, striking Rick Belden instead. Morgan lowers the shotgun and discharges a full load of buckshot into Smithers just before Rick falls from the wagon, mortally wounded. Still bound to his prisoner, Morgan falls with him. He unlocks the handcuffs and wearily walks away to board the train. Craig Belden runs around the train to discover his dead son on the ground. He grieves over him for a few moments before angrily calling out to Matt Morgan. Morgan tells Belden that it is over. There is nothing more to fight about. But Belden demands satisfaction. The two men square off, but Morgan stipulates that he won't draw first. Belden obliges, pulling his revolver before Morgan guns him down. As Belden dies, he asks Morgan for the name of his young son, Petey. With his last breath, he admonishes Morgan to "raise him right." The train pulls out with Morgan on board as Linda grieves over the fallen Craig Belden.