Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Decision at Sundown 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov July 19, 2023

Budd Boetticher's "Decision at Sundown" (1957) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the release include filmed introduction by filmmaker Taylor Hackford and vintage trailer for the film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

It takes some time before it is revealed why Bart Allison (Randolph Scott) is looking for Tate Kimbrough (John Carroll). However, it is not difficult to guess that it is something very serious because Allison and his loyal sidekick, Sam (Noah Berry Jr.), have been all over the country and appear exhausted.

They track down Kimbrough in the small town of Sundown, just before he is to marry Lucy Summerton (Karen Steele), the only daughter of a wealthy businessman. At the local church, Allison puts the wedding on hold after declaring that he intends to kill Kimbrough. In the ensuing chaos, Allison and Sam then barricade in a nearby horse stable, while Kimbrough urges Sheriff Swede Hansen (Andrew Duggan) to quickly figure out how to get rid of the dangerous visitors.

While shots are exchanged, it is revealed that Allison is hellbent on avenging the premature death of his wife, who apparently was mistreated by Kimbrough. However, while the violent confrontation is underway, evidence emerges that Allison’s version of the story explaining the nature of the tragic relationship between his late wife and Kimbrough may not be entirely correct.

Budd Boetticher and Randolph Scott made several westerns together and Decision at Sundown could very well be the best of the bunch. (If it is not the best, then it is definitely the second best). Indeed, it is populated with outstanding, very authentic characters and produces first-class drama whose progression is not at all easy to predict. Even though it is a pretty short film made with a modest budget that lacks any striking panoramic footage, it looks very good, too.

The main strength of Decision at Sundown is in its carefully crafted characters, which are very atypical for an American western from the 1950s. Indeed, while not unique, these characters express views and behave in ways that effectively invalidate the significance of the playground where the good ones are supposed to defeat the bad ones. In conventional westerns from the same period, the division between the good and bad characters is of paramount importance and determines the quality of the drama that is depicted in them.

Most interestingly, Decision at Sundown is not a multi-layered western that demands to be examined as a complex character study either. For example, it leaves the impression that its characters are free to make judgment errors without needing to address the rationale behind them, plus they can continuously evolve without bringing attention to thought-provoking contrasts that summarize the nature of existence in the Wild West. This is why the progression of the drama in Decision at Sundown becomes is not easy to predict.

Scott leads but does not overpower the supporting cast. In fact, his character goes through multiple cycles of anger that reveal as much about him as they do about the people around him. Also, the screenplay does not place him in perfect material making it inevitable that he carries Decision at Sundown on his shoulders, it is his personality that establishes his authority. This is another reason why the drama feels very organic.

The resolution of the drama is guaranteed to surprise even seasoned connoisseurs of the western genre. All characters that have successfully endured it emerge compromised but with a superior grasp of the environment they share, which is not as simplistic as conventional westerns insisted. Boetticher speculates that it was best navigated not by the strongest, most fearless and honorable ones, but by those that understood how to make the most rational decisions in it.

Boetticher used the services of the great cinematographer Burnett Guffey, who lensed some of film noir’s biggest masterpieces (In a Lonely Place, The Harder They Fall).

*Decision at Sundown is the second of five westerns that are included in Criterion’s The Ranown Westerns: Five Films Directed by Budd Boetticher, a six-disc 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray box set. All five films have been recently restored in 4K by Sony Pictures.

Decision at Sundown 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Decision at Sundown is presented on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray. The 4K Blu-ray release is Region-Free. The Blu-ray release is Region-A "locked".

Please note that some of the screencaptures that appear with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and are downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc, including the actual color values of this content.

Screencaptures #1-24 are taken from the Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #27-32 are from 4K Blu-ray.

In native 4K, the new 4K makeover of Decision at Sundown looks gorgeous. Excluding a few scenes where in my opinion the blues again shift a bit too much toward cyan -- see the carriage in screencapture 17 -- I think that the overall color balance is very convincing and replicates qualities that I would expect to see in a Technicolor film from the 1950s. Delineation, clarity, and depth range from excellent to outstanding, so on a large screen there is a lot to appreciate. You will see density fluctuations, with the most obvious ones appearing before and after transitions, but they are inherited. Naturally, grain exposure could vary a bit, though I think that the overall consistency of it is terrific. There are no traces of problematic digital corrections. The surface of the visuals is very healthy as well. All in all, I think that Decision at Sundown looks pretty impressive in native 4K. My score is 4.75/5.00.

Decision at Sundown 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this release: English LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The lossless track is very healthy and reproduces the native quality of the original soundtrack wonderfully. However, I went back to The Tall T and did some random comparisons and this time the dynamic contrasts are not quite as striking. I found this very interesting because The Tall T is an extremely similar project but has an astonishing soundtrack. (My guess is that both films were shot with almost identical budgets). I did not encounter any technical anomalies to report in our review.

Decision at Sundown 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Introduction - presented here is an archival introduction to Decision at Sundown recorded by filmmaker Taylor Hackford (An Officer and a Gentleman, Against All Odds). In English, not subtitled. (6 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage trailer for Decision at Sundown. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Booklet - 34-page illustrated booklet featuring Tom Gunning's "Some Things A Man Can't Ride Around: Budd Boetticher's Ranown Westerns", Glenn Kenny's The Outlaw Variations: The Ranown Westerns' Finely Drawn Antagonists", and technical credits.

BONUS BLU-RAY DISC

• Budd Boetticher: A Man Can Do That - this archival documentary examines the life and legacy of Budd Boetticher. Included in it are clips from interviews with Clint Eastwood, Peter Bogdanovich, Taylor Hackford, Robert Stack, Robert Towner, and Boetticher, amongst others. The documentary was produced in 2005. In English, not subtitled. (85 min).

• Cinema, de Notre Temps: "Boetticher Rides Again" - presented here is an archival episode of the French TV program Cinema, de Notre Temps in which Budd Boetticher discusses his transformation into a "western director" and career in Hollywood. The episode was first broadcast on September 13, 1995. In English and French, with imposed French subtitles and English subtitles where necessary. (60 min).

• Budd Boetticher: A Stury in Self-Determination - in this archival documentary, Taylor Hackford interviews Budd Boetticher about his experiences as a bullfighter in Mexico, which were eventually recreated in Bullfighter and the Lady. The documentary was produced in 1971. In English, not subtitled. (61 min).

• Visiting Budd Boetticher - in this archival program, Budd Boetticher recalls various experiences he had with Randolph Scott and Burt Kennedy while working on the Ranown westerns and discusses the evolution of the American western. The program was produced in 1999 by Fiction Factory. In English, not subtitled. (38 min).

• Visiting Budd Boetticher - in this archival program, Budd Boetticher recalls various experiences he had with Randolph Scott and Burt Kennedy while working on the Ranown westerns and discusses the evolution of the American western and his decision to exit Hollywood. The program was produced in 1999 by Fiction Factory. In English, not subtitled. (38 min).

• Budd Boetticher and Jim Kitses - in this archival audio interview, film scholar Jim Kitses questions Budd Boetticher about the various westerns he made with Randolph Scott. The interview was conducted in 1969. In English, not subtitled. (63 min).

• Farran Smith Nehme on Randolph Scott - this new visual essay was created by critic Farran Smith Nehme. In English, not subtitled. (26 min).

Decision at Sundown 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Even though I have not read Vernon Fluharty's original story that inspired Budd Boetticher to shoot Decsion at Sundown, I am convinced that the film has different characters. I just don't know how different they are. As I was viewing Decision at Sundown the other night, I began recalling many of Boetticher's comments from an archival program that is included on this release of Bullfighter and the Lady, which is one of his masterpieces. Some of these comments are about Old Hollywood, the stereotypes it promoted for a long time, and Boetticher's creative attempts to bypass them. Decision at Sundown is a different, very good western precisely because in it Boetticher avoids numerous cliches about the good and bad cowboys that clashed in the Wild West. I loved every minute of it. This release is included in Criterion's The Ranown Westerns: Five Films Directed by Budd Boetticher, a six-disc 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray box set. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.