While surveying a telegraph line in 1861, Western Union engineer Edward Creighton (Dean Jagger) is severely injured in an accident. He is discovered by Vance Shaw (Randolph Scott), an outlaw on the run from a posse. Forced to travel on foot after his horse was hurt, Shaw at first considers stealing Creighton's horse, but changes his mind and takes the man with him, saving his life.
Sometime later, following his recovery, Creighton returns to Omaha, Nebraska and plans the construction of a telegraph line from Omaha to Salt Lake City, Utah. Facing considerable opposition to the line from Confederate soldiers, Indians, and outlaws, Creighton elicits the help of his sister Sue (Virginia Gilmore), foreman Pat Grogan (Minor Watson), and assistant Homer Kettle (Chill Wills).
Looking to put his outlaw past behind him, Shaw arrives at Creighton's Western Union office looking for honest work and is hired as a scout by Grogan who is unaware of his past. Creighton recognizes him among the men and allows him to stay despite his suspicions. Creighton also hires tenderfoot Richard Blake (Robert Young), a Harvard-educated engineer as a favor to Blake's father. Shaw and Blake are both attracted to Sue and vie for her attention, but their romantic rivalry is cut short when construction of the telegraph line starts on July 4, 1861.
After work commences on the line, one of the men is killed apparently by a mysterious band of cattle-rustling Indians. Unconvinced that Indians are to blame, Shaw rides out to investigate and follows the rustlers' trail to the camp of Jack Slade, a former friend and cohort, whose gang committed the killing disguised as Indians—the gang Shaw left following his last bank robbery. Slade reveals that they are working for the Confederacy to disrupt Western Union because they believe the telegraph service will help the Union. Shaw rides away and returns to the line. Not wanting to turn in his former friends, Shaw tells Creighton that a large band of Dakota Indians stole the cattle, and recommends that they simply replace the herd and not risk a fight with the Indians.
Sometime later, a confrontation takes place between men working on the forward line and a band of drunken Indians. When one of the Indians tries to steal some equipment, a nervous Blake shoots him, ignoring Shaw's order to remain calm. After word arrives that the main camp is under attack by other Indians, the Western Union men rush back to help with the defense. At the main camp, Slade's men, who are again disguised as Indians, steal the Western Union horses. The company discover the ruse when one of the wounded Indians turns out to be a white man. Forced to buy back their stolen horses from Slade, Creighton becomes suspicious of Shaw's involvement, especially when he admits to knowing the gang.
Soon the U.S. Army arrives and announces the Indians have now refused to allow the telegraph lines to go through their territory in response to Blake's shooting of the drunken Indian. Creighton, Shaw, and Blake ride out to convince Chief Spotted Horse to allow them to build the line through Indian territory, even though the man Blake wounded was Spotted Horse's son. Creighton is finally able to persuade the Indians to allow them passage, and work continues until the company approaches Salt Lake City.
Sometime later, Shaw receives word that Jack Slade wants to meet with him. On the way to see Slade, Shaw is captured and bound by Slade's men. Slade says his group is going to burn down the Western Union camp and they don't want Shaw to interfere. After Slade and his men ride off, Shaw escapes from his ropes but arrives back too late to prevent the fire. He helps rescue some of the Western Union men from the flames and burns his hands in the process.
After the fire, Creighton confronts Shaw for an explanation, but Shaw does not reveal what he knows and is fired by Creighton. As Shaw leaves the camp, he tells Blake that Slade is actually Shaw's brother and that he, Shaw, will find Slade's gang and stop them from interfering with the telegraph project. Shaw rides off and finds Slade and his men in a nearby town. At the barber shop, Shaw confronts his brother, whose gun is concealed under the barber's sheet. Slade shoots Shaw through the sheet. Shaw fights back in spite of his wound, killing some of the gang members, and then dies. Blake arrives and continues the fight with Slade who dies from his wounds. Soon after, the Western Union line is completed and the workers celebrate. When Sue laments the absence of Shaw, Creighton tells her that Shaw can hear them.
没习惯这种风格的电影，群戏，新旧冲突吧，改变与适应吧，人名和脸都对应不清楚，突然被邀看，迟到竟然也能看，空调都是后面开的。
好一般… 白男first world problems+look我有minority friends。太奇怪了 不知道是剧本有改动还是咋回事 很难想象rent的作者写出这么自怜自艾的东西…
"you start writing the next one, and after you finish that one, you start on the next, and on and on, that's what it is to be a writer."
克劳利的一家人都老了，我总被这种浓郁的消逝感所打动，Violet走了，我在影院爆哭，她最后说，我想起那些从前，我刚穿上衬裙的少女时代，总会觉得那是另一个星球的故事。她说，活得够久了。
用灵动轻盈的方式拍了一个动人的悲剧故事，一个梵高式怀才不遇的天才如何在困苦中继续奋斗，像所有天才一样被误解被放弃，在最终迎来成功时却又永远离开我们的故事。更悲剧的是这样精彩的本应属于大银幕的音乐剧最后只能在网飞看，这依然是一个快消费才华的时代。
歌都太好听了吧。崭新。从头到尾都是高强度、快节奏的musical和电影的深度融合，这也体现出电影这种艺术形式的延展性和包容性。一个完全靠激情驱动的剧作天才在几天内的生活切片，永葆赤子之心的单纯和赤诚，就连自己的死亡都那么富有戏剧性。当然艺术家自大妄为的臭脾气也挺让人讨厌的就是了。
一开场Jon Larson介绍自己是音乐剧编剧时声称one of the last my species，到如今LMM把他的故事搬上银幕，this movie is a love letter from one Musical-theater writer to another.
居然Henry全片都没有出现… 唐顿最喜欢的三个女性就是老夫人 mary她妈 mary
片中有很多眼熟的音乐剧演员献唱，但轮到加菲就断崖式下跌。
好看！加菲的脸没有以前帅了 唱歌还不错（但那个黑人大哥和大露背姐姐一开口就发现天赋差距） 但看得出他很努力营造角色形象 不知道是谁的锅 反正就感觉太注重歌舞所以Jon这个角色不太丰满。但还是喜欢 看到他随时随地拿个小本子出来记录有意思的事物 就想他真的是个很热爱生活的人儿啊！出字幕额时候看到了真的Jon顿时感触良多甚至想哭 才35啊！甚至来不及看一遍自己写的《Rent》 为了这个舞台剧梦想他付出了那么那么那么多的心血 于是就想 就让这个倒计时永远停留在tick tick的倒数中 不要boom不要结束 让他一直寻梦下去吧
像《唐顿庄园》这样，见证一部英剧在国内种草、风靡、流于平庸，又余音不绝的经历，已经绝版。所以在银幕和一群老朋友重逢，也很幸福。影版本身也没有让人失望，独立成章的故事起码要比最后两三季的生拉硬扯体面很多。
明明是个与创作者本人无关的故事，却莫名透露着浓烈的自恋味，纯属剧院玩家自娱自乐自我感动。最重要的是，能不能先学会电影剪辑和调度再来染指歌舞片……？今年颁奖季电影的质量简直太恐怖了。
以为是故事，其实是哲学，以为是哲学，其实是求索以为是求索，其实是人生指南
滴答滴答倒数，拉森的三十岁来得太早，而他的三十六岁永远没有到来，林聚聚在音乐剧方面的才华让另一位天才的坎坷之路串接着倒数时刻的演出美妙地呈现出来，当然要算上加菲无可挑剔的表演，八年熬出的傲慢进不了百老汇，那就潜心创作下一部剧。
但是没有看过剧的会很迷茫。
以为奋斗，其实是故事
前半剪辑节奏有点凌乱无法入戏，后半渐入佳境
全片唯一高潮似乎就是桑德海姆的“到场“，音乐剧电影拍成剧情和歌曲完全不相融，精心设计出的歌词与画面的“同步”无法带来任何情感上的共鸣。不触及90年代真实的政治氛围、不展现舞台艺术在LGBT文化运动中的先锋性质，就永远无法正确地驱魔，没有记忆何来克服，只有浮于表面的致敬。
传记加歌舞电影更是容易产生浓厚的割裂感，大概更适合舞台，适合突破第四面墙来面对面的共鸣
传奇音乐剧大师乔纳森·拉森的传记电影，加菲的演技值得一个影帝提名。把自己的真实生活搬上舞台，成就了乔纳森心中的艺术。倒数第二首歌实乃点睛之笔：你是被爱还是恐惧牵引？这是乔纳森的扪心自问，也是抛给每一个观众的命题。
Copyright © 2015-2023 All Rights Reserved
