Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

A Disappointing Continuation

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

This John Frankenheimer movie presents a low-action, sparsely-populated story about a married Tennessee county sheriff (Gregory Peck), who falls in love with a young girl (Tuesday Weld). Weld's father (Ralph Meeker) and younger brothers are illegally operating a still as a family business that probably goes back for decades and may go forward for decades more. The movie also stars Estelle Parsons as Peck's pathetic wife and Charles Durning Peck's as his deputy. This movie does not live up to the Frankenheimer standards that I learned to love from his early 60s black and white movies. The best part of the movie was Johnny Cash's singing of the title song.

Underrated, overlooked gem from director John Frankenheimer has Gregory Peck in fine form playing Tennessee sheriff and family man in a depressed hillbilly town falling for Tuesday Weld, the comely daughter of a moonshiner. The sheriff, torn by sexual longing and responsibilities--and throwing all morality out of his path--strikes a subtle arrangement with the mountain clan to continue seeing their daughter if they keep their business under-wraps...but is this girl just stringing the lawman along? Frankenheimer bookends the film with a collage of sorrowful faces (scored with music by Johnny Cash) and the effect is a bit pretentious (it seems like a put-on); however, the director's dramatic compositions (helped immeasurably by David M. Walsh's superlative cinematography) overcome this arty overreaching and actually take on some meaning. Alvin Sargent's screenplay, adapted from Madison Jones' book "An Exile", is literate and engrossing, and the obtrusiveness of that stilted opening (as well as Cash's songs, pushed too far out in front) can easily be forgiven. Sexual obsession wears surprisingly well on Gregory Peck, and when he asks Weld to run away with him, you believe it. Both performers are terrific (even Peck's arched eyebrow and granite jaw work well for him here) and the supporting cast is equally solid. Atmospheric and charged with emotion. *** from ****

this is just my own personal opinion,but i found this movie very slow.there's a lot of drama,but not much action.Gregory peck plays the sheriff of a very sleepy town,where almost nothing happens.then he does something which goes against his morals.he ends up paying for it in the end.Tuesday Weld also stars in the movie.i watched this movie right to the end,though i found it hard to keep going.John Frankenheimer directed the movie,and if you like his style of movie making,you might like this movie.for me,though,i didn't like it that much.i've seen much worse movies,but i didn't feel invested in this movie or the characters.anyway,if you don't mind drama,and aren't concerned about a lot of action,you might like this movie. 4/10

Tuesday Weld a Tennessee gal? I don't think so. Johnny Cash's music is the best part of this movie. Gregory Peck's portrayal of a good man in a mid-life crisis pushed to the edge of reason convincing, but looking at this film as a depiction of real Tennesseeans is not very accurate. My people are from East Tennessee and many ran corn liquor in the 30's and right on up into the 80's. Are there folks who still live in tar paper shacks with no running water up in the hollers in East Tennessee? Yep - I've been there. But they are the friendliest, most hospitable, smart, caring, hard working people - so much more than the caricatures these movies perpetuate. Remember that when you watch Deliverance,Thunder Road, Lolly Madonna War, etc...... all interesting movies - but one-dimensional portraits of southern folks.