From Noon Till Three (1976)

Apparently Amanda Starbuck (Jill Ireland) subscribed to the premise set forth in the 1962 Western "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance", that is to say, "When the legend becomes fact, print the legend". And so she does, having her chance meeting and tryst with outlaw Graham Dorsey (Charles Bronson) memorialized in a novel which takes on a life of it's own following publication. The best seller even manages to make it's way across the big pond, finding an appreciative audience among the French and Italians.I don't recall how long Dorsey spent in prison, but it seemed rather odd to me that a bunch of folks who used to know him well didn't recognize him when he made his return to Gladstone City. That it took so long for Amanda to come to that conclusion required a forced suspension of disbelief from this viewer. The rationale that she had concocted such a dreamlike version of her brief three hours with him in romantic bliss only goes so far, while everyone else who failed to recognize him or refuse to acknowledge his existence just didn't ring true to me.Here's something else that didn't ring true - during the confrontation between Amanda and the villagers who appeared at her door, the sleeve of her dress disappears between frames! How'd that happen? Lately I've been watching the 1950's TV Western 'The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp', and one of the more flamboyant actors in that series was Doug Fowley in the role of Earp's friend Doc Holliday. So it didn't take long to recognize him here as Buck Bowers, leader of the Bowers Gang that Dorsey was part of. Had the writers of the story done a better job of researching their Western outlaw history, they probably wouldn't have had Dorsey state that the gang's low profile was attributed to their blaming the Jameses and the Daltons for their robberies. The heyday of the James Gang was from 1865 to 1876, while the Daltons rode from roughly 1880 to 1892. I guess the Bowers bunch could have spanned a brief time frame when both gangs operated, but it seemed like a stretch to me.So what it boils down to, check this one out if you're a fan of the real life couple Bronson and Ireland in one of their many film collaborations. They didn't always appear in stories where they had much to do with each other, but in this one they light it up with their obvious chemistry. My question would be, how many times do you think they might have rehearsed their parts back at the Bronson homestead?

*** This review may contain spoilers *** *Plot and ending analyzed*From Noon Til Three is a pretty lousy movie. Not only is the acting not up to par, the script isn't that convincing. It seems like a cross between a comedy and a play, with disastrous results. Charles Bronson is annoying to watch, since he's a wooden actor, and if he's not in constant action, then he'll wear you down really quick. He's not likable at all here, switching his clothes with a dentist, who later gets shot by the posse who was after him.Jill Ireland is his love interest. Jill Ireland is wooden as well. She sleeps with him right off the bat, why, I'm still trying to figure that out. They have three hours before his gang comes back so they spend their time in bed, or near a pond, or in a parlor. Sounds about as much fun as having sand poured over your head. Jill Ireland thinks he gets shot and a book is written about their love romance, which becomes famous. Charles Bronson was actually put into prison for a year and when he comes back, no one believes its him. That's pretty much it. It's not believable at all and makes for a long viewing because of the tedious scenes.Charles Bronson was better in Breakheart Pass (1975) or The Magnificent Seven (1960).

Charles Bronson has the good fortune of having his horse step into a chuck hole and it having to be destroyed. Good luck because he was a member of Douglas Fowley's gang on the way to rob a bank. The gang parks him with romantic widow Jill Ireland and they have a romantic idyll of sorts From Noon Till Three. Ireland, a widow who is well fixed did not have much romance in her life while her much older husband was alive and none after he died. She's full of all kinds of notions of true love and Bronson comes along admirably suited to fulfill those notions. But the romantic idyll they create soon overwhelms them.Bronson and Ireland as real life husband and wife certainly loved working together. They certainly have a familiarity that translates well on screen. When Bronson is her "guest" for those hours you're never quite sure if he's pitching a line to this obviously love starved widow. After a while you don't care and are rooting for him to hit a home run.Fowley and the rest meet a sad end, but Bronson and Ireland create their own story. I can't say much more, but From Noon To Three is a great tribute to the John Ford maxim from The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.Print the legend they certainly did.

I'm not the world's biggest Western expert, but I can count the number of Western love stories on one hand.Many Westerns might include a love element as a subplot, or toss a love story away blithely to demonstrate hardness, but this film is 100% a love story.Bronson brings a refreshing realistic 70s anti-hero attitude to his character, an outlaw who dreams that he's going to die in a robbery, and so bows out, stumbling on a jackpot of romancing a widowed and wealthy Jill Ireland. They fit as much romance as possible into 3 hours. The plot goes awry soon thereafter and does a really deft job of remaining unpredictable to the end.That Bronson and Ireland were married in real life just adds to their chemistry and tragic foreshadowing.This film should appeal to ladies, and could make a good date night film, if you can find it, and has enough action and twists to entertain men, unless they are also romantic, and then this film pulls at the heartstrings quite a bit, but generally avoids becoming totally syrupy, if slightly wacky at times.You really want to reach into the film and guide the characters away from danger, that's how engaging their romance becomes. There are other moments in which this film drifts refreshingly away from the many clichés of the average Western.I saw it on the THIS channel on Nov 5 2013, and I don't think I'd seen it since I was a kid in the 70s or 80s. It doesn't seem to get broadcast much.