‘Hangman’s Knot’: Beyond the War

The Civil War is over in this intriguing Western, but Confederates battle external threats and their fractured unity.

Ambush successful: Maj. Matt Stewart (Randolph Scott), in “Hangman's Knot.” Columbia Pictures

NR | 1h 21m | Western | 1952

Randolph Scott was one of the most bankable stars of his era. He carved out a niche as the embodiment of rugged virtue and stoic heroism, particularly in the great American Western. His lengthy career spanned genres, but films like “The Texans” (1938) and “Comanche Station” (1960) cemented his legacy as a cowboy icon.