I literally gripped my chair until my wrists hurt. High Noon is still fresh, riveting and thrilling after all these years. Perfect microcosm-small town as the US or how Americans deal with a crisis: lots of talk until it is almost too late then only a few save the majority from certain doom despite being abandoned, derided and ridiculed by those who were supposed to be their friends and ultimately benefit from the actions of the brave few. Gary Cooper does an amazing job showing a mixture of bravery, anxiety, fear. His age, a factor that almost jeopardized his chances of getting cast in this role, ended up being an asset!