High Noon

Dan over at Dislogue wrote and essay on the parallels between the movie High Noon and what the US is doing today in Iraq.

I don't think I need to draw the parallels to our current situation too closely. I suggest you watch again, if you have seen it, with the current issues facing our country (and indeed the world) in mind. If you haven't seen it, you must.

Do we want to live in a "town" where decent women can't walk the streets in daylight, like in areas of France with high populations of Muslims, or in towns where it isn't safe to bring up kids, like in Beslan?

Watch it, then think about who would make the better Marshall, and who is playing the ambitious, but not dutiful, deputy.

Victor Davis Hanson also used the High Noon metaphor over a year ago. Hanson focused on the fact that the US may decide to walk away from the ingrates at some point. Why should the US turn again to the UN when like the townsfolk in the saloon they only mock us?

I agree with both essays but the main theme that makes the movie timeless is a theme of courage and being true to yourself. Supposedly the movie has been screened at the White House by various administrations more than any other movie. It is obvious that some Presidents understood the message of the movie more than others.

Just to highlight the timeliness of the movie - it was originally meant as a metaphor about those in Hollywood with the courage to stand up to HUAC and blacklisting. I guess it just goes to show that tyranny can come in many forms but courage always seems to take the same shape.