While surveying a telegraph line in 1861, Western Union engineer Edward Creighton (Dean Jagger) is severely injured in an accident. He is discovered by Vance Shaw (Randolph Scott), an outlaw on the run from a posse. Forced to travel on foot after his horse was hurt, Shaw at first considers stealing Creighton's horse, but changes his mind and takes the man with him, saving his life.
Sometime later, following his recovery, Creighton returns to Omaha, Nebraska and plans the construction of a telegraph line from Omaha to Salt Lake City, Utah. Facing considerable opposition to the line from Confederate soldiers, Indians, and outlaws, Creighton elicits the help of his sister Sue (Virginia Gilmore), foreman Pat Grogan (Minor Watson), and assistant Homer Kettle (Chill Wills).
Looking to put his outlaw past behind him, Shaw arrives at Creighton's Western Union office looking for honest work and is hired as a scout by Grogan who is unaware of his past. Creighton recognizes him among the men and allows him to stay despite his suspicions. Creighton also hires tenderfoot Richard Blake (Robert Young), a Harvard-educated engineer as a favor to Blake's father. Shaw and Blake are both attracted to Sue and vie for her attention, but their romantic rivalry is cut short when construction of the telegraph line starts on July 4, 1861.
After work commences on the line, one of the men is killed apparently by a mysterious band of cattle-rustling Indians. Unconvinced that Indians are to blame, Shaw rides out to investigate and follows the rustlers' trail to the camp of Jack Slade, a former friend and cohort, whose gang committed the killing disguised as Indians—the gang Shaw left following his last bank robbery. Slade reveals that they are working for the Confederacy to disrupt Western Union because they believe the telegraph service will help the Union. Shaw rides away and returns to the line. Not wanting to turn in his former friends, Shaw tells Creighton that a large band of Dakota Indians stole the cattle, and recommends that they simply replace the herd and not risk a fight with the Indians.
Sometime later, a confrontation takes place between men working on the forward line and a band of drunken Indians. When one of the Indians tries to steal some equipment, a nervous Blake shoots him, ignoring Shaw's order to remain calm. After word arrives that the main camp is under attack by other Indians, the Western Union men rush back to help with the defense. At the main camp, Slade's men, who are again disguised as Indians, steal the Western Union horses. The company discover the ruse when one of the wounded Indians turns out to be a white man. Forced to buy back their stolen horses from Slade, Creighton becomes suspicious of Shaw's involvement, especially when he admits to knowing the gang.
Soon the U.S. Army arrives and announces the Indians have now refused to allow the telegraph lines to go through their territory in response to Blake's shooting of the drunken Indian. Creighton, Shaw, and Blake ride out to convince Chief Spotted Horse to allow them to build the line through Indian territory, even though the man Blake wounded was Spotted Horse's son. Creighton is finally able to persuade the Indians to allow them passage, and work continues until the company approaches Salt Lake City.
Sometime later, Shaw receives word that Jack Slade wants to meet with him. On the way to see Slade, Shaw is captured and bound by Slade's men. Slade says his group is going to burn down the Western Union camp and they don't want Shaw to interfere. After Slade and his men ride off, Shaw escapes from his ropes but arrives back too late to prevent the fire. He helps rescue some of the Western Union men from the flames and burns his hands in the process.
After the fire, Creighton confronts Shaw for an explanation, but Shaw does not reveal what he knows and is fired by Creighton. As Shaw leaves the camp, he tells Blake that Slade is actually Shaw's brother and that he, Shaw, will find Slade's gang and stop them from interfering with the telegraph project. Shaw rides off and finds Slade and his men in a nearby town. At the barber shop, Shaw confronts his brother, whose gun is concealed under the barber's sheet. Slade shoots Shaw through the sheet. Shaw fights back in spite of his wound, killing some of the gang members, and then dies. Blake arrives and continues the fight with Slade who dies from his wounds. Soon after, the Western Union line is completed and the workers celebrate. When Sue laments the absence of Shaw, Creighton tells her that Shaw can hear them.
体验到了歌剧的感染力，有新意，但仍没有跳脱出传统歌舞类型的框架，放在今年来看已经是佼佼者了。首先加菲的的形象从彼得帕克开始就一直非常适合这种埋头苦干的草根设定，确实是这部影片的不二人选，在影片中一展其别开生面的嗓音有如专业选手，LMM将拉森的歌曲几乎一比一地搬上大银幕并赋予其极大的生命力，围绕生前遗憾的展现不会太过挣扎，而是用拼搏奋斗的献身精神去回应外界的感慨，反而凸显其的传奇性 。泳池五线谱化为创作灵感的设计着实是让人眼前一亮了，献给所有对百老汇舞台抱有激情的创作者和观众，对比今年另一部改编之作《健听女孩》也收获了丰厚的口碑，可能在疫情之年西方世界真的很需要这样重拾热情的话题之作吧。
看之前没了解片子任何背景，然后边看边一直在感叹好像rent啊，看到最后才发现拍的就是rent的原作者的故事……
又丧又燃
但事实更多是终其一生努力活成一个普通人。
所以现在是白人只配和黑人做朋友，交个女友也得是有色人种。其他白人都要均匀肤色，才可以出镜？编排流畅没问题，看着尴尬症都要发作了，实在看不下去，这么高的评分，是因为歌好听吗？电影不是MV，不是唱跳拼凑，故事是什么？剧情在哪里？
去吧，去过一个被爱被梦想去驱动的人生吧，这很老掉牙，但总比躺平棒！听到了吗，人生的倒计时一刻不停……
滴答，滴答……嘣！
actions speak louder than words
将歌舞成功嵌进了情节里，而不仅仅是停留在了简单的插入，人物情绪的展现更是非常丰满，充分把舞台的效果发挥出来，加菲的表演抓住了人物对梦想的坚持和对舞台的奉献，情绪的表达很到位，唱功也真的好。（8/10）
PS：喜欢里面那个头发剃的方方正正的黑人兄弟，唱的挺有感觉的。
由於JGL久未有新作 我宣布加菲暫列我心中談the cutest thing第一名 電影真的乏善可陳 一開始好多cg過於明顯 劇本太基本太安全了 總而言之加菲是最好的（。）
原来美国人也会为了30岁这道坎而焦虑，在哪都逃不掉的30岁。。。暴风女好看死了，笑容好暖好治愈～评论里这么多种族歧视的省省吧，天天把zzzq挂嘴边喷黑人演员烦不烦。
勇敢去爱
用Jon自己的音乐剧《Tick, Tick...BOOM!》改编成了他自己传记片，形式很妙。电影形式的紧迫感非常明显，LMM本就是把握节奏的一把好手。只不过感觉，好像还是情绪不够。原版《Tick, Tick...BOOM!》音乐剧live单独拎一首歌出来，都比电影里表现的情绪强烈得多。或许是因为电影有一个情绪递进的需要？还是因为加菲在唱歌的表达上不如音乐剧演员？或者是一切的表现都还过于流于形式？||给三星完全是因为在一个好片的要求上看这部有些低于预期了。但是跨到四星去的话，以这部电影的呈现感觉尚不够。
滴答，滴答……嘣！
从出生开始，我们就被年龄催促鞭打着向前，
其实他自己选择的答案，已经显露在头一句歌词里了。“牢笼还是翅膀，你喜欢哪个？去问飞鸟吧。”
传记加歌舞电影更是容易产生浓厚的割裂感，大概更适合舞台，适合突破第四面墙来面对面的共鸣
1、叙事节奏很奇怪，始终不能进入故事氛围，无处不在的割裂感无法聚焦成清晰的主线；2、唯一值得称道的是中间有首抒情的歌蛮好听的，其他都感觉平平。
最好玩的是那段去广告公司做研究小组赚外快。-I don’t understand how u can take any of this seriously. -because they pay me. -money isn’t everything. -Well it doesn’t hurt. -are u sure about that?
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