Film about ‘High Noon’ produced by West Milford resident

A new documentary, “Inside High Noon,” explores the landmark 1952 film “High Noon,” starring Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly and Lloyd Bridges, and the story behind its troubled production.

The documentary was written and directed by John Mulholland and edited and produced by Richard Zampella, a West Milford resident.

“I hope that viewers see that the themes in ‘High Noon’ are universal to us all,” said Zampella, who owns Idylease, a historic structure in the Newfoundland section of West Milford.

He and Mulholland also collaborated on the the documentary “Elmore Leonard: But Don’t Try to Write,” which premiered on public television in July.

“Inside High Noon,” presented and distributed nationally by American Public Television, is streaming nationwide on PBS.org.

The show tells how many movie studios passed on the project and how many major Hollywood actors turned it down before Cooper accepted the lead role.

When it was released, “High Noon” was seen by some as an attack on the House Un-American Activities Committee, created in 1938 to investigate alleged disloyalty by private citizens, public employees and organizations suspected of having Communist ties..

At least a half-dozen people involved in the production were blacklisted; among them were screenwriter Carl Foreman and cinematographer Floyd Crosby.

“Inside High Noon” also explores why the film has aroused controversy among critics, how its treatment of women and masculinity was ahead of its time, and why it has come to be seen as a masterpiece of American cinema.

”High Noon was an independent, low-budget, black-and-white movie that became engulfed in the blacklist,” Mulholland said. “I found it fascinating that this conservative movie star Gary Cooper publicly stood up for the blacklisted screenwriter Carl Foreman. He refused to cave to John Wayne and the other anti-Communists.”

The film also touches on the parallels between “High Noon” and modern American politics.

“I find that America has a civic complacency going on,” Mulholland said. “Democracy is so fragile. It’s merely words on paper unless people stand up to defend it.

“To me, so many Republicans in the House and Senate are like the citizens of Hadleyville. They are looking the other way, backing away, refusing to acknowledge the dangers of the moment.”

Narrated by actor Matthew Rhys (“The Americans”), the documentary weaves together clips from “High Noon” and analysis and commentary from Tim Zinneman, son of director Fred Zinneman; Jonathan Foreman, son of screenwriter Carl Foreman; Crown Prince Albert of Monaco, Grace Kelly’s son; Maria Cooper, Gary Cooper’s daughter; President Bill Clinton; and many film critics and historians.