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.
Thriller is not an easy one. At least this movie caught my attention. It was just too good to white guys by offering them too many excuses, and too sticking to look politically correct.
似乎所有的主角都有一个习惯，就是打倒坏人之后就跑，然后等着坏人起来抓自己，都看腻了。
中规中矩，有点超预期，也有一些俗套吧，比如黑人biss之类的。剧透：全片最大笑点居然是美国警察！有些段落还蛮磕ash和darby的，可惜ash不做人~
小说改编反转，低成本惊悚片，亚裔女主《求救信号》，还可以。
原本三星，为什么要有那样一个败兴的臆想式结尾呢？
tall dark scary先生在餐厅那段挺有意思，硬汉也可以这么温柔
1.拔钉子好疼啊。2.导演仅用回忆中几个镜头就让我讨厌这小女孩，功力深厚（bushi
女主手被钉住了，正好边上有一个锤子，你说巧不巧。最后女主叫小女孩去关灯，她再翘掉钉子也是离谱，正常情况那个人会一枪打死她再去抓住小女孩或者直接去抓住小女孩而不是光叫唤，设定不科学啊。
You should not be nailed down when you're holding a real gun in hand.
以为是密室但是罪犯出得有点太早了；结尾是说磕💊之后不但可以保持神智逻辑清醒冷静，而且可以提升战力么……smh
三星半。女主的经历看起来好疼，女主本人好英勇！玩牌戏那段真的非常精彩。
小成本电影，但编剧扎实，暴风雪营造出的封闭空间，限定人群中的犯罪博弈，设定棒，细节丰富，合乎逻辑，只是惊悚紧迫的氛围没那么强，中规中矩之作，3.5⭐。
钉枪直接给我打出橡胶手错觉...暴风雪山庄模式，以小成本来看算是小成功。毕竟反转都在意料之中。
断断续续看完导致剧情在脑子里不连贯，印象中没有特别搞笑的桥段，打戏也一般，只能评价还行。
杰森斯坦森要拍成R级的坚持是正确的 PG13太没那味了
3星，6分
还行，有一说一反派挺帅的。那个钉子钉进手腕里……好酸爽，只能感叹女主血好厚啊，被打摔下滑坡撞到树还被喷防狼喷雾（大概）然后被钉枪钉手腕然后撕扯再后来还出车祸最后还被警察打了一枪，真血牛了属于是。
片子及格甚至值得四星，唯独用毒品减轻疼痛纯扯淡。口服毒品不是麻醉剂，吃了瞬间不疼，还能保持理智……就很扯淡……口服麻醉品一般都有生效时间，而且作用很难精确，所谓止痛，代价往往是失去理智，止痛往往也将疼痛扭曲为其他感觉。这里不如突出痛感，突出人性，而不是抖机灵，让一个坚持戒毒的人放弃戒毒，从而自救。不吸毒就死，吸毒为了更好生活，这样的选择题不道德也不机灵。吸毒的人才会，人不人，鬼不鬼。
暴风雪山庄式杀人事件，海洛因能害人，也能救人，这一点的辩证提升了作品本身及格线的水准。
我以为这部电影会给不断的惊喜，可是它的情节不太考究，导致衔接不够好，情节显得莫名其妙，而且有点老套，都什么年代了，怎么还有信号这么差的地方，而且感觉还没开始打，人就死了，那个妻子后期设定真的没太大用，身份才显就死了。而且女主真的生命力顽强，受了那么多伤还活着，最后再来个强行团圆结局是想怎样。
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