Face of a Fugitive

Jim Larsen, handcuffed to Deputy Marshal George Allison, overpowers his guard aboard the prison train and seizes the pistol. He handcuffs the deputy to the rear car to prevent pursuit and escape. This violent opening sets the escape plot in motion.

Danny arrives with a horse and frees Jim, enabling the escape. The deputy mortally wounds Danny, who then kills the deputy in a final act of defiance. They board a second train, and Danny dies; Jim hides his body in a mail sack and dumps it off the train.

At the next stop, Jim changes into his father's business suit and boards the train again under the alias Ray Kincaid. He sits beside Alice, a curious six-year-old girl visiting her grandfather, and uses the cover to gather information about the forthcoming town. The disguise helps him move toward Tangle Blue without attracting suspicion.

In Tangle Blue, Mark Riley and a posse stop the train to search for the deputy's killer. They accept Ray Kincaid the mining inspector thanks to Alice's company, but warn that a wanted poster will arrive on the next day's train. The town braces for the poster and the man it will identify.

Larsen/Kincaid meets Ellen Bailey in town and attends a dance with her, trying to keep distance from his mission. They fall in love despite his best efforts, complicating his disguise. Ellen expresses a wish to leave Tangle Blue.

Mark Riley struggles with Reed Williams, a landowner fencing off government land. Larsen/Kincaid proves his deputy skills by preventing a direct showdown between Williams' gang and Mark. The conflict underscores how land and power drive the town.

That morning, Larsen/Kincaid agrees to accompany Mark to cut down Williams' fence. They find the fence unrepaired, prompting Mark to plan a train-side search with the poster; Larsen realizes he could leave town along the road he guards. Purdy soon arrives and repairs the fence, testing Larsen's resolve.

Purdy repairs the fence, prompting Mark to return and cut it again. Purdy draws a gun to shoot Mark, but Larsen disarms him and snaps the barbed wire, tangling Purdy in the process. The action draws Williams' men while a tense standoff develops.

Williams' gang closes in and shoots at Larsen as he escapes on horseback back to town. He defends himself as he rides, using makeshift cover until he reaches a boarded-up house. The pursuit continues as he fights to survive.

Within the boarded-up house, Larsen fights for his life as Williams' men close in. Purdy, the last Williams man, jumps down through the hole in the roof and reaches the top of the dark stairs just as Williams opens the door. Williams shoots the figure in the dark, killing Purdy.

Larsen/Kincaid retrieves Purdy's gun and uses it to kill Reed Williams. The town's pursuit ends with Williams' death and Larsen's precarious status.

Mark and others arrive to assess the prisoner. One man recognizes the poster but Mark delays judgment with a cautious, ambiguous line. Mark vows to testify for Larsen/Kincaid at his trial.