After a confrontation with a roughneck named Merton (Gene Lyons) in a seedy flophouse, Paladin (
Richard Boone) rides off into the mountains--only to be waylaid and robbed by Merton's gang. Left without food, weaponry, a horse or a coat, Paladin must now make his way through a treacherous, snowswept mountain range. En route, he meets a pair of father-and-son prospectors who could offer him assistance...but strangely refuse to do so. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide