A killer named Cain is released from prison after 18 years and wants to settle down as a rancher without ever having to touch a gun again. But no one will give him a job and people are after him for his earlier crimes. He finally takes an offer from showman Ruffalo to perform as "Killer Cain" in his traveling shooting show. However, after 18 years without practice, Cain is not as good as he once was with a gun. He tries to find redemption and peace when he falls in love and eventually marries Monica Alton, an artist from the east who came out west to paint. Yet Cain's reputation continues to dog him; Luke Santee tries to settle an old score, while Billy Valence, a young rival sharpshooter (with mental issues) in Ruffalo's show, is looking to build his reputation by killing Cain. Billy snaps and shoots Ruffalo.
Reviewer Howard Thompson of The New York Times in 1969 praised the performances of Clint Walker and Anne Francis, but did not care for the movie, saying "More Dead Than Alive is a dogged but dinky little Western with the perfect title." He described Paul Hampton in the role of Billy as an "incredibly poor young actor" and concluded that "the title still fits: 'Dead' western."[2]
