Five year old "injun" Little Sure Foot has trouble guarding his flock of sheep against a marauding mountain lion in the mountains of Arizona. His daddy passed away recently and mom is too busy trying to earn a meager living selling her beaded crafts to tourists. Using a roly-poly puppy as a "gift exchange", he gets help from his grown up friend Marvin Glenn and his teenage son Warner, professional puma patrol.
What results is a one-reel outing that closely resembles the couple "bring 'em back alive" shorts (also done by Warner Brothers, as well as Paramount) featuring Florida's Ross Allen roping bobcats in the Everglades. Then again, the Out West cougar seen here looks a trifle less ferocious (despite the dubbed African lion sounds) than those smaller Easterners, even if his prey comes from the sheep and cattle herds. As usual, he does what most felines do best: climb a tree to flee the hounds and chew off his ropes.
With hokey cowpoke narration by Art Gilmore (previously heard in Joe McDoakes comedies and other "Sports Parades"), you just know the kiddies in the movie audience were hardly frighten by the heart-stoppin' adventures here. (In fact, most of you will question why this actually got Oscar nominated.)
Won't spoil the ending, but let's just say that this was made by the same director as several fluffy Walt Disney pics, like STORMY, THE THOROUGHBRED WITH AN INFERIORITY COMPLEX and the Oscar winner THE WETBACK HOUND. He alternated between Disney and Warner Bros. during the early fifties, also doing for Warner a cute seal-and-girl story STRANGER IN THE LIGHTHOUSE and a less critter friendly, but another nominee two years later, BEAUTY AND THE BULL featuring bullfighter Bette Ford.
What results is a one-reel outing that closely resembles the couple "bring 'em back alive" shorts (also done by Warner Brothers, as well as Paramount) featuring Florida's Ross Allen roping bobcats in the Everglades. Then again, the Out West cougar seen here looks a trifle less ferocious (despite the dubbed African lion sounds) than those smaller Easterners, even if his prey comes from the sheep and cattle herds. As usual, he does what most felines do best: climb a tree to flee the hounds and chew off his ropes.
With hokey cowpoke narration by Art Gilmore (previously heard in Joe McDoakes comedies and other "Sports Parades"), you just know the kiddies in the movie audience were hardly frighten by the heart-stoppin' adventures here. (In fact, most of you will question why this actually got Oscar nominated.)
Won't spoil the ending, but let's just say that this was made by the same director as several fluffy Walt Disney pics, like STORMY, THE THOROUGHBRED WITH AN INFERIORITY COMPLEX and the Oscar winner THE WETBACK HOUND. He alternated between Disney and Warner Bros. during the early fifties, also doing for Warner a cute seal-and-girl story STRANGER IN THE LIGHTHOUSE and a less critter friendly, but another nominee two years later, BEAUTY AND THE BULL featuring bullfighter Bette Ford.