There's absolutely no surprises in this little old Western but I enjoyed it immensely – in fact have done ever since I saw it as a youngster over 40 years ago. And it appeared as corny then as it did just now, it's nice returning to a simple story with black and white characters in Warnercolor. Simple pleasures indeed.
Railroad is required to be constructed to connect Carson City with Virginia City and granite-like Randolph Scott is the only man who can engineer it through. Baddie Raymond Massey is grimly supported by James "Herb" Millican and his dozy gang of Champagne Bandits aiming to stop it ever coming to pass. There's an interesting assortment of alliances and oppositions in the town – there's always mixed feelings when people are faced with Progress after all; and a stuttering love affair between Scott, his old flame and his brother – Richard Webb replaying his petulant performance in Build My Gallows High from 5 years before. Favourite bits: The puzzling and wimpy opening robbery – even Robin Hood could never have behaved like that!; the well-intentioned barroom brawl that terrorised the town; the race to rescue the trapped miners and the high moral tone; the photography when Scott was rounding up the first of the baddies was especially excellent. Back then there was plenty for men, women, boys and girls to savour, nowadays sadly much more sex, violence and crudity is required to attain the status of Good Film.
Everything in here was done better before by the likes of Flynn, Cooper and Wayne but it's still an entertaining, colourful and logical waste of time with no ethical or emotional loose-ends at the conclusion. Don't ask for anything more from any of Randolph Scott's films and they're great!
Railroad is required to be constructed to connect Carson City with Virginia City and granite-like Randolph Scott is the only man who can engineer it through. Baddie Raymond Massey is grimly supported by James "Herb" Millican and his dozy gang of Champagne Bandits aiming to stop it ever coming to pass. There's an interesting assortment of alliances and oppositions in the town – there's always mixed feelings when people are faced with Progress after all; and a stuttering love affair between Scott, his old flame and his brother – Richard Webb replaying his petulant performance in Build My Gallows High from 5 years before. Favourite bits: The puzzling and wimpy opening robbery – even Robin Hood could never have behaved like that!; the well-intentioned barroom brawl that terrorised the town; the race to rescue the trapped miners and the high moral tone; the photography when Scott was rounding up the first of the baddies was especially excellent. Back then there was plenty for men, women, boys and girls to savour, nowadays sadly much more sex, violence and crudity is required to attain the status of Good Film.
Everything in here was done better before by the likes of Flynn, Cooper and Wayne but it's still an entertaining, colourful and logical waste of time with no ethical or emotional loose-ends at the conclusion. Don't ask for anything more from any of Randolph Scott's films and they're great!