"City of Bad Men" refers to the large numbers of undesirables in Carson City for the 1897 Corbett/Simmons heavyweight championship fight. The fight though, only serves as the backdrop for the main story.
Brett Stanton (Dale Robertson), his brother Gar (Lloyd Bridges)and their gang (John Doucette, Leo Gordon, Rodolpho Acosta and Pascuel Garcia Pena) are returning from Mexico where they had been mercenaries. They ride into Carson City and discover that the aforementioned prize fight is about to take place. Brett soon hatches a plan to steal the box office receipts from the fight.
Two other gang leaders have the same idea, Johnny Ringo (Richard Boone) and Bob Thraikill (Don Haggerty). The town sheriff (Hugh Sanders) and his deputies (Carl Betz, James Best) try to keep the peace. The sheriff convinces Brett, Ringo and Thraikill to become deputies in order to keep a lid on things until after the fight.
Meanwhile, Brett looks up the girl he left behind, Linda Calligan (Jeanne Crain) and discovers that she is now engaged to fight promoter Jim London (Whitfield Connor). London's sister Cynthia (Carole Mathews) sets her sights on Brett.
Then as the fight begins the "bad men" make their move and.......................
This film was one of many compact 80 minute Technicolor westerns turned out by the studios in the early 1950s. The ones made by Fox usually starred Dale Robertson, Rory Calhoun or both. This one has the proverbial cast of thousands representing the crowds gathering for the fight which unfortunately, we see little of. The cast is filled with many recognizable western faces which adds to the enjoyment of the film.
The love triangle is of little interest since the Roberson character rejects both of the ladies through most of the picture. In fact, top billed Crain who doesn't appear until well into the film, has little to do. But beware of the typical "Hollywood ending" which makes little sense given what had transpired earlier in the film.
All in all, it's worth a look.
Brett Stanton (Dale Robertson), his brother Gar (Lloyd Bridges)and their gang (John Doucette, Leo Gordon, Rodolpho Acosta and Pascuel Garcia Pena) are returning from Mexico where they had been mercenaries. They ride into Carson City and discover that the aforementioned prize fight is about to take place. Brett soon hatches a plan to steal the box office receipts from the fight.
Two other gang leaders have the same idea, Johnny Ringo (Richard Boone) and Bob Thraikill (Don Haggerty). The town sheriff (Hugh Sanders) and his deputies (Carl Betz, James Best) try to keep the peace. The sheriff convinces Brett, Ringo and Thraikill to become deputies in order to keep a lid on things until after the fight.
Meanwhile, Brett looks up the girl he left behind, Linda Calligan (Jeanne Crain) and discovers that she is now engaged to fight promoter Jim London (Whitfield Connor). London's sister Cynthia (Carole Mathews) sets her sights on Brett.
Then as the fight begins the "bad men" make their move and.......................
This film was one of many compact 80 minute Technicolor westerns turned out by the studios in the early 1950s. The ones made by Fox usually starred Dale Robertson, Rory Calhoun or both. This one has the proverbial cast of thousands representing the crowds gathering for the fight which unfortunately, we see little of. The cast is filled with many recognizable western faces which adds to the enjoyment of the film.
The love triangle is of little interest since the Roberson character rejects both of the ladies through most of the picture. In fact, top billed Crain who doesn't appear until well into the film, has little to do. But beware of the typical "Hollywood ending" which makes little sense given what had transpired earlier in the film.
All in all, it's worth a look.