Pretty Good

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Blistering performances.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

I had the feeling that there must be a decent two-reeler among Alpha's westerns somewhere, and "Sundown Trail" (1934) provided the answer. Wally Wales plays the well-spoken hero, Jim Sheridan, the bloodthirsty villain, and super-lovely Fay McKenzie, the heroine. Director/writer Robert Emmett Tansey makes great use of his real locations. No cattle in sight, but the budget did run to an extremely large herd of sheep. On the same disc, Alpha provides a spectacular three-reel silent, The Invaders (1912), directed by Thomas Ince and/or Francis Ford (who plays the cavalry commander). True, a better print is available in "More Treasures from American Film Archives" but Alpha has a price advantage. Story, acting, direction, photography and production values are remarkably accomplished for a film of this vintage.

Frank Gruber once claimed there were only seven western plots. This would be the second in his list, the ranch story, in which outside forces threaten a rancher. In this case, it's Marion Shilling who has just inherited a ranch but if she wants it, she has to live on it for five years, lest it go to Tom Keene.Tom was a dedicated actor who occasionally got small roles in A pictures, but most of his work was in the Cowboy Bs. This is a decent example of the sort of shoot-em-ups that RKO turned out. Within a couple of years, however, they dropped their lesser efforts in favor of two long-running series, first with George O'Brien and later with Tim Holt.This early example is not just an early example of the singing cowboy western -- people burst into song at reasonable moments -- but also a pretty good western on its own. With Ted McCord handling the camera work and Yakima Canutt as a stunt double, it's a well-done if not terribly exceptional one-hour western.