BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

Tacticalin An absolute waste of money

FuzzyTagz If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Jerrie It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

LeonLouisRicci This one Lacks the Edge of the Scott/Boetticher Films that were truly Special, but it is Above Average in the absolutely Abysmal Amount of Westerns that were made in the Fifties. Along with Randolph Scott there are Two Strong Female Leads (Dorothy Malone and Peggie Castle).However the Villains are quite Dull Including the Peso Kid (Yep). Colorful Locations and a lot of Western Style Dialog help the standard Plot. Plenty of Gunplay with one Excellent Expressionistic Duel in an abandoned Ranch House.Overall, Delivers the Goods for Fans of Western Movies and has Enough Differentness to set it Apart and Thankfully No Stupid Ballad intruding on the Opening.

classicsoncall Cool and tall in the saddle, Randolph Scott rides into the town of Little River after a five year absence seeking revenge on the man that got in the way of his plans and lifestyle when he took up with the rancher's daughter, Corinna Ordway (Dorothy Malone). With Malone's name in the credits, I was surprised to see that the stronger female lead here was offered up by Peggie Castle, who did a pretty good job of putting up with big shot Cibo Pearlo (John Baragrey) and his two bit gunslinger The Peso Kid (Paul Richards). As the film plays out, it looks like a coin toss as to which of the leading ladies would wind up with Larry Madden (Scott) by the end of the picture.I always enjoy catching Scott in one of his many Westerns, but from today's vantage point, it's curious that he would have been paired romantically with much younger actresses in his films. Sure he was a bankable draw, but it doesn't look very believable today. Malone for example would have been about thirty when this picture was made, Castle twenty eight. They could have been Scott's daughters, who was around fifty seven at the time. Not saying it couldn't happen for real, but it's a bit of a stretch.There was a scene that impressed me in this film that blew by rather quickly, but I thought I'd mention it. When Scott's character meets Corinna on the range, they get into something of an argument, and Malone brings her riding whip straight down across Scott's hat and face - he didn't even flinch! That seemed pretty remarkable to me, that Scott would see that coming and not instinctively back away. Must have been a tough enough guy in real life.The picture has it's share of action sequences and the eventual obligatory showdown, two in fact, but I won't count the one against Tuck Ordway (Robert Barrat) because let's face it, the old guy was blind. Madden's square off against Peso was a bit awkward I have to admit, but the bad guy had it coming. Geez, he shot Reva (Castle) in the back! What I'm curious about now as I've recently started watching the 'Lawman' TV series, is whether Peggie Castle ever sang in that show. She does a spirited dance hall number early in this film called 'A Big Night Tonight'. I'm just about at the end of the first season of 'Lawman' and she hasn't shown up yet portraying her character Lily Merrill, but when she does, I'll be interested to see if she shows her singing talent. She sounded pretty good to me here.

alexandre michel liberman (tmwest) This is a good Randolph Scott western , good plot, good scene of the Land Rush plenty of action scenes, colorful, two pretty actresses Dorothy Malone and Peggie Castle, where Castle outshines Malone. If you saw this western in the fifties you would certainly agree that you got your money's worth, it sure delivers all you could expect from a pre Boetticher Scott western. Scott gives one of his best performances as Larry Madden, a tough, quiet, well developed character the ideal western hero. Paul Richatd as "The Peso Kid" makes us nostalgic of the "bandidos" in the old westerns. Lesley Selander, the director, had a lot of practice in this genre, remember Hopalong Cassidy?

dbdumonteil Offbeat western;I have often the impression that all those past events are perhaps more interesting than what happens in the present time;it is one of these movies which would have needed some flashbacks .It's all the more necessary since many things happened,concerning not only the principal.Three scenes are particularly good: Randolph Scott entering his enemy's house when we see a portrait on a wall,showing a still young man with a whip;then the older man,with a whip;The duel in the dark place;the final race which shows more violence in four minutes than in all the rest of the movie.Dorothy Malone is at ease in westerns ("Colorado Territory" ,"Warlock") although she could be Randolph Scott's daughter.