JohnHowardReid John Wayne (John Brant), Nancy Shubert (Sally Blake), Lane Chandler (Bob Jones), Yakima Canutt (Ed Walsh, and stunt double for John Wayne), Bob Burns (Robert E. Burns) (Sheriff Parker), Wally Wales (deputy sheriff), Art Mix (henchman), Hank Bell (outlaw with chair), Earl Dwire (Blind Pete), Henry Hall (Blake), Slim Whitaker, Robert Walker, Tex Phelps, Blackjack Ward (henchmen), Ted Adams (Taggart), Silver Tip Baker (townsman), Hal Price (train driver), William Dyer (Blind Pete), Julie Kingdon (town girl), Archie Ricks (stage driver). Director: ARMAND SCHAEFER. Screenplay: Lindsley Parsons. Story: Lindsley Parsons and Will Beale. Photography: Archie Stout. Film editor: Carl Pierson. Art director: E.R. Hickson. Sound recording: John A. Stransky, Jr. Balsley & Phillips Sound System. Producer: Paul Malvern. Executive producer: Trem Carr. A Lone Star Western, copyright 1 December 1933 by Monogram Pictures Corp. No New York opening. U.S. release: 15 December 1933. U.K. release: 4 March 1935 (sic). 6 reels. 54 minutes.SYNOPSIS: Unjustly convicted murderer escapes from prison to hunt down vital missing witness.NOTES: The second of Wayne's 16 Lone Star Westerns. Negative cost: a measly $10,900, comprising only 3 days of location work and but a single day of studio interiors.COMMENT: Although it doesn't hold a candle to Wayne's Republic westerns in any department, this is still a most entertaining Lone Star Western. Nice to see Lane Chandler in a featured role, for once, and acquitting himself with honor too. Wayne is great as always, even here showing the sort of charisma and star power that would later delight so many millions of fans. The rest of the players are not much, though Yakima Canutt has a sizable on-camera role as leader of the outlaw band. Despite limited production values and obvious technical deficiencies, plus some clichéd and rather clumsily delivered dialogue, one can still enjoy the reasonably picturesque locations and the action spots, complete with stunt-work and fast panning, which are nothing if not most enthusiastically staged.

aa56 I reckon audiences in the early 1930s were expected to suspend belief completely when they watched these pictures.Wayne pulls a reed out of the mud as if were a prop. The Law shoots into the water, and because the reed floats away, they assume they gottem, but don't care that no body floats to the surface, and skeedaddle as fast as they can. From the animal's rump, Wayne jumps on horses that should have been tied to the hitchin' post and gallops away without untying it. The Law waits in ambush for Jones and Wayne to enter the store, but fires before Wayne fully opens the door, wounding him in the shoulder, which miraculously heals in a coupla' days. They dutifully wait in the store until the two can escape before they give chase, and, of course, Jones and the wounded Wayne are much faster than the lawmen. Wayne camouflages himself and waits for a stagecoach to run over him, not caring at all if the horses step on him or a wheel squashes him. When Jones and Wayne are behind the wagon being hosed by the continuous fire of the robbers, no bullets at all hit the wagon, allowing the two to have a quiet chat.I could go on, but that should prove my point.

bkoganbing It was in films like Sagebrush Trail that John Wayne learned his craft, but thank the Deity he got out of doing stuff like Sagebrush Trail. The Duke has busted loose from jail, he was in the calaboose for a murder he didn't commit. He eludes a posse chasing him, but gets into the clutches of an outlaw gang headed by Yakima Canutt. It's as good a place as any to look for the man who can clear him. He doesn't realize though how lucky he got.Now granted this was a Lone Star production, not even a B film. But I would have liked to have seen just how Wayne got into the jackpot that landed him jail for murdering the lover of a married woman if he wasn't involved with her. When we do find who the murderer is that's never explained to us. Since this was for the afternoon kiddie matinée crowd maybe such things weren't delved into even before the Code came in place. Maybe it was a question of sloppy editing also. I think John Wayne's most devoted fans might like this one, I really wouldn't recommend to others, even other western fans.

Snow Leopard While it is rather slow at times, and not always plausible, in general this is not bad at all for a B-Western. It's interesting to see John Wayne in one of his earlier roles, and while he's hardly yet become "The Duke" in this one, he's likable and worth seeing. The setup is interesting, and while the movie does not get everything it could have out of the possibilities, it still has enough going on to hold your attention.Wayne plays a character who was unjustly convicted of murder, and who has broken out of prison in order to look for the real killer. He runs across a gang of outlaws, and when he begins to realize that things are different than he thought they were, he is faced with some real dilemmas. Later on in his career, Wayne could have done much more with this kind of role, but here he is at least always sympathetic. Although it misses some opportunities to make things more interesting, there should be enough story and action to make this one worthwhile if you enjoy older Westerns.