bsmith5552 "The Black Dakotas" is a tight action packed little 65 minutes of a western. It takes place in 1864 during the American Civil War.An emissary from President Lincoln, Zachary Paige (Frank Wilcox) is being sent to negotiate a treaty with the Sioux Indians under Chief War Cloud (John War Eagle). The Indians are to be paid $100K as part of the deal. Brock Marsh (Gary Merrill) is travelling with him when their stage coach is stopped. John Lawrence (Fay Roope) is a southern patriot who plans to substitute Marsh for Zachary and divert the gold shipment to the confederacy. After Lawrence leaves, Marsh , who has his own plans, murders Paige.Later in town a posse headed by Marshal Collins (Robert F. Simon) brings Lawrence in under arrest. With the urging of loud mouthed townsman Grimes (Peter Whitney) a trial is quickly held and Lawrence sentenced to be hanged. In spite of the intervention of stage line owner Mike Daugherty (John Bromfield) and Lawrence's fiery young daughter Ruth (Wanda Hendrix), Lawrence is hanged and Marsh puts his plan into action. Gimpy Joe Woods (Noah Beery Jr.) reveals himself to Marsh as Lawrence's right hand man and agrees to help him get the gold for the south.Daugherty agrees to take Marsh (as Paige) to the Indian village but are attacked by renegade Black Buffalo (Jay Silverheels). Marsh almost is burned at the stake before being rescued by Gimpy and a posse. They go on to meet with the Chief to negotiate the treaty.Later, Sheriff Collins and Judge Baker(Howard Wendell) discover that Marsh is an impostor forcing Gimpy to reluctantly gun them down. Grimes and the townspeople believe that Ruth did the shooting and set out to get her. Then as the stage carrying the gold approaches......................................As it turns out, top billed Merrill is the chief villain who ruthlessly guns down several people over the course of the film. Bromfield is the hero and Hendrix the object of his affections. Lawrence's gang includes such recognizable faces as James Griffith, Richard Webb, Clayton Moore and Chris Alcaide. Silent screen veterans Heinie Conklin and Hank Mann have small parts as townsmen. There's also a couple of good scraps involving Bromfield with Whitney and Merrill. I'm not sure but I think that this was the only feature film in which Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels appeared not as The Lone Ranger and Tonto.

Spikeopath Ray Nazarro directs from a screenplay written by Ray Buffum and DeVallon Scott. It stars Gary Merrill, Wanda Hendrix, John Bromfield, Noah Beery Junior, Jay Silverheels, Fay Roope and Howard Wendell. Music is by Mischa Bakaleinikoff and Technicolor cinematography is by Ellis W. Carter."During the Civil War, Southern sympathisers made desperate efforts to aid the Confederacy by inciting Indian uprisings against defenceless towns along the Western frontier. The objective was to force large withdrawals of Northern troops from the main battlefronts, leaving them more vulnerable to Southern attack. This is the story of one such attempt that took place in Dakota territory in the year 1864."A colourful and brisk picture that finds the efficient Nazarro cramming as much Oater styled fun as he can into just over an hour of film. The core basics of the story is full of intrigue, with undercover Confederate operatives moving amongst Union denizens as the Sioux argue amongst themselves about the viability of Abe Lincoln's offer of peace. There's a bit of thought gone into the screenplay, even offering up one or two genuine surprises, while it's nice to find that the lead female role played by Hendrix gives us a feisty femme of substance as opposed to the many other dressage characterisations that so dominated other 50s Oaters. California location landscapes a bonus, as is Beery Junior's commitment to his role, and Nazarro knows his way around a violent action scene.Fun enough while it's on without ever breaking out of its very basic "B" Western worth, The Black Dakotas is regardless above average and worth some viewing time by fans of such high spirited dusters. 6/10

dougdoepke Complex B-western with shifting loyalties and a few surprises. In the Dakotas, it's Civil War southerners conspiring against northerners for possession of big money, with the Sioux nation as a wild card. Needless to say, you may need a scorecard to keep track. Nonetheless, the screenplay is offbeat and generally unpredictable, always a plus for a western. There's also some surprisingly graphic violence on-screen, without the usual cut-aways to spare viewer feelings. Merrill's not a typical western lead, but then he's not playing a cowboy. Instead, he's an agent from Washington, but of uncertain loyalty. Watch for Noah Beery Jr. as Gimpy, bringing his usual down-home color to the role. All in all, it's an offbeat little western with some pleasant LA area scenery, which is enough for most of us.

revdrcac This color western from the 1950's is most notable for a rare, non-Lone Ranger appearance by Clayton Moore (unbilled) and Jay Silverheels. The story is engaging but most of the cast seems detached from their performances.Jay Silverheels stands out in a great role as the Native-American leader. Gary Merrill does the best with the script given him. the action scenes are well-staged and help move the average script along.The storyline is a familiar one, but the top-notch production value makes this one worth checking out This is not a great western, but there are worse ways to kill an hour of your free time.