Former Confederate Colonel Blayde 'Reb' Hollister is a wanted man as he kept on fighting after the war ended; he kept fighting because his home in Georgia had been burnt along with members of his family. The person he is after is Bryant Marlow; and he has gone to Texas where his brother Will is now a respected Dallas businessman. In order to avoid trouble he fakes his own death... only to end up travelling with the new US Marshal Martin Weatherby. Weatherby isn't cut out for the job and the two of them end up switching places; when they get to Dallas Reb claims to be the marshal and introduces Martin as his brother Daniel; the only person to know the truth is Martin's fiancée Tonia. It isn't long before he crosses paths with Bryant but it turns out he is after the wrong brother and when Will learns the new marshal is Hollister things get more dangerous! Of course it isn't all gunfights and chases on horseback; the film also finds time for some romantic jealousy when Reb gets close to Tonia and Martin isn't too happy about it.
This might not be 'High Noon' but it is an entertaining western with some good action sequences, a couple of nasty villains and even a few laughs... just seeing Weatherby's original get-up is enough to raise a chuckle. The story of revenge is fairly standard but there is nothing with that. Gary Cooper is very much the star of the film in the role of Reb Hollister but he is ably supported by Leif Erickson as Weatherby and Raymond Massey and Steve Cochran as Will and Bryant Marlow. Ruth Roman does a good enough job as love interest Tonia Robles although her role is nowhere near as big as her second billing would suggest. The action was well directed; especially the jail break scene where Reb flees a burning jail and the final shoot out. Overall this isn't a classic western but it passes the time nicely if you are a fan of the genre.
This might not be 'High Noon' but it is an entertaining western with some good action sequences, a couple of nasty villains and even a few laughs... just seeing Weatherby's original get-up is enough to raise a chuckle. The story of revenge is fairly standard but there is nothing with that. Gary Cooper is very much the star of the film in the role of Reb Hollister but he is ably supported by Leif Erickson as Weatherby and Raymond Massey and Steve Cochran as Will and Bryant Marlow. Ruth Roman does a good enough job as love interest Tonia Robles although her role is nowhere near as big as her second billing would suggest. The action was well directed; especially the jail break scene where Reb flees a burning jail and the final shoot out. Overall this isn't a classic western but it passes the time nicely if you are a fan of the genre.