There's a bit of sleight of hand going with this picture that doesn't reveal itself till near the end of the story. Otherwise it's fairly formulaic in the way Zachary Hallock (Joel McCrae) and his young son Joshua (Jimmy Hunt) settle onto a small ranch to begin life anew after Hallock becomes a widower. There's even the obligatory romantic interest (Barbara Hale) with a son of her own, who Zachary takes an interest in with a dubious purpose. The story manages to pull it off but you have to suspend some disbelief to get there.
You know, there was one big question mark bothering me throughout the film that had me scratching my head. Why would Sarah Jane's (Hale) son Daniel (Wesley Morgan) be considered Joshua's uncle if Sarah and Zachary were married? The two boys kept that argument going until the end of the movie until they got it resolved between themselves, but to my mind they simply would have been step-brothers. How come no one else in the story could figure that out?
And speaking of Daniel, how is it he disappeared from the Hallock household when the adults tied the knot? Anyone notice that? I guess the script writers wanted the story to stay focused on the father/son dynamic between Zachary and Joshua, but in hindsight the omission of Daniel in a bunch of situations is more than noticeable. Especially since Sarah seemed oblivious to it. At least he showed up again at the end of the picture to settle the 'uncle' thing with Josh.
Hey, if you've never seen James Arness as a bad guy, here's your chance. He's not around very long though, taking that header off the cliff while chasing Joshua. I wonder what the outlaw would have done if he caught up to the kid. Seems the outcome would have been kind of gruesome.
One thing the movie offers is some daring stunt work, the guy doing the under the stagecoach drag (a Yakima Canutt signature move) during one of the hold-ups did a remarkable job. However keep an eye on that scene when villain Jonah (Alex Nicol) lassos Joshua during a horse chase scene. The stunt rider in for Joshua is obviously bigger than the young actor was, and as Jonah's rope noose falls around the rider's neck, it mysteriously drops down to his waist in order to pull him off his horse. If you replay that scene, it's more than apparent, and you don't even have to watch it in slow motion.
You know, there was one big question mark bothering me throughout the film that had me scratching my head. Why would Sarah Jane's (Hale) son Daniel (Wesley Morgan) be considered Joshua's uncle if Sarah and Zachary were married? The two boys kept that argument going until the end of the movie until they got it resolved between themselves, but to my mind they simply would have been step-brothers. How come no one else in the story could figure that out?
And speaking of Daniel, how is it he disappeared from the Hallock household when the adults tied the knot? Anyone notice that? I guess the script writers wanted the story to stay focused on the father/son dynamic between Zachary and Joshua, but in hindsight the omission of Daniel in a bunch of situations is more than noticeable. Especially since Sarah seemed oblivious to it. At least he showed up again at the end of the picture to settle the 'uncle' thing with Josh.
Hey, if you've never seen James Arness as a bad guy, here's your chance. He's not around very long though, taking that header off the cliff while chasing Joshua. I wonder what the outlaw would have done if he caught up to the kid. Seems the outcome would have been kind of gruesome.
One thing the movie offers is some daring stunt work, the guy doing the under the stagecoach drag (a Yakima Canutt signature move) during one of the hold-ups did a remarkable job. However keep an eye on that scene when villain Jonah (Alex Nicol) lassos Joshua during a horse chase scene. The stunt rider in for Joshua is obviously bigger than the young actor was, and as Jonah's rope noose falls around the rider's neck, it mysteriously drops down to his waist in order to pull him off his horse. If you replay that scene, it's more than apparent, and you don't even have to watch it in slow motion.