User Reviews

"Call of the Rockies" was originally filmed as a silent in 1928 but not released until 1931 with an added prologue, sound effects, narration and music. The prologue consists mainly of a song sung by a hillbilly group which morphs into the opening narration.

In spite of the crude sound effects and a running time of just over one hour, this is an exciting little wagon train film. A group of travelers are crossing the plains to reach their promised Home Land. A trio of unsavory characters plan to join the train and later plan to sell off the train's horses to the Indians. Jim Vance (Anders Randolf), his pal Tony (James Mason) and Vance's daughter Arleta (Marie Prevost) are the partners in crime.

Mathew (Ben Lyon) is the clean shaved clean cut hero who is betrothed to the blond and pure Sylvia (Gladys Johnson). Along for comedy relief is Russell Johnson as Gunner Bill.

We are treated to several panoramic shots of the moving wagon train along with the grizzled pioneers. There is also a realistic looking buffalo hunt and a later stampede. The wagons crossing the river sequence is also realistic and very well done. And oh yes, don't forget the Indian attack.

There are certainly a lot of spectacular sequences crammed into the film's short running time. Take out that ridiculous prologue and you have an excellent little epic. The wagon train sequences are as realistic and authentic looking as any I have seen. There are also a couple of added touches that the average viewer may miss. Gunner Bill can be seen adding "meadow muffins" to his campfire and there is scene where Mathew's dog apparently pees on Vance's pant leg. In a brief rather touching shot, we see a tear falling from the eye of a buffalo that has just been shot.

Ben Lyon and Marie Prevost are quite good as the good boy/bad girl lovers. Anders Randolf is excellent as the greedy villain and Russell Simpson stands out as the comic relief.

A vastly underrated film that deserves to be seen by a wider audience.

Released in July, 1931, by Syndicate Film Distributors, Call of the Rockies (or West of the Rockies or All Faces West) was originally commissioned by the Mormons of Utah and filmed by director Bernard B. Ray in 1928.

The only reason I can find for the Mormons' desire to lavish a truly enormous amount of money on this film is that the pioneers follow the Mormon Trail. Thus, by implication, the Mormons are the good guys for blazing that trail in the first place. Certainly there is no overt propaganda in the movie which at times seems like an extremely lavish re-make of The Covered Wagon.

Marie Prevost gives the performance of her career as the vampish bad girl, Arleta, while Ben Lyon does surprisingly well as the lead, easily out-classing J. Warren Kerrigan's dismal performance in the original trail-blazing 1923 Covered Wagon (which, oddly, despite its fame is not available on DVD, although Paramount did issue an excellent VHS tape). Anders Randolf comes through most effectively as the villain, and Gladys Johnston (in the last of only four movie appearances) effortlessly fills the shoes of the second-string heroine. However, the biggest surprise of this staggeringly big-budget movie is handed out by director Bernard B. Ray who handles both the spectacular action scenes and the hero's romantic dilemma with mind-boggling skill - quite unlike anything else he ever worked on in his lengthy sojourn at the dead bottom of Poverty Row. (Available on an 8/10 Alpha DVD with Lure of the Wasteland).

While it isn't a patch on the far more spectacular and engagingly characterized 1938 remake, The Texans, which Jimmy Hogan directed for producer Lucien Hubbard, the 1931 version, The Conquering Horde (also known as Call of the Rockies and All Faces West) based on the 1924 version of Emerson Hough's "North of 36", is not without interest even though it's like watching "The Texans" through the wrong end of a magnifying glass.

Paramount were trying to build Fay Wray into a major star back in 1929-30-31, but Claude Gillingwater is allowed to steal the film and poor Fay comes off fourth best to hero Richard Arlen and chief villain Ian MacLaren.

Not only is Fay Wray's role inadequately characterized but she is also unattractively photographed and lethargically directed (by Edward Sloman) to boot.

(Vintage Film Buff offer a very good 8/10 DVD of The Conquering Horde. Universal has an excellent disc of The Texans, in which Joan Bennett and Randolph Scott are the leads, while Walter Brennan enacts the Gillingwater role).

I was reading about Marie Provost, so I decided to watch one of her films, and since I like westerns and Amazon Prime had it available, I put on All Faces West. I was not the least bit disappointed, in fact it was better then I expected. Now I doubt many people will read this review ( the film is 94 years old and silent), but here is why I liked it so much. First the Buffalo stampedes. That is right, two stampedes with Buffalo. Next we have Marie Provost. Marie plays Arleta Vance a woman I suspect is either half Hispanic ( most likely because of her Mexican Dance of Love), Indian or Gypsy ( based on her dress and first name)). She and her father join a Mormon wagon train with the intent to rob it ( stealing horses and selling them to the Indians). He is far worse. She noted her father even cheats at solitaire. But underneath it all she is a good girl. She meets and falls in love with Matthew ( Ben Lyon), but he is engaged to Sylvia ( Gladys Johnson). Yet, in one of the Buffalo stampedes who saves Sylvia from being killed? Arleta. Who received a kiss on the cheek ( it looked like Marie did not expect it). In another her father gets killed. Spoilers ahead: At the end, Arleta is badly injured and Matthew is heartbroken. I thought she was going to die. However, she lives and tells Matthew "I am going to California, and forgive me, but do not forget me." Gladys then takes her engagement ring off and puts it on Arleta's finger and says You're never going leave us Arleta . You and Matt belong to each other" Then she kisses her on the cheek ( almost like Sylvia considers Arleta her sister as the film ends. An ending I definitely did not expect. Usually in a love triangle, one dies so the other can end up with the hero ( or heroine depending on the film). Once in a while the survivor goes away with the character they end up with ( The Glass Key comes to mind). But here Gladys gives up Matthew, and even has a place in the community for Arleta. Since she saved her earlier, it it is not a fake ending and works perfectly within the context of the film. I really loved the ending of this movie, and because of that, the stampedes snd Marie Provost I give it 9/10 stars.