User Reviews

This film is inspired by the real life attorney turned criminal Al Jennings although from what I can tell many liberties were taken to make the story more appealing. The story begins during the dying days of the civil war when Al Jennings, son of a Confederate major, is born; the action then jumps forward and we see the father is now a judge and Al is a hot-headed lawyer. Wanting to move away from his father, he and his brother head to Oklahoma where they meet up with their other brothers. Soon after one of the brother's is publicly murdered but the killer is a powerful man so is soon bailed. Wanting justice; Al goes to see the killer and shoots him dead; now on the run from the law Al and his brother Frank end up part of a criminal gang. As their infamy increases so does the reward demanded so they decide to quit crime and head to New Orleans where he meets up with Margo St. Claire, a beautiful woman he first met early in the film. Here the brothers abide by the law, knowing there is no extradition treaty between Louisiana and Oklahoma. All goes well until they are recognised by somebody willing to kidnap them for the reward. They get away but decide to head back to Oklahoma for one last robbery; one they think will net then $200,000!

I tend to enjoy short westerns; just the thing to watch on a Sunday afternoon; however at only seventy nine minutes this felt far too rushed; it would have been much better if it had been a bit longer. The story was fascinating; before watching I'd never heard of lawyer turned criminal Al Jennings so I was quite surprised when the character changed from a man of the law to a criminal! Actor Dan Duryea did a good job as the short tempered protagonist even though his character wasn't that likable even when he wasn't a criminal. There was plenty of decent action set in some attractive scenery although like many such films it was filmed in Southern California not in Oklahoma. This is hardly a must see film but if it is on television I'd recommend it if you are a fan of the genre.

Done in a semi documentary-style complete with narrator, this Western crime drama features Dan Duryea as a title character who comes from a family of attorneys but because of his hot-blooded temper is constantly in trouble, making lots of enemies. This puts him up against the legal procession, and soon he is committing crimes when he fails to get any justice. Along the way, he makes pretty Gale Storm while first trying to establish a legal career and later while living under a false identity. It's because of this love that he decides he must face justice and goes out of his way to turn himself in so he can find some fairness and the law.

This is a colorful little B western, enjoyable for the scenery and all of its action, but often awkward in the way it is structured. The film starts off with his birth, said to be feisty simply because he's crying louder than his older siblings, and in the next scene, he's going up against his veteran attorney father and sent away. Duryea is charming in spite of the characters angry demeanor, and Storm is appropriately feisty. Dick Foran ( a veteran lead of B 30's westerns) is his more level-headed brother, and Raymond Greenleaf is his overbearing, strict father. Gloria Henry has an amusing small role as a flirtatious girl he encounters, reminding me of Ado Annie from the musical "Oklahoma!". Just ok, probably not one I'll revisit.