Raiders of Ghost City (Serial) (1944)

An enjoyable American Civil War era Western serial, though with a war propaganda edge.

A gang of Confederate agents are stealing gold shipments bound for Washington. Government agent Steve Clark (Dennis Moore) is sent across to California to investigate, helped by Wells Fargo agent Idaho Jones (Joe Sawyer). 

In fact, the real mastermind behind the theft is Morel (Lionel Atwill) who isn't operating for the Confederacy after all but rather a group of Prussian spies...

A great serial with a good variety of cliff hangers including runaway train cars and burning sheds! The inclusion of Prussian spies was likely to give the serial a bit of a wartime propaganda edge but works well, Atwill and his accomplice Virginia Christine make an excellent pair of villains which gives the serial the bite the slightly bland heroes cannot.

Harlem on the Prairie (1937)

A decent Western with some good music, but this isn't your usual B-movie tale of the Wild West. This is an example of a Black movie made by a black cast and crew for showing in black theatres (as black people were not allowed into "white" theatres in many areas at the time in America).

Crawfish (FE Miller) and Mistletoe (Mantan Moreland) are drifters looking for gold. They link up with tall handsome cowboy Jeff (Herb Jeffries) who is helping Carolina (Consuelo Harris), who is in trouble with the evil Wolf Cain (Maceo Bruce Sheffield), amid many songs.

This isn't a great film but it is an interesting one. Although it is very much like the usual B-movie Western of the period, the black cast does ironically make it a more realistic depiction of the actual American West! 

The Cheyenne Tornado (1935)

A tale of sheep herders versus cattle men in the Wild West.

A wandering cowboy gets involved in a conflict between Mexican sheep herders and cattle men, however this is no ordinary cowboy, this is Reb Russell the Cheyenne Kid! The rich rancher Darnell has been killed and Reb tries to find out what is going on, fancied by women from both sides (Tina Menard and Victoria Vinton) and also accused of being involved in the murder. After much convoluted plot, and plenty of fine horsemanship and gunplay  the real culprit is found and Reb is revealed to be a US Marshal. 

A decent Western though the plot is slightly too complicated and wordy to suit the limited acting abilities of Russell, his athleticism and horse skills were very good though which is probably more important for the star of a 1930s Western!

Tombstone Canyon (1932)

An average Western enlivened by the rather strange Phantom character.

Ken Maynard travels to Tombstone Canyon hoping to find out some more about his past. Unfortunately, a rather strange black masked character called the Phantom is terrorising the ranch of Alf Sykes (Frank Brownlee). Sykes has it in for Ken and tries to get him arrested or killed. Ken begins to investigate why Sykes has it in for him, and who the Phantom is... and why the Phantom is not a danger to him, rather he seems to be protecting him...

Really a fairly mundane Western, though Ken Maynard's real skills of horsemanship are always good to see. The film is given some novelty with the Phantom character, who looks likes he wandered off another film set where they were making a Gothic horror.

The Longest Drive (1976)

Although lacking originality this is an enjoyable Western.

Hatcher (Dan O'Herlihy) is in trouble, he needs to get his cattle to market but lacks a crew to do the drive. The Beaudine brothers (Kurt Russell and Tim Matheson), who are old friends, decide to help him and assemble a crew of misfits including an alcoholic cook, a retired gunslinger and a dude who who went to Yale (not that any of the cowboys know what that is!) 

The epic drive begins, although rustling is a bit of a problem the main issue is a lack of water along the trail and soon that pushes them all to the edge...

This is a great film really, although everything you probably have seen before in one form or the other. However, this fits together really well and the crew of misfits makes a good ensemble. The TV movie budget probably helps in this case as it means the emphasis is placed on the human characters not large scenic set-pieces.

The movie was later edited into two episodes of The Quest TV series.

In Old Santa Fe (1934)

Singing cowboys shenanigans in a contemporary Western (as in 1930s of course).

Kentucky (Ken Maynard) is a singing cowboy who gets involved in a horse race with his performing horse Tarzan. Unfortunately, the crooked gangster Chandler (Kenneth Thomson) and his friend Tracy (Wheeler Oakman) are also in town and Kentucky ends up being framed for murder and involvement in the robbery of a stagecoach. Kentucky needs the help of his sidekick Cactus (George Hayes)...

Not a bad western at all with some good good riding, decent humour (much in the form of sharp dialogue and wisecracks) and good tunes. Interestingly, Gene Autry sang the songs and this was his screen test.

Gun Lords of Stirrup Basin (1937)

Romeo and Juliet on the range, a great Western.

Trouble is brewing between the ranchers and the homesteaders, the trouble being caused secretly by greedy crooked lawyer Bowdre (Karl Hackett). Son of the ranch boss Dan (Bob Steele) and daughter of a homesteader Gail (Louise Stanley) only have eyes for each other though. But when the guns start firing and the bodies start falling, newly married Dan and Gail find themselves caught between the two sides...

One of the better B-movie Westerns with a good story (maybe inspired by Shakespeare, i guess we'll never know) that isn't overshadowed by endless speeded up horse riding and fights - although you will get some of these. Super little film. Strange title though.

Arizona Stage Coach (1942)

Another in the long-running Range Busters series, with the usual B-movie shenanigans. 

The Range Busters (Ray Corrigan, Dusty King and Max Terhune) are hanging out on their new ranch when they are visited by their friend Larry (Forrest Taylor) and his niece Dorrie (Nell O'Day). A gang of outlaws are menacing Larry's town. To make matters worse Dorrie's brother (Riley Hill) has been framed as being the outlaw where really it is Laughlin (Stanley Price) who is using Larry's ranch as cover for his banditry...

Its up to the Range Busters, assisted by the slightly sinister puppet Elmer, to save the day of course though plans do not go smoothly as usual. Nothing too out of the ordinary but this is a perfectly fine B-movie Western.

Frontier Scout (1938)

An above-average Western, decent enough without being too thrilling.

We start with the American Civil War, where Norris (Dave O'Brien) is comrades with Wild Bill Hickok (George Houston) and Whiney (Al St John). 

After the war, Bill and Whiney head west where the great cattle drives are starting up to feed the great demand for beef in the east. By now Norris is in the cattle business but his herds are going missing. Wild Bill and Whiney lend a hand...

The war scenes at the start of the film give it some novelty but the rest is pretty familiar 1930s/1940s Western fare. A good cast helps elevate the film beyond it's fairly mundane plot line though not by a huge amount.

Brand of the Devil (1944)

A perfectly reasonable Western, familiar themes but well done.

Three Texas rangers Tex (Dave O'Brian), Jim (Jane Newill) and Panhandle (Guy Wilkerson) are hunting for the Devil's Brand gang of rustlers led by Varno (I Stanford Jolley). Molly (Ellen Hall) meanwhile has her horses and cattle stolen by the gang, though the Rangers are in disguise do not seem to be any help...

The film begins rather cliched with a fight in a bar but soon develops into something a little better (though still pretty familiar). An enjoyable film that has decent (if not much more) performances. The film is somewhat strange at times, like many Westerns it includes a few songs including one sung by a character tied up!

The Mystery of the Hooded Horsemen (1937)

Standard but well made B-movie Western adventures.

Tex Ritter encounters a dying man who has just been shot by a gang of masked thugs. Tex and Stubby (Horace Murphy) head to check a gold mine which the Sheriff and locals seem to want to keep people away from. Tex infiltrates the gang of Hooded Horsemen but is discovered and only just manages to escape. 

Who is the ringleader of the gang, can Tex find out before he either gets shot by the gang or arrested by the law?

This is a decent film, though apart from the bad guys in black masks there isn't anything you will have already seen in dozens of other B-movie Westerns. It has the usual fast horseriding, gun fights, a fight in a saloon and a few songs by Tex! 

Nancy Wilson provides the (another staple of these films) love interest.

Call the Mesquiteers (1938)

Part of the very long running Mesquiteers series of westerns, though as this takes place in the present (well 1930s) day can it be a western or just a crime drama with stetsons?

The Mesquiteers are dragged into a criminal conspiracy when their truck is stopped by some robbers on the run after doing a job. The criminals are killed in a shootout with the Mesquiteers but the police don't know that the Mesquiteers are innocent and now our heroes Ray Corrigan, Robert Livingston and Max Terhune are on the run from the law (who seem keen on doing an instant lynching) and catch the real criminals...

Despite the modern day setting this is a standard Mesquiteer film with the requisite amount of horse riding, fighting and interplay between the trio. Its a reasonable film, not the best in the series but perfectly fine to watch.

Cavalry (1936)

An interesting Western set just after the American Civil War.

The South has has lost the war. After his home is burnt down by bandits, Confederate Colonel Harvey (Earle Ross) and his niece Betty Lee (Frances Grant) head West as they assume Betty Lee's father General Harvey (William Welsh) is dead. 

However, the General is merely wounded and saved by Union officer Thorne (Bob Steele) and then promises to find the General's family. He is heading West anyway to protect a new telegraph line. Bad guy Leeds (Hal Price) wants to form his own nation out West and doesn't want the line, or anyone coming from out East. Harvey and Betty Lee are soon under attack by Indians recruited by Leeds...

A decent B-movie Western, the action is nothing too special but the Civil War setting gives the storyline a bit of novelty and depth.

The Adventures of the Masked Phantom (1939)

A rather poor if unintentionally funny Western.

The Barton gold mine is being used to launder gangster gold bullion. When Barton (Matty Kemp) discovers the nefarious scheme of the foreman Murdock (George Douglas) he threatens to go to the law, though obviously a foolish move as  Murdock and his gang make him their prisoner. 

Meanwhile, Alamo (Monte Rawlins) hears the tale of the Masked Phantom and becomes that Phantom to fight Murdock's gang and rescue Barton...

This isn't a good film by any means, being rather shoddy and cheaply made. However, it is funny at times (if not always intentionally) and has some charm, plus some reasonable Western tunes. Boots the wonder dog is the real star of the show of course.

Lightning Range (1933)

A low budget, low quality but not totally awful Western.

Dorothy (Patsy Bellamy) needs to get married by a deadline or her family fortune goes to charity. Hester (Anne Howard) and Hezekiah (Si Jenks) plan to get their hands on her inheritance but they are foiled by Black Pete (Olin Francis) who robs their stagecoach and discovers their wheeze. Black Pete substitutes his own man to marry Dorothy. Deputy Marshal Buddy (Buddy Roosevelt) learns of their plot and ends up married to Dorothy himself!

A clumsy film, rather inept and poorly executed however it isn't that bad a film, unlike some Poverty Row Westerns it has a reasonable plot that doesn't just involve aimless speeded up riding about the country. A bit of reasonably executed humour also enlivens the film.

Range Riders (1934)

A run-of-the-mill Western. 

An old rancher (Horace B Carpenter) is being terrorised by a gang of rogues led by Bull Crawford (Lew Meehan). He calls on his son Dick (Buddy Roosevelt) to tackle them. Dick is outnumbered of course so has to use some trickery as well, including some disguises including being a fop, as the usual solid horsemanship and gunplay.

There isn't a lot to this film, having quite a limited running time and not the most original of plots plus some rather indifferent acting. This is a film with a very small budget and unfortunately it does show. Mysteriously Crawford is played by a different (unnamed) actor for the first half of the film. Barbara Starr plays the love interest.

Rebellion (1936)

A reasonable if not particularly interesting Western though notable for being an early starring role for a movie legend.

It is 1850 and California has joined the United States but law and order there is in the hands of brutal and corrupt men who oppress the Mexicans. The US send Captain John Carroll (Tom Keene) to investigate, he soon falls foul of Harris (William Royle) with an alcoholic judge (Robert McKenzie) in his pocket. Carroll links up with a rebel (Duncan Renaldo) and his sister Paula (Rita Hayworth) to persuade them to switch their allegiance to the USA...

An interesting Western, it lacks much in the way of action compared to other Westerns of the period. The film is mostly notable for being one of Rita Hayworth's (here billed as Rita Cansino) first starring roles.

Border Guns (1934)

A rather staid and strangely stilted Western.

Bill Cody, a rather eccentric cowboy, arrives in town and soon gets into a fight with Fred (Franklyn Farnum), the local tough. However, the fight is a draw and they become friends. We discover that Fred is rustling cattle to sell to Mexican rebels over the border and Bill offers to join the outfit. Soon though they are both fighting for the affections of the doctor's daughter Jane (Blanche Mehaffey)...

This truly isn't a terrible film, in theory. The story is basic but workable, the action is reasonable, Bill Cody has an odd charm. However, the execution is really off. The film is plagued by odd and awkward silences and stilted dialogue. Its unfortunate, there probably was a decent film in here somewhere but its been lost on the trail somewhere.

Stormy Trails (1936)

A pretty decent Western with a well developed plot.

Tom Storm (Rex Bell) is a rancher who blissfully unaware that devious Stanton (Karl Hackett) knows there is gold on Storm's land. Stanton has his henchmen rob the bank, putting pressure on the banker to foreclose on Storm. He also tries to have Storm sued by a disgruntled former cow hand (though Storm shoots him in the robbery). Storm gets involved with the lovely Connie (Lois Wilde) though her Dad (Lloyd Ingraham) is caught stealing gold on Storm's land...

If that enough Stanton also corrupts Storm's younger brother Billy (Bob Terry) though the kid has a change of heart with tragic results...

Ok so the plot is a bit complicated but it works really well, and mostly holds together and makes sense. There is some gunplay and good horsemanship but this is mostly a Western about plot not Colt 45s.

Lightning Strikes West (1940)

Pretty decent if unsurprising Western fare.

Lightning Morgan (Ken Maynard) is a reluctant lawman who is is deputised by the Marshal (William Gould) to recapture Butch Taggart (Michael Vallon), a tough outlaw who has escape from prison. The loot from Taggart's last heist has never been found. 

Morgan disguises himself as a drifter bum and gets a job at a saloon owned by members of Taggart's gang. He discovers Taggart is indeed hiding in the saloon, planning to disguise his identity and then find the loot...

Not too original a Western, the story is pretty straightforward but very well done, apart from a few strange plot quirks such as when Taggart makes a big show of telling Morgan he can't leave the room, but he does anyway! The fighting and horsemanship are of a decent standard.