Getting back to Westerns, last night we had Tim McCoy in "Riders of Black Mountain"(1940). As the movie opens, Tim - in his customary guise as a card sharp - is riding a stage through Iverson Ranch. To pass the time, he demonstrates his skills to the other passengers in a game of "pick a card any card", when the coach is stopped by a gang of masked bandits, who steal the Wells Fargo strongbox and ride off. Tim slips out the other door and signals to a man on horseback, who is hiding in the rocks. This is his partner "Tombstone" (Ralph Peters); he and Tim are US Marshals, called in by Wells Fargo to investigate a series of stage robberies. Because Tim left the stagecoach, when he arrives in town the Sheriff (Rex Lease) wants to arrest him, thinking he was the set-up man for the robbers. He doesn't reveal himself as a Marshal, because he is trying to root out the top dog of the operation, and for all he knows it could be the Sheriff! When the Sheriff tracks down and arrests a hoodlum named "Pete Smith" (Ted Adams) and two other men who've been identified by the other passengers, McCoy points a gun at him and demands he let the robbers go.
It sounds crazy, but he's trying to get the whole gang by infiltration. His methods only cause the Sheriff to suspect him more, and it's a confusing premise. This one is a super-cheapie from PRC, without any frame ups, romance or comedy (when was the last time you saw a western without any of those elements?), but it does have a lot of horse riding action in the Santa Susana Mountains. It turns out that the local banker is robbing his own bank, via the stage coach deposit runs, to collect the insurance money on the "stolen" cash. This way he doubles his money, because he gets the stolen dough and the replacement insurance. "Riders of Black Mountain" is hard to follow, but if you just watch it and don't try to make sense of the plot, you'll like it because of Tim McCoy, who's great as always. Two Big Thumbs Up. The picture is very good. ////
The previous night, Johnny Mack Brown was back in "Riders of Pasco Basin"(1940). After winning a rodeo contest, Johnny receives a letter from his friend "Caleb Scott" (William Gould), a newspaper editor in the town of Pasco Basin. "Things are in turmoil, come quickly" Scott writes, and when Johnny gets there, he discovers that a hydrologist named "Kirby" (Arthur Loft) is planning an irrigation project, at the behest of loan shark "Evans" (James Guilfoyle), to bring water to the ranchers. Editor Scott thinks its a scam. Damming up the creek will only bring water to a handful of the wealthiest ranchers nearest the source. A group of smaller ranchers agree. They've been asked to pitch in to help fund the project, by placing their mortgages in the hands of Evans, in lieu of cash, for their contribution, and now they're having second thoughts. Group leader "Singer" (Rudy Sooter) addresses a rally of the opposition ranchers, who back out of their agreements to fund. Evans and Kirby get nervous that their scam will be discovered, and send their henchman Ted Adams to tell the easily fooled Sheriff (Ed Cassidy) that Singer is a troublemaking renegade.
By this time, Johnny Mack Brown has shown up. Before looking into editor Scott's claims, he visits his sometime sweetheart "Jean Madison" (Frances Robinson), who's acquired an upstart beau since JMB left town. "Bruce Moore" (Bob Baker) knows and admires Johnny too, but rues his return, because he's always second best to everything Johnny does. Bruce knows he's gonna lose Jean, too, but he still sides with JMB to stop the irrigation project, and the romantic aspect is just a diversion in this film. The focus is on the vigilante groups that form, on either side of the water rights debate. Evans and Kirby are the first to hire vigilantes, whom they "deputize" through their influence over the wimpy Sheriff, therefore, their gunmen are officially legit.
But when editor Scott prints the truth about Kirby and his water scam, which he's using to steal the rancher's mortgages, Kirby has Ted Adams shoot him dead. A very touching scene follows, in the newspaper office, where "Tommy" (Robert Winkler), Caleb Scott's now-orphaned young son - in tears and working the printing press - vows to keep printing the truth about the crooks because "that's what my Dad would have wanted". Johnny Mack consoles him, and you'd better have a box of Kleenex handy. After this, Johnny Mack hires his own group of vigilantes, which leads to a lot of showdowns with Kirby's men. Fuzzy Knight provides comic relief as a card trick playing, hostage taking, printer's devil. He's a crafty nitwit as usual, and as usual he saves Johnny from a frame up by Kirby for Caleb Scott's murder. Two Big Thumbs Up for "Riders of Pasco Basin". I'm pleasantly surprised that we're still able to find new Johnny Mack movies. This one is highly recommended and the picture is very good. ////
I have another bonus movie for you, Clint Eastwood's "Heartbreak Ridge"(1986). When it came out, I remember my Dad went to see it over and over, three times at least, and for some reason I avoided it, perhaps because Eastwood, for me anyway, seemed to be in decline artistically. He'd done those awful monkey movies in the late 70s, and tried to resurrect Dirty Harry in 1983 with "Sudden Impact", which was okay but not up to the standard of the first film. He'd also made "City Heat", a wink-nudge two-star popcorn flick with Burt Reynolds, who was at the height of his smirky popularity (love ya Burt), and it seemed like you couldn't take Clint seriously anymore. So that's why I didn't go. Dad kept raving about it, and in hindsight, I think the reviews were good, too. I think they said it was his comeback movie, and having seen it now, it could be considered the first film in which his screen persona became crusty. At any rate, it's the story of Gunnery Sergeant Tom Highway, a washed-out careerist, an anachronism from "yesterday's Army" who finds himself, at 56, reassigned to a recon division at his old base. He's to be in charge of training new recruits, and in that regard it has a lot in common with "Top Gun: Maverick". The new guys are self-assured punks who aren't worth their weight as far as soldiering is concerned. Gunny Highway is gonna whip 'em into shape, only his methods of discipline are considered out of date by the camp's new commander, a "supply depot" Major, played as a total a-hole by Everett McGill of Twin Peaks fame.
Gunny and the Major butt heads again and again, and Gunny also has his troops hating him so much they threaten to beat him up (big mistake). A comic foil is provided for Gunny by Mario van Peebles as a recruit who fancies himself a rock star off base. Ala Top Gun, there's also a hangout bar, where the waitress is a war widow loyal to old timers like Gunny and his pal Choozoo, both of whom are survivors of the legendary battle at Heartbreak Ridge in Korea. Highway finally gets some esprit de corps instilled in his men, just in time for the invasion of the island of Grenada, which of course was a real life operation during Reagan's presidency. As the movie shows, it wasn't a walk-over for American troops, and - again as with Top Gun - the depiction is very inspiring. One character who especially wins you over is a geeky Lieutenant straight out of ROTC, which means he's "book-trained" but has no experience, and of course because he's an officer, he's above Gunny in rank. It would've been easy for the writers to make him a jerk, too, like the Major, but they don't. They show him really trying to fit in with the troop - and lead, which is his job - and despite his early naivety, he comes through in battle when the chips are down. A great performance by actor Boyd Gaines.
I loved "Heartbreak Ridge", thought it was one of Clint Eastwood's best movies, and now I wish I'd seen it when it came out, with my Dad. Happy Father's Day, Dad! (and to all the Dads out there). If you liked Top Gun: Maverick, you'll like Heartbreak Ridge, which gets Two Huge Thumbs Up and is very highly recommended. See it on dvd. ////
That's all for tonight. I am listening to "Operation Mindcrime" by Queensryche and "High and Dry" by Def Leppard. Yeah, you heard that right, it's much harder rockin' than their later stuff, which ain't bad, but this album, for me, is their best. I hope your weekend is going well and I send you Tons of Love as always!
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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