The Silver Bullet

Although "The Silver Bullet" is competently-enough made and moves along with a solid story, it becomes a surprisingly fun and engrossing western with some of the genres most-appreciated players plying their trade. The reason the film moves into the engrossing realm is owing to some unusual plot devices and some off-the-beaten-track characterizations. In addition, the title actually refers to something meaningful in the film!

The sets are attractively rustic and varied and there are many group scenes with the players interacting in happy times, stressful times, and tense times. For sure this effort was made on the cheap, but the cast and crew seem to be having a ball putting it together.

A particular treat is that Lafe McKee has a close-to-rare major role in this one. Yes, Lafe is usually one of the stiffest frequently-assigned actors west of the Pecos, but there is just no denying there is something about him that just yells out "old west." Adding to his allure here is that Lafe sports a head of black hair for a time, this during an unusual flashback scene to when he was a younger man.

Fans of B-westerns should find this Tom Tyler adventure exciting and satisfying.