The Brand of Hate

This movie has a lot going for it for a randomly-named B western, starting with some good actors in a good story. Young Bob Steele is in love with Lucile Browne. However, when her father, William Farnum, opens the door to find his half-brother, George Hayes, with his three evil sons, come to rustle cattle and hold over his head the prison term in Kansas he escaped years ago, threaten Miss Browne with rape, and shoot Steele's father, it gets interesting and dark. Stuntman Bill Patton gets to hang from a team of racing horses about the 40-minute mark; editor S. Roy Luby offers an interesting variety of wipes for scene changes.

I said that the actors are good, but the leads.... well, Bob Steele was not much for line readings at this stage of his career, even though he is a fine physical actor, mounting his horse in a variety of interesting way. Miss Browne, however, while very pretty, is awful, unable to change expressions during a shot. Director Lew Collins must have had a lot of trouble working around her; and the manner that cinematographer William Thompson cheats the action sequences emphasizes the poverty of this Poverty Row production.

Still, the script by Jack Natteford is well done and offers an interesting set-up for the final fight, yielding a solid Saturday morning matinee oater.

The fiancé of a young girl must save her from some of her villainous kinfolk who force themselves on her father, who also has a secret criminal past. Bob Steele makes an unlikely hero, even for a B-movie like The Brand of Hate. Short and not particularly good-looking, he appears to be wearing lipstick for some reason. And his character, who, judging from the dialogue, is supposed to be about eighteen, is a fairly weak hero. The stuntmen are the real stars; there's a cool runaway horse-and-carriage scene, and plenty of leaping from one racing horse onto the back of the rider of another. The fight scenes lack music, and are instead speeded up to a ridiculous degree in order to excite the target market of pre-pubescent boys. It's an enjoyable enough way to spend an hour, though.

The comic relief is all in the beginning when Lucile Brown and brother (Mickey Rentschler) are literally up a tree pretending to be menaced by a bull. It's Bob Steele to the rescue only to be played the fool. He does get a great date to the barn dance though. That's where the action heats up. Gabby Hayes is on the wrong side of the law in this one and his brother (William Farnum) is on the wrong end of his dirty dealings. Gabby's cousins played by James Flavin and Archie Ricks prove to be formidable foes for Steele and his dad (Charles K. French). The west's favorite sheriff, granite-jawed Jack Rockwell is on the case when French gets a case of lead poisoning. Bob Steele gets to showcase his athletic prowess with his acrobatic horse mounting, riding and many fight scenes. A hostage taking movie with a great sub plot between James Flavin and Steele vying for the affections of the gorgeous Lucile Brown. Of course Flavin went on to marry Brown in real life but watch and enjoy Brand of Hate to see how it turns out on the silver screen.

This is similar in style to a lot of the early John Wayne westerns but despite Bob Steele lacking the star quality of John Wayne this is a lot better than many of his early efforts.

Bob Steele's father is shot and the uncle and cousins of his girlfriend are the chief suspects.

This film benefits greatly from the presence of Gabby Hayes as the villain. He is head and shoulders above anyone else here though that's not to say the rest of the cast are poor. Lucile Browne makes a pretty love interest although her acting is over theatrical. Bob Steele is adequate but his appearance is a bit off putting for a hero as it looks like he's wearing lipstick and eyeliner.

The plot is as basic as they come and it's a simple goody versus baddie film. The story rattles along and despite the action scenes ranging from amateur to pretty impressive it remains a strangely entertaining ride.

Although far from being a classic this is a pretty decent effort for the time and one of the better minor old westerns.