The Devil on Horseback

Apart from the novelty of seeing one of Errol Flynn's wives, Lila Damita, in this film, I can't really think of any conceivable reason to see "The Devil on Horseback". It's ample proof that even a big studio (in this case First National—a division of Warner Brothers) can make a really bad B-movie—one even worse than most tiny studio offerings.

The film is set in Mexico. Fred Keating plays an annoyingly studio Mexican bandit—and plays him with all the subtlety of the Frito Bandito! He is truly a caricature of such a person and his simple-minded ways and style really are NOT a credit to the way Hollywood once treated minorities! A grinning idiot who LOVES to sing, that's Keating in this one. The guy is apparently in love with an American film actress (Damita) and insists on going into town to see her—even though he's been banished. The plot doesn't get any deeper than that and it's full of the sort of songs Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy sang—though much worse! So, you've got a dopey plot, lots of operatic singing, REALLY BAD acting, a racially insensitive portrait of our friends to the South and a plot that even a chimp could only do better! The bottom line is that this is a painful and boring film—one that, even if it IS in the public domain, isn't worth your time. Quite bad, I assure you.

This is a strange movie. Most of the cast members speak English with Spanish or French accents, there is a crypto-Lesbian, a crypto-Gay man, some serious senorita knife throwing (by the delightful Guatemalan dancer Blanca Vischer, whose line delivery is so astoundingly lame it is almost cult-worthy), a bizarre Samba-esque ancient fiesta dance to the Moon (totally wacko), some glorious shots of a nice Mexican steam locomotive, an incredible singing performance by the remarkable Del Campo (WHAT A VOICE!), and more cute double-entendres than you can shake a stick at. (He: "My love for you is like a rushing river that can't be stopped!" She: "I'll dam it.").

Oh, and the lead horse -- Del Campo's horse -- my god, what a beautiful animal. He's a tall black Arabian-style guy. A stupendous horse. There's a nice dun too, and a blaze-faced horse who doubles first as a bandito pony and later as an Army mount. Really, for horse fans, this movie is a treat because these animals are not from the usual Hollywood remuda -- these are some fine Mexican horses, well bred, well caparisoned, and very well ridden. If that black Arabian had been in America, he'd have been some Western star's steady ride very soon. As it is, this may be his only starring film. Kinda like Blanca Vischer.

Movie star Lili Damita is making a publicity tour of a Latin American country, in the company of her would-be fiance, coffee magnate Fred Keating, and suite. Local politician Francisco Flores del Campo, exiled to the countryside by the military government, rides to the train to serenade Miss Damita. Publicists Tiffany Thayer and Jean Chatburn think it would be a great story if "local bandit kidnaps movie star" and everyone agrees, so it's off to del Campo's hacienda. While they're running through the usual sorting-out of couples, the generals decide this would be a great chance to get rid of this thorn in their side. It's also a musical, with half a dozen operetta numbers.

It's a great idea for a comedy, but the situations are resolved too easily, few of the jokes are sharp enough -- although Miss Chatham gets a nice one, when she says "Of course I dream of love. Pass the ketchup" -- and the silliness never gets off the simmering stage. Writer-director Crane Wilbur's script isn't sharp enough to make me laugh; when I watched it, I kept thinking of gags that would make it better, and that's a bad sign. Of course, Miss Damita and Mr. del Campo were not working in their native languages, and that makes jokes more difficult, but the humor never gets much better than Miss Chatburn taking off her glasses to become beautiful.

A retired rebel breaks his government exile in order to meet a visiting Hollywood starlet. He's then talked into abducting her by her publicity-hungry manager (It doesn't take much convincing.) and brought to his hacienda. The charismatic rebel spends the next couple of days attempting to charm her, while competing with a coffee heir and contending with a jealous senorita.

A mildly entertaining, lightweight romantic comedy, this has a few risqué moments (for 1936 anyway) and flirts around with the idea of one character possibly being a lesbian! There's also a a few interesting songs, that before long change into dance numbers as well, threatening to turn the film into a full-on musical.

A frothy adventure, it would have benefited from some name stars.

This film may no longer exist in the two-tone color process(Hirlicolor)as originally issued in 1936, however it does exist in black/white in 16mm format. The story line is curiously similar in parts to GAY DESPERADO filmed/released also in 1936. Ann Miller is fleetingly seen as a dancer. The film pushes the envelope with the portrayal of two gay characters: Jean Chatburn as Lily Damita's butch secretary and writer Tiffany Thayer perhaps just acting his natural sissy self. The movie progresses like a 'B" Western with a speedy plot resolution after a fairly enjoyable 72 minutes. Crane Wilbur's direction, story and screenplay all reflect his curiously bizarre and uneven talent.