Two-Fisted Law

All in all, it's a decent oater, more plot-heavy than most, but nothing special. Seems Clark's (McCoy) lost his ranch to swindler Russell (Oakman) and now bad guy Russell wants to finagle good girl Betty's (Day) ranch away from her. And if that's not enough, he's also trying to frame Clark for robbery and murder. Plus he's got help from crooked deputy Bendix (Brennan). Good thing Clark's a pretty good sneaky prospector. There's some good hard riding, mostly through familiar LA terrain, but not much fast shooting or flying fists. Mc Coy, of course, makes a good hard-eyed hero, and get a load of that 50-gallon hat that tops anything in movies! And where did they get his absolutely stunning white horse that's the equal of Trigger or Silver in sheer looks. On the other hand, Wayne fans will be disappointed since his screen time is sparse, but already he shows the youthful charisma that Lone Star and Mascot would wisely feature. Still, I could have done with less talk and more scenery and action, but the mix is still enough to keep this now Front Row Geezer happy.

In 1932, the 25 year old John Wayne went down poverty row with the independent production companies. In this film, he developed his fist fight scenarios, adding a bit of humour to his acting as well as drawing out his romantic side.

Two-Fisted Law (1932)

** (out of 4)

Standard "B" Western of its era has Tim McCoy playing a man named Tim who has his family ranch stolen from him by the crooked Bob Russell (Wheeler Oakman).

TWO-FISTED LAW is pretty much like every other "B" Western that was made around this era. It's pretty amazing how many films would deal with a person shot in the back and the wrong person being arrested or some crooked deal that causes someone to lose a ranch. This film here, like most of them, is mildly entertaining but there's no doubt that if you're wanting a classic this here isn't that.

If you're a fan of McCoy then you'll find him charming here as he plays it pretty straight like normal. I would be lying if I said he was one of my favorite cowboy stars from this era but he's at least mildly entertaining. Once again John Wayne and Walter Brennan are here together, although neither one makes that much of an impact. TWO-FISTED LAW has the typical shoot-outs and chases but there's nothing here that separates it from all the rest.

This is actually quite a fast-paced little story - thing is, though, the plot has been more crochéd together rather than knitted; and the holes can be a bit annoying at times. The plot is pretty old hat; grasping landowner sets up the hero (Tim McCoy) who has to clear his name to get the ranch and the gal. It has been made on a shoestring, with lots of film run at double speed to accelerate the effects of the frequent horse chases. There are a few, limited, appearances from John Wayne as his amiable sidekick but Alice Day is just plain annoying as the feisty dame and McCoy has all the charisma of a beermat. I love all these 1930s Westerns, and this is no better/worse than many. Kills an hour.

Though in the film John Wayne is second billed to star Tim McCoy he actually has very little to do. Wayne is in the unaccustomed role of sidekick.

Wayne and Wallace MacDonald are the last two ranch hands working for Tim McCoy. He's lost is ranch to crooked banker Wheeler Oakman, but being the good boss and friend he is to Wayne and MacDonald he finds them jobs with neighbor and sweetheart Alice Day.

That might be short term employment for Oakman has designs on the ranch and on Day. Those designs on Day ain't covered by the cowboy code.

McCoy goes off prospecting for a couple of years and no sooner is he back than he's framed for an express company holdup and killing resulting from same. The rest of the movie is McCoy's fight to prove his innocence and save Day from a fate worse than death.

Wheeler Oakman seems to be enjoying his role as villain, he's hamming it up in the best Snidely Whiplash tradition. And Day makes a perfect Little Nell.

Tim McCoy, a silent western star, seems to have made the transition to sound easily enough. He's a stern and upright hero who's bound and determined prove his innocence.

Note good performances by Tully Marshall as the father figure sheriff of the area who believes in McCoy and a young Walter Brennan as his less than scrupulous deputy.

My VHS of this film is 58 minutes and I note that the running time is 64 minutes. That might explain some gaps in the story and maybe it was John Wayne who got cut out.

This was the last Columbia movie that John Wayne ever appeared in. It seems as though Harry Cohn thought Wayne was putting the moves on a young starlet who rejected Cohn's advances even though Wayne wasn't involved. But after the Duke became a star and a legend, there wasn't enough money in the world that would get him to appear in a Columbia Studios film.

But realizing this is a B western, it's not the worst one I've ever seen although somehow I doubt we'll ever see a director's cut.