Strange Gamble

Before I submitted my rating, the average for all previous ratings was a respectable 7.1. Unfortunately, only two raters had submitted reviews, and both found Strange Gamble disappointing. My guess is that both are connoisseurs of splendidly stage fist-fights and shoot-outs. In Strange Gamble the slugging and shooting punctuate but do not dominate any scenes. This movie unfolds like a mystery. Only in the last few minutes do we know exactly where everyone stands. Hoppy maintains his appearance as a rancher, but is actually working for the government to find the source of high-quality counterfeit money. Meanwhile from the east comes a young woman, her sister, and brother-in-law trying to find a silver mine. Sorting out the good guys from the bad should keep one interested. And the heroine, the reliable Elaine Riley in her fifth Hoppy movie, has an important part in the story as well as good looks.

In the last of 66 Hopalong Cassidy movies, Bill Boyd is on a cattle-buying trip when he stops in a town where a left-handed man is caught dead with a gun in his right hand, and there's counterfeit money floating around. Some one shoots at him while he's investigating, which gets his attention.

Boyd would reprise the role in a brief credited bit in Demille's THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH, and of course he would appear in his syndicated show in the early 1950s, but this is the next to last of Boyd's 140 movie appearances. He was a decent, if occasionally wooden actor, and like many silent stars, he was on the skids in the talkies when he replaced James Gleason in the first of the movies in 1935. He was grateful for the opportunity and took his assumed responsibilities as a boys' idol seriously. "Hoppy" didn't smoke, drink, chew tobacco or swear, rarely kissed a girl and let the bad guy draw first. When the TV series ended, he vanished from public view, so they would not see him as an old man. He died in 1972, 77 years old. His movies still play and play well.

Before William Boyd began playing Hopalong Cassidy in 66 films, he had a long career in both silents and early talkies--playing a wide variety of roles. But from 1935 through 1948, Boyd almost exclusively played Hoppy in films...so many that some people THOUGHT he was Cassidy and forgot he had a long career apart from these films. Of the 66 films, "Strange Gamble" is the final appearance of Hoppy in a movie...and I watched this one hoping it would be a nice exit from the franchise.

Fortunately for anyone wanting to see the Hopalong Cassidy films, YouTube has most of them and in pristine condition. While many of these films were trimmed down for television, the Boyd family kept original copies and they were completely restored and placed on YouTube....and you can't find better copies anywhere.

Like many of Hoppy's films, he primary sidekick is California (Andy Clyde). As for the second, well the Cassidy films almost all had a young, handsome but bland guy...but who he was varied considerably. In this case, Rand Brooks plays Lucky.

The film begins with Hoppy and his friends coming upon what looks like a runaway stage. It turns out the woman driving it is in a hurry, as she has a sick sister-in-law inside. Oddly, when Hoppy brings them into town looking for help, the owner of the local saloon is a real jerk and doesn't want to stop his poker game and tries to keep the sheriff playing. What an odd reaction to a lady who is ill and in need of help! Obviously something is afoot.

So why are Hoppy and his friends in this neck of the woods? Well, Hoppy is a federal agent who is investigating some counterfeit money. The only clues he has are a symbol of a comet, the name 'Mordigan' and the town. And, once they arrive strange things happen...such as the Silver Belle mine disappearing and Hoppy getting engaged!!

There isn't a lot new or unusual about this film and its plot. However, like nearly all the Hopalong Cassidy movies, it is entertaining and fun...which is all you really need.

This, the final in the long running Hopalong Cassidy feature film series is a decent enough outing to finish on, however, I notice that in the final few films Boyd gave away his traditional black outfit for lighter garb, Hoppy never quite had the same impact when not dressed in black, could this have led to a drop in popularity that helped end the series? In the subsequent television episodes, he never wore anything but his black clobber, apart from the first dozen that were edited down from the last few films! At any rate William Boyd's 'Hopalong Cassidy' remains one of the great role models for all ages to aspire to, a wonderful legacy indeed to leave behind!

There were 66 films from 1935-1948, all starring William Boyd as Hopalong Cassidy. "Strange Gamble," released in October 1948 was the very last Hoppy FILM made.

Boyd also made some 52 half-hour Hoppy TV episodes between 1952 and 1954. Forty of these were fresh (original) shows co-starring Edgar Buchanan as Red Connors. The others were condensed/edited movies converted into half-hour TV episodes, usually with Boyd narrating parts to aid the editing and condensing. "Strange Gamble" happens to be one of the films which was turned into a half-hour episode; it is episode 3 of TV season 1.

I've seen both the TV episode and the feature film, both by the same name "Strange Gamble." Maybe I am too influenced by the TV episode, but the movie seems like cheap, formula TV. That's my review. Nothing positive to say.