The Desperado

Jimmy Lydon burns the last of his image as Henry Aldrich. He's the son of an ex-sheriff who gets in trouble with the Reconstructionist government in Texas and makes a run for it. He hooks up with gunslinger Wayne Morris, who takes him under his wing and makes Jimmy a deadly man with a gun with a couple of tips about how to wear his gun belt.

Morris is surprisingly good, as is Lee Van Cleef in a small role. Maybe it's a good movie in its main body, even thought Morris' character seems very odd for the steely and disconnected killer he is supposed to be. Maybe it's the opening, with a bunch of titles about how this was darkest period in Texas history; after all, Black people had the franchise.

Sometimes you know too much history to shrug your shoulders and go with the legend.

Outlaw gunslinger Sam Garrett (Wayne Morris) offers that sage wisdom to fellow fugitive Tom Cameron (James Lydon); who's on the run from the "Bluebellies;" Texas State Police officers who wield a brutal iron fist of enforcement in the early 1870s; But quick-draw; hard-bitten Garrett soon decides not to take his own advice after young Cameron heads home to surrender - and instead gets framed for a revenge murder by a jealous rival for the affections of his girl (Beverly Garland)

The Desperado is quite an engaging western, if a little slow in places. The subject matter is dark and there's a certain edge lingering - it's definitely different from other Wayne Morris westerns and his persona isn't' light and cheerful - as usual - but he's philosophical and much more serious. There's some good shootouts, you get a double serving of Lee Van Cleef and Beverley Garland gets the pulse racing.

"There is one dark and grim page in Texas history; it concerns the three years 1870 to 1873, during which Texans suffered and smouldered under the carpetbag administration of Governor E. J. Davis. Texas law was administered and enforced by a despotic organization called the Texas State police -- known as the "Bluebellies". Constitutional rights were ignored -- such as the right to keep and bear arms, the right to have public meetings, private property rights and most of the other expressions of human dignity and freedom of which Texas has always been so rightfully proud. Naturally, they did something about it..."

It's not the right way to gain sympathy. From the start, the Bluebellies have barely done anything and the rebels are already throwing dynamite at them. This is definitely a movie for the Confederate flag crowd. Even so, it does not understand how to gain the rooting interest. They have to suffer from true tyranny first before they can fight back. If the rebels throw the first punch, then the rooting interest is lost. This movie assumes the audience's sympathies right from the opening text. It is possible to go darker if they are simple criminals fighting the cops but this movie is saying something else.

Eventually, we do get to the police beatings but it looks fake. Honestly, one of the slaps missed entirely even as an acting fight. Then they escape in the least difficult way possible. I'm willing to judge this without accuracy or subject matter concerns. I'm not willing to ignore bad filmmaking. It's bad melodrama. The acting is average to bad broad work. The leads are never that appealing. At best, it's a workable B-movie. As for title, shouldn't it be plural? This is probably a cult classic for right thinking Americans.

The Desperado is directed by Thomas Carr and adapted to screenplay by Geoffrey Holmes from the novel written by Clifton Adams. It stars Wayne Morris, Jimmy Lydon, Beverly Garland, Rayford Barnes, Dabbs Greer and Lee Van Cleef. Music is by Raoul Kraushaar and cinematography by Joseph Novak.

"There is one dark and grim page in Texas history; it concerns the three years 1870 to 1873, during which Texans suffered and smouldered under the carpetbag administration of Governor E.J. Davis. Texas law was administered and enforced by a despotic organisation called the Texas State police - - known as the "Bluebellies." Constitutional rights were ignored - - such as the right to keep and bear arms, the right to have public meetings, private property rights and most of the other expressions of human dignity and freedom of which Texas has always been so rightfully proud. Naturally they did something about it..."

For the whole of its 80 minutes running time, The Desperado crams as much in as it possibly can, producing a mightily strong Western in the process. Stripping it down to the core the story is about a good man forced to turn bad, who does bad things in the name of correcting the wrongs done to him. He's forced to go on the run with a man he can't stand, leaving the woman he loves behind. Hooking up with a famed outlaw, he learns how to become a killer, but always the screenplay has us completely on his side, all while the finer details back in his home town build the other half of the story.

A man does his own killing.

His time on the run sees a friendship formed, with camp fire bondings prominent, while his backbone is continually tested by certain encounters. The narrative twists and turns to build a compelling case, the odds are firmly stacked against him as a dastardly acquaintance with an ulterior motive moves and shakes to ruin his life. The backdrop is one of bully boy law enforcement and big political change, of a place full of weasels, cowards, liars and idiots, marking this out as a film very dark in nature.

Don't put faith in anybody but yourself.

Violence and action is never far away either, as director Carr keeps things lively, and Novak's black and white photography is sparkling (TCM hold a lovely print). The acting is hardly grade "A" stuff, but the principal players turn in very effective shows. Morris owns the film as the wise and weary outlaw Sam Garrett, a role you can tell he is very much enjoying playing, while the beautiful Garland works really hard to make her love interest character more than a token offering - and she succeeds. Bonus for Oater fans is Van Cleef popping in for some dramatic impact, where he plays twins! Wonderful.

This is very much an under seen film, and personally I'm a little proud to be able to put out on the internet what appears to be the first non professional review. It's different to the usual Wayne Morris fare and I'm convinced that Western lovers who like some dark tints in their films would heartily enjoy this one. See it if you get chance! 8/10

As a French moviegoer, even if I have heard of the Civil War in USA, Quantrill, Jesse James, William - Billy the the Kid - Bonney, Calamity Jane and many other legends of the West, I had never heard of those Bluebellies in Texas corrupted administration. So this is rather complex for me to fully understand the context of this story. But it remains watchable, agreeable, thanks mainly to Wayne Morris. It is of course predictable ten miles in advance but it remains better than the previous Thomas Carr's B westerns, made in the early fifties. With this one, Thomas Carr improved his filmography, showed a bit more ambition, and it will continue after this one; for instance several westerns starring Joel Mc Crea and some famous western figures.