Desert Pursuit

Camels in western will be used later, in 1954, by Ray Nazarro's SOUTHWEST PASSAGE, starring Rod Cameron, a very unusual topic and always interesting to watch. This western may be rather ambitious for a George Blair, who usually showed us a tepid work for Republic Pictures, the most prestigious of Poverty Row companies. This movie is helped by Wayne Morris presence. Yes, yes, yes, I am surprised by the quality of this George Blair's western, as I would have been with for instance Philip Ford, Blair's fellow colleague director at Republic Pictures, both directors representing the bottom of the barrel in terms of grade Z quality. Here, that looks like a Jo Kane's film, or at best Ray Nazzaro. A good little surprise.

The US Camel Corps imported dromedary camels from the Middle-East. This flop of a movie uses bactrian camels from Mongolia.

"In 1856 Jefferson Davis, Secretary of War, organised the American Camel Corps of the United States Army, which mapped the southern route across the plains and deserts from Texas to California. The building of the trans-continental railroad ended the usefulness of the Camel Corps, and the animals were sold to private enterprise or escaped into the south-western desert where camels were still seen by lonely prospectors more than a decade later."

Quite what filmic significance that opening statement has to how Desert Pursuit pans out is anybody's guess, but it's there and clearly the pic was meant to be more thematically telling than the odd ball piece it is.

Out of Monogram, it's directed by George Blair and adapted to screenplay by W. Scott Darling from the novel written by Kenneth Perkins. It stars Wayne Morris and Virginia Grey, William Sickner photographs it out of Death Valley and the Sierra Mountains, and music is by Edward J. Kay. Plot pitches Morris and Grey on a journey through the desert trying to avoid three Arabian men who are up to no good. There's gold, camels, a burgeoning romance, oh and it's Christmas time as well, handy since there is three not so wise men on the scene and Grey's character is called Mary...

It's actually a harmless movie, a decent time waster. The musical score blends Oater strains with Arabian flavours, the locations gorgeous, while Morris and Grey are a likable coupling. There's the odd dummy flung about the place, the fist fights scarcely believable, and you know how this is ultimately going to end, but it's a fun enough dromedary ride regardless. 6/10

This strange little shaky A Monogram Western has Wayne Morris and Virginia Grey crossing the Alabama Hills to get to San Bernardino, pursued by three Arabs -- including George Tobias, using his Middle Eastern accent -- on camels.

The Army tried out importing camels for transportation in the Great Southwestern Desert in the 1850s. It was a brainstorm by Jefferson Davis when he was the Secretary of War. By the middle of the 1860s the Army had abandoned their use. This movie, working off Scott Darling's last script, has a couple of monologues about the critters, including their superiority in the desert.

George Blair, a B director who moved into television, seems to be directing for visuals and to bring the movie up to 70 minutes. This causes some odd pacing problems, and the action sequences seem draggy. Edward Kay's peppy score stands in odd contrast to the slow and duplicative shooting, seeming to emphasize the awkward cutting and dialogue. While Miss Grey's performance is good, Morris' line readings sound off. William Sickner's camerawork is handsome, particularly the long shots to show off the scenery in the handsome copy I saw, but the overall impact is this was a very interesting idea for a movie that was poorly realized.

Wayne Morris appeared in many fine, lesser known films before and after his stellar career as a decorated WWII fighter ace. This film, though poorly budgeted, was a unique and fun twist on the standard western programmer of the era.

Morris portrays a rambler with a cache of gold, being pursued by a trio of Arabs interested in his tempting treasure. The prolific character actors George Tobias and John Doucette are great as the star's greedy enemies.

The unusual plot, fine scenery and charisma of the under-appreciated Wayne Morris make this a western well worth watching. As he demonstrated in Paths of Glory, Morris was the rare cowboy star who had some real acting chops....... Enjoy !!