Bandits of El Dorado

Notorious outlaws are pulling off successful heists and vanishing with the stolen loot never to be seen again. Texas Rangers Steve Carson / The Durango Kid (Charles Starrett) and Ranger Captain Richard Henley (Fred Sears) hatch a scheme for Carson to infiltrate a gang suspected in the plot. Carson's cover becomes compromised when he is recognized by an old pal, town local Smiley Burnette.

There is a pretty decent B-Western flick packed in here. The villainry is decidedly less cartoonish then in most of the Durango's as well as some occasional quassi-noir cinematography and good action sequences. For some inexplicable reason Smiley's hijinks have been ramped up in this otherwise more hard-edged entry into the series.

Not only that but the studio decided to double down on the comedic relief with the addition of the singing cowboy duo of Mustard and Gravy. The two were actually pioneers in the Cowboy Boogie musical sound. Nothing to show for that here as their talent is largely wasted in time killing, comedy filler as a pair of Smiley clones.

A solid episode in the Durango Kid Series. With a little more creative care it could have been one of the best. Nevertheless, overall it's enjoyable B-Western fare.

This is a pretty good B western. The most successful outlaws in Texas have been disappearing with their loot, despite the best efforts of the Texas Rangers and the Mexican Federales. It's up to Texas Ranger Steve Carson to go underground to trace these disappearing bad men.

All the elements work in this Durango Kid movie. It's a bit shorter than usual, timing in at 54 minutes, but there's very little bloat. The comedy bits with Smiley Burnette work, the songs are good and the camera-work of Fayte M. Browne is excellent. The acting is better than usual, with John Dehner and Clayton Moore in major roles.This is a good movie to show to people who are not familiar with the series.

Outlaws along the Texas-Mexican border are mysteriously disappearing without a trace, so the Durango Kid adopts a second fake outlaw identity to expose the scheme.

An unusual idea of outlaws disappearing and John Dehner as the bad guy as well as a harder-edged action elevates this from average. It's a very good western, instilled with energy and plot frothing in a well-heated cauldron.