Fool's Gold

Hoppy's in black only for the first few minutes of this film, which, as readers of my other Hoppy film's reviews know, is a bad sign. This time, he plays a cattleman. There is very little action in this film. The only gunfight occurs in the last few minutes, & Hoppy isn't even involved in it, so he never actually fires his gun in this film! There isn't even a legitimate horse chase, although Hoppy & Topper do chase a buggy at one point! There's the standard latter day Hoppy-type mystery (in the sense of his being "undercover"), but there's no real mystery here either. Let's see, no mystery, no gunplay from Hoppy, no horse chase. What does that leave? Must be a lot of romance between Lucky & the female lead, right? Nope. She's involved with another character & hardly speaks with Lucky at all. Oh well, maybe it has some good funny parts supplied by California? Nope. One of the least funny of all the later Hoppy movies. I think what really happened here is that the cast & crew decided to take the week off, & just threw this product out there. Earle Hodgins is good in his very minor role (uncharacteristically, for him, playing a straight baddie instead of his usual charlatan snake oil salesman). The highlight of the film is actually watching Hoppy watch Hodgins spit on the ground several times while they're talking. And you know, if that's the highlight, this isn't a very good movie, even for the Hoppy fanatic that I am. I rate it 5/10, & would have rated it a point lower, but it never really got silly or stupid at any point. Miscellaneous comments: I thought I found a blooper when California referred to the baddies as "yellow dogs," a term which I had thought originated during WWII, but according to the "American Dictionary of Slang" (Harper Collins Publishers) this term was in use as early as 1881. In this film, a calendar on the wall shows June 1 as occurring on a Thursday. From 1881 to 1900, the only June firsts to occur on that day were in 1882, 1893, & 1899. Wasting my time trying to instill a little historical accuracy in a B western? Sure, but I take my Hoppy movies very seriously, it's all part of the fun!

Peace and quiet is what Hoppy is after on his ranch until an old friend turns up wanting his help. But it's us viewers who get the 'peace and quiet,' as this is a very dull entry in the long running series of film and TV episodes.

Far too much talking and little action in this story as Hoppy goes undercover to get his friend's son back on the straight and narrow. To disagree with my esteemed fellow reviewer, Hoppy does fire his pistol in this but only to kill a deadly spider left in his bed by the villain! The evil Prof Dixon and his collection of spiders are the stars of this, sadly, we see very little of them except as incidental background until the finale.

Lots of horse riding here and there and the plot is padded out somewhat before we reach the fairly predictable ending. Still, Hoppy and his pals are there usual carefree selves, so, it's pretty amiable viewing if nothing else.

Hoppy goes under-cover to rescue friend's son from clutches of outlaw gang.

Cluttered screenplay short on both action and focus. Best thing is clever idea of "bug- ologist" professor who collects poisonous spiders. Naturally, he heads up the gang. Unfortunately, he's not around for the climax, plus the script doesn't really know what to do with him. Notable too that the cast includes that fine B-movie actress Jane Randolph as the tough-talking saloon girl. Too bad her role sort of fades away. Anyway, I agree with others that this is not Hoppy at its best.

It may be worth noting that Bill Boyd was the uncredited executive producer here, which means he had taken over production from Harry Sherman. That may account for lesser amount of action since Boyd could now make executive decisions, and he was pushing 50, a time maybe to slow down. Note, for example, how he lassos the buckboard guy instead of jumping and wrestling him off the speeding wagon. Fortunately, the actor could fall back on one of the most likable personalities on the cowboy screen, plus here he really looks good in that big hat and long waistcoat. Then too, next to Gene Autry, Boyd was probably the shrewdest businessman riding the matinée range. So, let the younger guys take the falls, which, I think, is what he was in the process of learning here.

When the story begins, Hopalong is meeting with his friend, the Colonel. The Colonel is upset because his hot-headed son is AWOL from the military after striking an officer! He asks Hoppy to investigate and see if he can bring the young man back to face the consequences of his actions.

The trail for the AWOL officer leads to Twin Buttes. And, along the way, Hoppy meets the Professor...a guy who is just buggy about bugs*. But he's a guy who isn't exactly who he appears to be...and the town turns out to be infested with all sorts of thieves, cutthroats and jerk-faces. After getting bashed over the heard and nearly killed, you wonder why Hoppy keeps trying...especially when the Colonel's son is so resistant to listening to common sense!

So is it any good? Yes. But this is no surprise as most of the Cassidy films are better than the typical B-westerns of the day. Plus, the lovely locations shooting in Lone Pine, California (where the vast majority of his films were made) is grand. Enjoyable and reasonably original. My only complaint, and it's minor, is that you really don't feel as if the son is worth saving! He is pretty dopey!



*Oddly enough, this is the THIRD Cassidy film I've seen with a professor who loves bugs!!

Hoppy sets out to Twin Buttes to help his friend Jed by trying to bring his Army deserting son back to face a court martial before he becomes a wanted criminal. He's residing in sort of "Robber's Roost", a place loaded with criminals. Behind Hopalong, Lucky Jenkins and California Carslon try to follow his trail to help Hopalong. Arriving in Twin Buttes, Hopalong is suspicious of Jessie Dixon, who runs the local inn and whom Bruce has fallen in love with. Her father is the head of the bad hombres.

Boasting a good story with an interesting villain with a penchant of planting his six-legged friend in Hoppy's room. Hopalong is "in disguise" for a good part of the film. He doesn't wear his noir garb. It's an intriguing plot, has some tense moments, though it can get a little convoluted at times, a bit tedious, but not to a major degree. There's a lack of action, and the colonel's son isn't likeable so you don't really care if he get saves. But you do want Jane Randolph- who is in love with the dope - to be happy. Overall, a fun Hoppy western ( but aren't they all to varying levels?!)