I fuorilegge del Wyoming

This film essentially begins with the "Three Mesquiteers" driving some cattle through Wyoming when they discover that one of their steers has been rustled and subsequently slaughtered on the spot. Unable to follow the footprints of the man who rustled their steer, they soon turn back and head to a nearby town to get something to eat. While there "Stony Brooke" (John Wayne) comes across a young lady named "Irene Parker" (Pamela Blake) who begins to get hassled by one of the local thugs in that town. Naturally, this prompts Stony to get involved and after a quick fistfight, Stony walks Irene back to her house. Much to his surprise, once he gets there, he finds his too buddies "Tucson Smith" (Ray Corrigan) and "Rusty Joslin" (Raymond Hatton) already there talking to Irene's parents. Not long afterward, they also meet Irene's brother "Will Parker" (Don 'Red' Barry) who they quickly realize is the rustler they had been looking for. However, recognizing the bad situation the family was currently having to endure, they write off their loss and happily accept their invitation to have dinner with them instead. Unfortunately, they soon realize that Will and his family are even worse off than they thought due to a corrupt local businessman named "Joe Balsinger" (LeRoy Mason) who controls everything in that town--and still wants more. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this movie was one of the better films in the series due in large part to the acting of John Wayne and the absence of Max Terhune who existed solely for cheap laughs. Be that as it may, although this was still a grade-B Western by and large, I liked the more serious tone, and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

Will Parker has been destroyed by a local politician and now must steal to feed his family. He steals a steer from the Three Mesquiteers.

Usually a Three Mesquiteers series is snappy and fun but this instalment is poignant and grim. It's backdrop is the dust bowl period. The three Mesquiteers try to stop a crooked politician and prevent a kid - a victim of corruption- from turning into an outlaw which turns into a tragic event. Don Barry as the outlaw acts really well. It's an efficient western, but the least fun. I prefer the mesquiteers in the thick of things, fighting the bad guys, and I like a happy ending.

The 32 year old John Wayne was fortunate enough to have talented writers around him to write novels that could be adapted into vehicles for his career, as well as short stories and screenplays that would immortalise him as the American hero. This film is one such example. When you watch this film you're not watching it for the story (like you would do in 'Rio Grande' or 'The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance'), you're watching it to see John Wayne in action. He is the romantic embodiment of what it was like for the settling community to live in the post-civil war era. Despite the fact that most of these westerns distort history, what Wayne delivers gives you access to his humanity. That's what we like about him.

An American Western; A story about a trio of cowboys who bring their herd to a Wyoming town and end up investigating local political corruption when a thief is subjected to wicked deception. This 'B' movie, set during the Great Depression, is based on characters known as "The Three Mesquiteers" from a series of Western novels by William Colt MacDonald and billed as such for a series of films. Each episode would blend the traditional Western period with the topical issues of the day. This installment is based on a well-publicised real-life incident about a would-be modern Robin Hood who escaped the law and, while hiding in the Wyoming hills, was shot by a citizen. The story is trite, a routine oater, though more serious in tone for the series. John Wayne makes it a show with his feisty persona, albeit from a reduced on-screen presence, and Don 'Red' Barry is compelling as a hopeless, desperate outlaw. The ending is abrupt and spoils what is a good final act.

Wyoming Outlaw is one of the most unusual entries in the Three Mesquiteers series of films. John Wayne, Ray Corrigan, and Raymond Hatton are not the center of the film. The center is Donald 'Red' Barry who plays young outlaw Will Parker who gets befriended by the Mesquiteers even though he tries to steal a steer from them.

This Mesquiteer film is set in the modern west of the dustbowl and has some themes that John Wayne later used in McLintock. During the World War, the cattle country was converted to wheat and after the demand from Europe subsided after World War I a lot of farm land was left arid and abandoned. That is exactly what happened to American agriculture in the boom period of the Roaring Twenties where the farmers did not share the prosperity.

Along comes the New Deal and a lot of local political bosses took advantage of government relief programs to entrench themselves in power. Such a boss is played by LeRoy Mason who was one of the shrewdest villains I've ever seen in a western. In fact during the course of the film, Mason really outsmarts our heroes at every turn as they try to bring him down legally.

Anyway though the Mesquiteers are really subordinate to Red Barry who's tired of having his family exploited by Mason and his gang. Circumstances make him turn outlaw and the chase for him is reminiscent of High Sierra a year later. In fact the just as Humphrey Bogart is referred to as Mad Dog Earle, Barry is called Mad Dog Parker by the radio and print media of the time.

High Sierra was an A film for Warner Brothers and this was just a quickie B western that probably didn't get too much notice. It's a pity that the production values were those of a B film because the story was very well done.

This is one of the few John Wayne Three Mesquiteer films that is not available on VHS or DVD. When TCM shows it again, catch it by all means.