The Cisco Kid and the Lady

Those of you who loved Warner Baxter as the Cisco Kid should know The Return of the Cisco Kid was his last installment. Starting with The Cisco Kid and the Lady, Cesar Romero took over for the next six movies. In my opinion, there's no reason to be disappointed by the change. Cesar also puts on an accent, he also sings, rides a horse, makes jokes, and saves the day and rides off into the sunset with his faithful sidekick Chris-Pin Martin. Plus, he's better looking, so his dalliances with women are more fun and believable.

In this one, Cesar, Chris-Pin, and Robert Barrat come across a toppled stagecoach. A dying man inside bequeaths them his goldmine, and his baby son. In a very funny and clever trick, the man rips the map and deed in thirds, so all three men have to work together to get the gold. Robert soon turns on them, demanding their third of the paper by gunpoint - but Cesar smokes his paper in a cigarette and Chris-Pin swallows his. "We have very good memories. As long as nothing happens to us..." Cesar smiles.

I'm starting to like the Cisco Kid movies. They're cute and harmless, and they have the predictable flow of a sitcom: beginning reminding the audience of the characters, the middle follows a brief, fixable problem; and the end shows the leads joking together as they leave in search of a new town. There's the same theme song ("La Cucaracha") in each movie, and both leads have their own catch phrases. Chris-Pin always adds, "I think" after his assertions. Cesar repeats, "I never fight with my hands. If I hurt my hands, I can't play the guitar. If I can't play the guitar, I can't sing love songs. And if I don't love, I can't live!" from earlier films. Yes, they're B-westerns, but they're fun if you're in the mood for them. And they're enjoyable during an afternoon when you want a little comfort and stability - and a cute guy to look at.

This film essentially begins with "the Cisco Kid" (Cesar Romero) and his faithful sidekick "Gordito" (Chris-Pin Martin) observing a man driving a covered wagon down a dusty trail in the middle of nowhere. Naturally, being the outlaws that they are, their first thought is to ride up on the wagon and steal the horses away from him. However, before they can act on that impulse, they hear a shot ring out from a distance and notice the man slump over from the impact of the bullet. Racing down to claim the horses, they suddenly come face-to-face with another man who--after denying he fired his rifle--offers his assistance to the seriously wounded man. Although quite suspicious of this stranger, the Cisco Kid's thoughts are suddenly distracted by Gordito's startling announcement that he found a young baby inside the covered wagon. Seconds later, the dying man produces the deed to a gold mind and, after tearing it into three pieces, distributes one to the three men kneeling over him--in exchange for their promise to take care of his young baby. And then, just as all three men agree, the man dies. Not long afterward, being the cold-blooded thief that he is, Jim Harbison decides to double-cross the two men standing in front of him. What he doesn't realize, however, is who he is dealing with--and from that point on his life is going to become quite difficult. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that film turned out to be a pretty good addition to the Cisco Kid series with Cesar Romero performing quite well in the featured role. Likewise, having two attractive actresses like Marjorie Weaver (as "Julie Lawson") and Virginia Field ("Billie Graham") certainly didn't hurt the overall scenery either. Be that as it may, although this film is rather short and quite dated, it was still an enjoyable movie for the most part, and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

Cesar Romero made his debut playing The Cisco Kid in The Cisco Kid And The Lady. It should more properly be The Cisco and the two Ladies because he woos both Saloon entertainer Virginia Field and schoolteacher Marjorie Weaver in this film.

It doesn't start this way, but Cesar Romero and his Sancho Panza Chris- Pin Martin come across a dying miner coming into file a claim with his infant son. Cisco rescues the infant and the dying man splits up the mine map three ways between Cisco, Gordito and Robert Barrat not realizing it was Barrat who shot him.

Romero is fast on his feet in many way. This film features him doing the tango with Field, he started out as a dancer in show business. He does a nice job of balancing two women Field and Weaver until George Montgomery arrives on the scene as Weaver's fiancé from Kansas City. This film was one of Montgomery's earliest featured roles. And Romero has to keep his wits about him when dealing with Barrat who is a shrewd adversary.

This film marked Romero's interpretation of the Cisco Kid as a gallant knight of the plains with an eye for the ladies. This is one cowboy who's not satisfied kissing his horse.

Romero has charm to spare in keeping the audience rooting for him. After 75 years he still does.

an earlier comment describes this film as just a reworking of "3 Godfathers" (John Ford, 1948) ... an interesting idea but not logical since this film was produced and released in 1939! Many may like "3 Godfathers" more ... after all that's a real film with a plot and stars and all the trappings of dramatic storytelling. They obviously have similar plot devices but they don't really compare because "Cisco Kid and the Lady" is just a lighthearted B-movie romp made for Saturday afternoon matinees. Still, it did come first, by almost a decade. This is not very deep drama but "Cisco ..." can be a lot of fun.

Romero makes a very charming, dapper and debonair Cisco. He flashes a gorgeous smile, a sexy singing voice, a sexier accent and lithe dance style. To quote Warren Zevon "... his hair was perfect." An interesting casting note: the wholesome school teacher is dark haired and the fiery saloon girl is a blonde... not the usual stereotypes.

If you are looking for deep, hit the Atlantic. "The Cisco Kid and the Lady" is a lighthearted western, one of many flicks about the O Henry western hero.

Cesar Romero looks and acts the part and act is the proper word since, in real life, "The Cisco Kid and the Man" would be more appropriate.

Still, his performance, like his hair and teeth, is perfect. He seems to have enjoyed himself, and all can enjoy veteran Chris Pin Martin as the Kid's answer to Gabby Hayes and Smiley Burnette (with whom I had the pleasure of spending a day).

One of the interesting things about the picture is that it is early George Montgomery. He looks like a western high school senior.

The ladies are pretty, the kid is cute, the horses are well groomed. There is not much action, but there is a good story and it is a fun way to spend about 75 minutes.

In this picture, as in a later one, Romero is quite a 'joker'.