Across the Rio Grande

This was broadcast on TCM and pressing the info button on the remote we're informed that " A young man becomes the captive of silver-ore smugglers while investigating the murder of his father " You can forgiven for thinking that despite the Hays Code being heavily enforced there is a good chance of a gritty tale being told where the upstanding hero is at the mercy of cruel and sadistic villains similar to the later Western WILL PENNY . That's not how this film pans out

From the outset before a line of dialogue is spoken the tone of the film is set by having a musical soundtrack that borders on the frivolous and this sums up the film which is very silly , unlikely and despite incorporating several genres does none of them effectively . We get comedy scenes , a musical number and the plot proper involves an innocent man facing the gallows and the good guys trying to get to the bottom of a mystery . It has all the hallmarks of a B movie churned out by a film studio to be shown just before the main feature and no matter what the main feature was it couldn't have been any worse than this one

Across the Rio Grande featured the musical talents of a young Polly Bergen who had just started in films. She does a duet with Wakely in the saloon, where she's working as a musician (this was a kid' western, we didn't know about ladies like Miss Kitty). Playing the guitar, she sings the title song. In a letter to me, she said that this was the film that got her a Guild card. I think she was on for about 15 minutes. Her duet is included in the original trailer for the film, which is available in several groups of B western trailers. While Wakely may not have been a big star in westerns, he was influential in getting several performers their start in show business and wrote many songs. He and his family did a nightclub act in Harrah's in Las Vegas for years.

Jimmy Wakely was a cowboy crooner that was promoted to his own series. He co-stars here with the busy comic sidekick Dub "Cannonball" Taylor (Was he in EVERY western ever made ????). This was a fun movie, but had no really memorable moments.

The budget and action here are average, but the film is notable for its cast, which included a young Polly Bergen, who remains active in the industry today. The songs are fun, but routine.......

Wakely was never a box-office champ, but he did have decent run and even got his own comic book series ! This film was typical of those 1940's films that padded the matinée schedules of the day ...

Across the Rio Grande is directed by Oliver Drake and written by Ronald Davidson. It stars Jimmy Wakely, Dub Taylor, Reno Browne, Riley Hill and Dennis Moore. Music is by Edward Kay and cinematography by Harry Neumann.

Running at just under an hour, Across the Rio Grande is pretty much a quintessential "B" Western for the decade it was made. It crams as much as it can into the story and has no ideas above its station. Plot finds amiable Jimmy Wakely and his amusing side-kick Cannonball Taylor in amongst silver smugglers, murder, kidnapping, jail breaks and of course shoot-outs and fist-fights. There's even time for a couple of songs and a magic trick! and a gun phobia angle and also a cheeky locked room murder that adds some meat to the frothy stew.

Production value is low and the fights are the kind where the thrown punches miss by about a mile, but this is a pleasant way to spend an hour if your a Western fan purely seeking some time filling light entertainment. 6/10