Northern Patrol

Northern Patrol is the ninth of the Kirby Grant Mountie series with canine hero Chinook. In this installment Mountie Corporal Rod Webb (Grant) on his way home for a month of rest and relaxation, stumbles upon a man found hanged in his cabin. Even though there is a penned suicide note, the evidence leads Webb to believe that it was murder. After reporting the crime to the local outpost commander Constable Ralph Gregg (Richard Walsh) he sets out to solve the crime which soon leads him in the direction of town thugs (William Phipps, Dale Van Sickel) and a pistol toting Nordic gun moll (Marian Carr).

Spearheaded by scarcely used director Rex Bailey, Northern Patrol turns out to be one of the better entries into the series. Even though the Mountie films are usually clumped into the Western genre, the plot, pacing and dialogue might be more aptly described as an Arctic crime programmer. An enhanced plot line that includes a love triangle and hidden tribal treasure gives off more of an adult theme than usual for this brand of film. Released about the same time that Poverty Row studio Monogram Pictures was making the final transition to the more high-reaching Allied Artists Pictures, the budget doesn't seem quite as pinched and provides for a bit more ambitious film, including some nice exterior locations instead of the usual stock footage.

Solid B-Mountie flick.