Back in the Saddle

Gene Autry provides a wealth of old-fashioned entertainment in Back in the Saddle, one of the factory-issue B Westerns that played to packed Saturday afternoon movie palaces full of kids who dreamed of life on the open range. Besides crooning the legendary title tune, Autry foils a dastardly mine owner who has been poisoning cattle to drive the local ranchers off their land. An interesting opening section depicts Gene and faithful, hopeless sidekick Smiley Burnette (here in his "Frog" incarnation) retrieving the son of a friend from the decadent big city -- a perfectly set-up showdown between wholesome country and degenerate city played for maximum effect. Back in the Saddle's most prominent set-piece, however, is an exciting shoot-out set in and around a jail with plenty of whizzing bullets and flaming hay-carts to set the heart pounding.

When the story begins, Gene and Frog are out east to the city to retrieve Tom Bennett. It seems that Bennett's father owned a huge ranch....and now that he's died, Tom needs to return home to run things. But Tom is very impulsive and as bright as a tomato....and a particularly dumb tomato at that! So getting him to return isn't easy. And, once they are back west, Tom continues to be a dope...ultimately leading to serious consequences with the law.

What exactly does dopey Tom do? Well a nearby mine owner is poisoning the water supply and Gene is going about getting the courts involved to stop it. But dopey Tom has his men attack the mine...with dreadful consequences. This puts Gene in a tough spot...see the film and see what happens next.

The film is a decent Autry outing, but I can't understand why they made Frog so incredibly useless and stupid....much more so than usual. The same, also could be said for Tom! There also is the overused cliche of the woman who takes an instant dislike for Gene....for no clear reason! But on the plus side, it has better songs than usual, a lot of action and Duke is an interesting character...and on balance it's worth your time.

This one you have to see just so you can say you watched the great singing cowboy and phenomenally wooden actor Gene Autry (the same guy who eight years later bravely popularized "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" when nobody else wanted anything to do with it). This little film features the righteous Autry singing fine renditions of the title song and "You Are My Sunshine," but the most fun are his duet with teenager Mary Lee doing "I'm an Old Cowhand" and her swingin' solo on "Swingin' Sam." Surprisingly topical is the film's story line about a ruthless mining magnate whose pollution is killing cattle. Autry was a major contributor to the American public's absurdly romanticized version of the Wild West, and this movie comes complete with shoot-outs, a cattle stampede, and a big band sound in an old saloon.

I saw the expanded 72-minute version, which includes a lot of songs, some of which probably got elided in the 60-minute edition. Anyway, it's a typically good Republic production with Gene. The action picks up in the latter half after a slower first part. The plot is surprisingly topical. A copper mine is dumping chemical wastes into stream water the ranchers use, poisoning the cattle. Gene wants to work out a deal whereby a new, safe disposal method is used. But some baddies have different ideas. On the action side is a big cattle stampede, a well-done barroom brawl, along with the usual hard riding and fast shooting. Frog's got some comedy relief, but also plays a more serious role with guns and fists. Also, Gene's little duet with a teenage Mary Lee is utterly charming. All in all, it's Gene's usual good pre-war mix of action, comedy, and song. Though I can't comment on the edited 60-minute version.