La Rivière écarlate

I have always enjoyed movies made prior to 60s and King of the Pecos is no exception. As a kid growing up in the 50s my hero was the Lone Ranger which I couldn't help but notice that the Lone Ranger and John Wayne both worn white hats and had white horses. I guess that was the norm for the good guys in those days.

John Wayne's acting in King of the Pecos and his early movies in general were a little bland, but it kept my interest. The story line could also have been a little more interesting but that was kind of the way many early Westerns went.

I noticed that there were a lot of horse related accidents in this movie. There were horses falling to the ground throwing their riders, and even horses running into other horses when a wagon goes over the cliff. It looked like there was a good chance that they may have been hurt, and wonder how concerned the producers and writers were in those days.

If you like early Westerns and John Wayne in particular it's worth watching.

If you see this title and wonder what 'the Pecos' are, don't worry--I had the exact same thought. Apparently, the Pecos river begins in Eastern New Mexico and runs along the Texas border--emptying into the Rio Grande.

Unlike many of John Wayne's early B-movies, this one is not in the public domain and the copy I saw was very crisp and clean. It also appears to have a higher budget than his earlier films for tiny production companies such as Schlessinger. Now it might surprise you to see Wayne in such a film, but through the 1930s, practically all the films he made were B-westerns. It wasn't until after successes in films such as "Stagecoach" and "They Were Expendable" that Wayne graduated to A-pictures and became a top star.

The film begins with a typical baddie deciding that he's entitled to everyone's land. So, when one farmer won't sell out to him, the baddie and his henchmen kill the farmer and his wife--leaving the young boy an orphan. Naturally, the boy grows into a man (John Wayne) intent on exacting justice for his folks. Still, a decade later, the baddie is still forcing people off their land--giving them worthless promissory notes and controlling all the water. Now Wayne is a lawyer and plans on using the law to stop this jerk. Will the law be enough or will Wayne have to resort to his fists and guns? Considering that the baddie controls EVERYTHING, it's not a huge surprise where the film goes next.

The film is nicely polished and watchable. The only negative is that in many of Wayne's early films he had lovable sidekicks--like Gabby Hayes. Here, despite a great villain (Cy Kendall), the supporting cast for the good guys is a bit dull. I missed the usual sidekicks, such as Gabby Hayes, as the deaf guy and his friend were a bit dull. Also, while not exactly a negative, the plot is a bit too familiar--as Wayne and many other western heroes made similar films over the years.

By the way, in a sad note, you see a horse trip and throw its rider near the end (I think this was reused from an earlier film). This is sad, as to get this sort of stunt in the old days, they used trip wires to literally rip the legs out from under the horse--and usually broke the horse's legs in the process!! Fortunately, such things have long ago been outlawed--as it was a terrific waste and morally suspect!

John Wayne reprises many a role from his past as the man whom, as young boy, witnessed the murder of his parents. This time, it's the cattle baron "Stiles" (Cy Kendall) on whom he is fixated for revenge. He is now, though, a lawyer and so has decided to legitimately dismantle the extensive empire of his nemesis who would rather own the law than adhere to it. Initially dismissive of the young man's efforts, it's soon clear that In so doing he is risking life and limb, as well as those of the gal "Belle" (Muriel Evans). Nothing at all new here, just another 60 minute B-feature, but the Duke is on good form and Kendall makes for quite an effective, odious baddie. Joseph Kane keeps the pace hot, and there are plenty of brawls and galloping chases to keep it interesting, if hardly, challenging.

An American Western; A story set in the 1870s in Pecos River country, Texas, about a criminal lawyer from Austin who witnessed his parents murdered by a land developer when he was a child. When a judge won't find the powerful developer guilty of another crime ten years later, the lawyer resorts to other methods of retaliation. This film has a morality theme about the strong and rich exerting their power over the weak have-nots and the rough justice it inevitably invites. Cy Kendall gives the most effective performance as a the mean, stern, ruthless developer who meets his match in John Wayne's hero. Arthur Aylsworth and Herbert Haywood provide some light comedy relief but it wears a little thin midway through. This routine short feature has a fairly uninvolving love interest too but otherwise it has an interesting revenge plot and has some good shootouts throughout the hot pace.

King of the Pecos has a pre-Stagecoach John Wayne witnessing the murder of his parents by a no good land swindling dealer played by Cy Kendall. Of course he's a little kid at the time, but when he grows up he becomes a lawyer. But he's no ordinary lawyer, he can ride, and shoot, and fight with the best of them.

Kendall doesn't outrightly own a whole lot of the land he's swindled from folks. He just has phony options. Lawyer Wayne take him to court as well as deal with him in the usual John Wayne fashion.

This is far from the best western the Duke ever made, but it's pretty good for the B product he was stuck in at the time. And his legion of fans will love it.