Stampede

William Millman's note on his ranch is come due. He has to sell his horses or have the place repossessed. But no one has offered to buy then. At least until Charles Starrett (in his sixth starring western) and his brother, Arthur McNeil come. But McNeil is shot and the money stolen. So it's up to Starrett and Millman's daughter, Finis Barton, to figure out who is sabotaging matters.

This Columbia western was shot in British Columbia under the direction of Ford Beebe: part of the effort to meet British Quota Quickie laws. That's why the only other performer whose name I recognize is J. P. McGowan as a neighboring rancher. But there's a nice story, some decent acting, the editing pace is brisk, and the woody parts of British Columbia are a nice change from the usual Southern California location shooting. DPs William Beckway and George Meehan offer some interesting perspectives for their compositions.

Stampede features Charles Starrett before he did the Durango Kid series. Reading Les Adams' plot summary, I discovered that Stampede was filmed in Canada. Perhaps that is why the story is supposed to take place in Montana. The outdoor scenery is beautiful.

Charles Starrett was a good actor, but some of the later Durango Kid movies were so cheaply made that they spoiled any talent on the screen. With its typical western plot, Stampede was well done within the context of B movies. At times the movie does not look cheap, and the cast was excellent. Starrett played a few scenes with a seriousness that I have not seen in other western heroes. At other times the movie feels like it was on a budget. As the story reaches its climax the movie feels a little more like a standard issue western. It was, but it tried not to be.

There was little to complain about, but I feel that the ending left at least one loose end. One of the conspirators, Brooks, did not get his punishment at the end. He was just left out of the action. We just "know" he was found out and treated accordingly. Apparently the rule about the townsman in the suit going to jail at the end wasn't written in stone yet, and it was already 1936!

This film essentially begins with a rancher by the name of "John Milford" (William Millman) in desperate need of money in order to pay off a loan he had made not too long ago. Yet even though he has a large number of horses he would like to sell, another businessman named "Matt Stevens" (J. P. McGowan) wants to prevent him from doing that in order to force Milford into bankruptcy, thereby allowing Stevens to acquire Milford's ranch in the process. That being the case, Stevens has secretly conspired to keep all prospective buyers away from Milford's ranch by using whatever means he has at his disposal--including murder. So, when he learns that a man named "Larry Carson" (Charles Starrett) is coming their way to buy some of these horses, he quickly dispatches a couple of his ranch hands to ambush him along the way. The problem, however, is that they accidentally shoot Larry Carson's brother instead--and this leads to serious problems for all concerned. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this turned out to be a pretty good Western, all things considered. Admittedly, having been produced in 1936, it is somewhat dated, and the picture quality suffered a bit as a result. But even so, I enjoyed it for the most part, and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.