Kansas en feu

Kansas Raiders was an opportunity for Universal-International to display some of its young contract players of the time to see who might have some career potential. In terms of career longevity all of them had varying degrees of success.

With Audie Murphy as young Jesse James and Richard Long as brother Frank with Tony Curtis as Kit Dalton and James Best and Dewey Martin as the Younger Brothers we see them all as young guns during the Civil War from Missouri all joining up with William Quantrill to raid, plunder, and pillage the west.

Quantrill has never really gotten a revisionist view from either history or Hollywood. He's a murdering skunk who's using the Civil War as cover for what he would be doing in civilian life anyway. But he's probably seen in the best Hollywood light possible in this film.

Brian Donlevy in this very confused story is as bad as they come, but he does take a kind of fatherly interest in all these young men who've come to join up with him. That's the problem with Kansas Raiders, Quantrill's character is so badly written you can't understand why all those young potential outlaws see in him.

Definitely for fans of the above named players only.

Kansas Raiders is a neat little film, with, one suspects, a higher budget than most Audie Murphy westerns. An interesting cast (I didn't realise Kit Dalton was from Da Bronx) and an ambitious and ambiguous premise make this a worthwhile way of passing the time.

I would have liked to have given Kansas Raiders a slightly higher rating but for the corny script. At no time could I imagine Jesse James, as played by the legendary Audie Murphy, as having a conscience. As I understand it, James was a cold blooded individual, where here, Murphy keeps having twinges of sympathy and romantic notions. Hollywood at it's most watered down. On the up side, it's beautifully shot with some rousing and quite brutal raids on the North by Quantrill's ragbag of followers from the South, during the American Civil War. There's a nice performance by Brian Donlevy as Quantrill and on looking at the cast as the movie starts, was quite taken by seeing Tony Curtis listed as the fifth name, here playing Kit Dalton, one of Murphy's pals. Other character actors of some fame are featured include Richard Long and James Best, and two actors who went on to have some measure of fame as leading men, Scott Brady and Richard Egan. Marguerite Chapman is the leading lady, although I've never heard of her before, and average for the period. I can always watch Murphy, who always underplays with an air of authority, and I think a better actor than some gave him credit for.

Frank and Jesse James, along with the Younger brothers and their pal Kit Dalton join Colonel Quantrill's guerrillas in order to fight the Union, but soon realize they've joined an army of bloodthirsty murderers.

This colorful studio B-picture is a decent enough showcase for war-hero Audie Murphy playing a teen-aged Jesse, as well as up-and-comers Tony Curtis and James Best, who aren't given enough to do.

As William Quantrill, Brian Donlevey gives the film's most interesting performance, portraying the rebel leader as cold, calculated, and quite mundane, all at the same time! Murphy's strange attraction to and utter revulsion for him make up most of the film's conflict.

One thing that disappoints though, is the throwaway nature of Scott Brady's character. Brady was always a pretty good character actor and a pretty mean heavy. Here, he leaves the picture way too early, long before the dramatic possibilities of his character are exhausted.

Finally, during the sacking of Lawrence, Kansas, the manager of the bank being robbed by the James gang rushes at Murphy exclaiming, "You little sh...!" before being interrupted. Was he going to say what I thought he was going to say? Did the actor's ad-libbing almost go too far?

"Kansas Raiders" was another of those fast moving little 80 minute westerns turned out by Universal. As was their custom, they liked to cast many of their up and coming young actors in various roles. This one is no exception.

The story takes place during the Civil War where five young riders, Jesse James (Audie Murphy), Frank James (Richard Long), Kit Dalton (Tony Curtis), Cole Younger (James Best) and James Younger (Dewey Martin), are looking to join up with Quantrill's Raiders.

They ride into Quanrill's camp and enlist in his service. Quantrill (Brian Donlevy) takes a shine to young Jesse, who in turn has an eye for Quantrill's woman, Kate Clarke (Margeurite Chapman). After Jesse kills Tate (David Wolfe), one of Quantrill's lieutenants in a knife fight, he is elevated to Tate's position. Jesse learns that Quantrill's other lieutenant, the brutal "Bloody Bill" Anderson (Scott Brady) kills without provocation.

The boys go on raids with the Raiders and Jesse sees the senseless brutality and killing of innocent people. He begins to have second thoughts. After the pillaging of Lawrence Kansas, the gang is pursued relentlessly and they decide to desert Quantrill. However Jesse and the boys remain loyal until.........................................

Murphy, Curtis, Brady, Long, Best and Martin all went on to varying degrees of success in the coming years. Donlevy had a long and successful career playing classy villains. Chapman here, looks too old for the boyish looking Murphy. This was Murphy's second film and he carries most of the picture. Richard Arlen and a young Richard Egan also appear as Union cavalry officers.

Director Ray Enright keeps the story moving and the raid sequences are particularly well done. The "glorious" Technicolor photography is equally stunning.

Audie Murphy, the most decorated US soldier in WWII, would make a career out of these fast paced little oaters over the next 15 years.