Le Traquenard des Sans-Loi

I did not expect a so good script from a western produced by the greedy, stingy Sam Katzman, who offered us far far worst in the past, and even since this Fred S Sears' stuff. Good script, maybe xanks to western novelist Louis L'Amour which it is inspired from. Not a really new topic, but fairly well done, with a good characters symphony. Rory Calhoun excellent but maybe a most known villain would have been welcome, such as Leo Gordon, Robert Wilke or Neville Brand. So, try to watch this movie, it is a good time waster for western buffs, fast paced, with no length and not particularely diminished by the Sam Katzman's trademark, that I usually recognize at first sight. Here, Sam Katzman's name is only shown on the opening credits.

Rory calhoun is blaine, who takes up the cause of the ranchers who are getting run off or killed for their land. Since their land was never properly filed, murdering gangs are trying to grab the land that the owners have developed and worked. And of course, there's a mountain lion prowling around as well. Max baer senior (jethro's dad, the boxer! ) is gus. Co-stars susan cummings, ray teal. It's a pretty good western. Thieves, threats, shooting, horse riding. All the ingredients. Calhoun was king of the westerns, but he was also betty grable's forest ranger in how to marry a millionaire. Directed by fred sears, who died young of a heart attack at age 44. He died the same year this was released. Baer also died young at 50, just two years after this film story by louis l'amour.

The cinematography, music, storyline, sets & scenery, and plot remind me of the later episodes of Gunsmoke. Definitely 1950s "B", with television type lighting and a hidden trap door to the fake basement. However, the mostly familiar cast adds strength, and the depth of their characterization makes this western very interesting & watchable. I recommend it when there's no great "A" film available. The bad guys are not too evil, and the good guys are not saints. Snappy dialog may be in short supply, but the typical cowboy clichés are few and far between, and there's no lack of action here! Incidentally, this movie falls into the category of westerns made before John Wayne (or spaghetti), eccentric wiseacres, and every scene a colorful climax were box-office requirements. Follow the intelligent & well-written story and you realize that B&W is the perfect genre for Rory Calhoun with a 3-day beard and two six-guns blazing. My only complaint: too much gray and not enough black or white. I miss "High Noon".

Like I have with most of the Western movies I've seen, I watched the preview for this film on the Westerns Channel and decided that since it was on next and I had nothing else to do, I watched it. Rory Calhoun leads the screen and he did a fine job as Mike 'Utah' Blaine. This movie has the same kind of plot you'd expect from the old 50s B-grade Westerns, however, I say that this one is better than some of the others. The actors are a little bit better than some I've seen in other movies like this. And also, this movie has some pretty decent gunfights for its age. I found this movie to be a pretty enjoyable black-and-white Western.

The drab black & white photography looks more redolent of a couple of TV episodes pasted together than a cinema film in this harsh, strangely underpopulated Louis L'Amour adaptation starring Rory Calhoun with a robust female presence in the form of Susan Cummings and Angela Stevens (the former mainly a TV actress but with one striking big screen credit a couple of years later in the form of Sam Fuller's 'Verboten!').