Le justicier masqué

Although beautifully shot, this United Artists feature is not quite as good as the first Lone Ranger big screen color outing of 1956 by Warner Brothers. But neither is it average, for the cinematic effort does go boldly where most westerns of the time dared not. Remarkably, this 1958 film takes on racial bigotry in a manner that was quite daring for a family western of this period. In point of fact, the writers of this feature should be applauded for going a step farther and making racial "passing" an integral part of an otherwise ordinary plot. How many dramatically significant family films of the time can one name that would dare to have dealt with such an emotionally explosive premise?

It should also be noted, Jay Silverheels for the first time, has a much greater speaking role and acting function than normally allowed for his character, Tonto. All in all, with solid acting from most of it's participants, this is not a bad western. On the whole, the film is thoroughly enjoyable, on several levels, for all members of the family.

Clayton Moore returns for one last big screen adventure as legendary vigilante The Lone Ranger, who attempts to uncover who is behind a series of murders and figure out why the villains are only interested in the medallions worn around the victims' necks.

As a fan of The Lone Ranger, and of movies that feature long lost civilisations and legendary cities, I figured I couldn't really go wrong with The Lone Ranger and The Lost City of Gold; sadly, the film fails to live up to its promise, thanks to a weak script that gives our masked hero very little to do except to gallop from one location to another (accompanied by faithful sidekick Tonto, played by Jay Silverheels), occasionally taking time out to pose as a Southern gentlemen in order to fool femme fatale Frances Henderson (Noreen Nash) into revealing her plans. Meanwhile, respectable town physician Dr. James Rolfe (Dean Fredericks), who wears one of the much sought after medallions, struggles to choose between his job and his sweetheart, redskin Paviva (exotic beauty Lisa Montell).

As for the fabled city of gold, it stays lost until the very end of the movie, when we are treated to a few seconds of a disappointing matte painting.

5.5 out of 10, generously rounded up to 6 for the surprisingly nasty demise (for a family film) of Henderson's partner in crime Ross Brady (Douglas Kennedy).

"The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold" was the second of two features made in the 50s starring Clayton Moore as The Lone Ranger and Jay Silverheels as Tonto. Based on the long running TV series, this film was also produced in color by Jack Wrather. As in the previous entry, there is an excellent cast of veteran western performers.

The "lost city" of the title is an old Spanish city of gold hidden away on Indian tribal lands. There is a five piece amulet that when assembled, will show the location of the treasure. The holders of the various pieces begin to turn up murdered by a gang of hooded riders and its up to our heroes to save the day.

The baddies are led by Fran Henderson (Noreen Nash) whose chief henchman Ross Brady (Douglas Kennedy) does all of the dirty work. Finally, there is only one missing piece. The Lone Ranger disguises himself as a southern gentleman bounty hunter in order to gain Henderson's confidence. The old Chief (John Miljan) laments for his missing grandson who turns out to be the town doctor (Norman Frederic). Finally, The Lone Ranger and Tonto sort things out and deal with the villains.

In addition to those mentioned, Lisa Monteil appears as an Indian maiden, Ralph Moody as the Padre, Charles Watts as the corrupt sheriff and Lane Bradford and Bill Henry as Kennedy's henchmen.

Clayton Moore had been around since the late 30s, appearing in many "B" westerns and starring in several serials. By the time this film was made, he had become so identified with the Lone Ranger, that he never made another feature film. Jay Silverheels similarly came up through the "B" movie ranks and appeared in several Universal westerns in the 50s and the Glenn Ford western "Santee" as late as 1973.

This second full-length Lone Ranger feature doesn't measure up to the 1956 classic but is a fine film with enough rough and tumble action and moves along at a good clip. The Ranger looks into a series of mysterious murders which have a sinister pattern to them with peaceful Indians being the victims of a gang of hooded killers. There are more killings and violence usually associated with Lone Ranger adventures and the film has an undercurrent of racial insensitivity, the comments of which are sprinkled throughout the screenplay. The Ranger uses disguises as only he can to piece together clues and expose the outlaw band and bring them to justice. Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels star in a colorful presentation that shows the desert and cactus country of old Tucson to good advantage. The music score is good but the familiar William Tell Overture theme is nudged aside by vocals that are interesting but lack the flourish and beauty of the Ranger's traditional theme.

After being surprised by the production quality of the first theatrical feature for the Lone Ranger, this one was a let down. Yes, it does offer some strong scenes with powerful dialog - especially those centered around the ugly theme of racial intolerance.

What is missing here is the strong direction and overall tight script of the first, as well as the colorful music score. 'Lost City of Gold' saunters along with a typical television approach, but with the addition of some questionable violence (typical of the late 50s onwards) to spice it up for so called 'adults'. The Australian censors had a field day bringing it in line with it's family origins, but perhaps they too might have been a tad over enthusiastic. Les Baxter attempted a new arrangement of the famous Rossini theme and mostly succeeded with a new colorful orchestration. Tonto is utilized to better advantage with more good character and action scenes than the Lone Ranger, but then he gets to shine in a couple of situations with a neat disguise. Some will still enjoy this ride, but others be warned.