FILM REVIEW OF "THE LEGEND OF THE LONE RANGER (1981)

Scenic locales, gorgeous cinematography, superb set design, atmospheric art direction, and a first-class supporting cast cannot salvage "Monte Walsh" director William A. Fraker's lame western "The Legend of the Lone Ranger" with a impassive Klinton Spilsbury cast as the Masked Man. Spilsbury is a tall, lean gent with a strong chin and a dashing profile. In other words, he would have made a great Marlboro Man, but he conveys no sense of presence. Not only is this western an origins epic establishing the genesis of the Lone Ranger, but it is also an abduction opus since the hero must rescue President Ulysses S. Grant from the villainous Major Bartholomew 'Butch' Cavendish (Christopher Lloyd of "Back to the Future") who attacks his train. You would think President Grant would have surrounded himself with an army of soldiers as his bodyguards, but they are nowhere to be seen.

 When we get our first glimpse of the Lone Ranger, John Reid is an adolescent who saves a young Tonto from a gang of ruthless ruffians. No sooner has young Reid saved Tonto from these villains than he scrambles back to his home to find these same dastards attacking his ranch. They gun down both his mother and father in cold blood, and later his big brother packs him off to Detroit. Of course, Detroit would be the perfect place since the original "Lone Ranger" radio series aired there on WXYZ in the first place in 1933. Later, after he has grown up and graduated from law school, he visits his brother, Captain Dan Reid (John Bennett Perry of "Independence Day"),and they ride off in pursuit of the gunmen who hanged a crusading newspaper publisher (John Hart of "The Lone Ranger") in the dusty town of Del Rio, Texas. It seems that Lucas Striker has printed some unkind words about Cavendish, and he repays the favor by dispatching his hooligans to slip a noose around his neck.

The ambush at Bryant's Gap—one of the few events that distinguish this horse opera-- is staged with gusto. Cavendish's men launch wagons laden with explosives off promontories at either end of the gap and cut the Rangers off from escaping while his army of riflemen massacre them. They use a Gatling gun to mow down the poor lawmen. In this version of the legend, Cavendish is no longer an ordinary outlaw but a former U.S. Army officer court-marshaled by Grant. Cavendish plans to establish his own kingdom in Texas and intends to use Grant as his bargaining chip to realize his dream. Christopher Lloyd plays Cavendish as a tight-lipped martinet, and he does some strange things himself. When he orders the execution of two of his henchmen (Ted Gehring and Buck Taylor of TV's "Gunsmoke"), he has them blindfolded and seated in chairs before a firing squad. Believe it or not, one of Cavendish's other henchmen is portrayed by no less than Tom Laughlin of "Billy Jack" fame.

 

This 98-minute horse opera perished at the box office partially because of an ill-fated public relations campaign that stripped the original Lone Ranger--Clayton Moore--of his mask. After he finished making "The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of God," Moore appeared in various commercials with sidekick Jay Silverheels and attended movie conventions where he signed autographs. The was the primary way that the former Masked Man generated revenue for himself and his family in his later years. Something must have gone wrong in the process of making the movie because the producers used John Hart, who took over the role momentarily after a contract dispute. Particularly objectionable is the reliance upon a balladeer (country singer Merle Haggard) to provide musical narration that serves no purpose. We know everything that we need to know and then here comes Merle underlining what we already know.  

The problems with the script are numerous. A relationship between John Reed and Amy Striker has its moments when they swap spit, but it goes no farther. Instead of the outlaws killing Amy's father, they should have killed her accidentally when she got in their way. This would have ended the romance and given the Lone Ranger another reason to ride the back trails for justice. The scene where the Masked Man gallops alone into Del Rio to rescue Tonto from a hangman's noose is inferior. He faces little opposition from the townspeople. Although the finale with the Lone Ranger and Tonto infiltrating Cavendish hidden fort turns out to explosive stuff, this entire scene makes it too easy for our heroes who encounter no trouble. The screenplay includes historical figures such as Buffalo Bill Cody, Wild Bill Hickok, and General George A. Custer. Jason Robards is good as Grant, but the story is formulaic. 

If you didn't know any better, "The Legend of the Lone Ranger" might make a tolerable rainy day movie. Michael Horse plays Tonto, but the two generate little sense of camaraderie. "Your sins will be paid for in the fires of hell," proclaims Grant when he sentences Cavendish to prison. He could have been the idiots who took away Clayton Moore's mask and came up with this oater. Stacy Keach's younger brother James dubbed Klinton Spilsbury's dialogue, but not even he can cry "Hi, Yo-Silver" with any enthusiasm. I grew up watching Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels ride across the small screen as well as the big screen in "The Lone Ranger" and "The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold," and both of these outings surpass this technically elegant looking sagebrusher. The DVD release of this inferior western is just as lame because it is presented in the Pan & Scan format until the end credits roll and the images appear in widescreen letterb0xed format. 

FILM REVIEW OF "BRAND OF THE DEVIL" (1944)

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“Brand of the Devil” qualifies as a second-rate horse opera about three heroic Texas Rangers working undercover. They are trying to flush a gang of rustlers out that have been preying on a defenseless female rancher.  “Randy Rides Alone” director Harry L. Fraser helmed this thoroughly ordinary nag from a screenplay by Elmer Clifton. If you’re counting, “Brand of the Devil” is the fourteenth entry in the long-running PRC Texas Rangers franchise.  PRC produced 22 of these epics.  Incidentally, not only was "Brand of the Devil" (** out of ****) the last Texas Rangers movie starring Jim Newill but also it was his final film.  This saddle-sore sagebrusher unfolds with this noble foreword: "Dedicated to the law officers of the Old West, who led the fight for law and order in the pioneer days of the country in 1880."  Actually, our heroes have a rather easy time turning the tables on these owlhoots. Essentially, the good guys know their quarry because they have been investigating him. Nevertheless, the chief adversary is wily enough to last 57 minutes.  Texas Rangers Jim Steele, Tex Wyatt, and Panhandle Perkins appear separately in the town of Willow Springs so they don't look like friends.  Fraser establishes the identity of the villain early on while our heroes align themselves with the rustlers-plagued, damsel-in-distress.   Nothing spectacular occurs in “Brand of the Devil.” The most unusual thing occurs when the villains frame the frontier gal for rustling. One of her own treacherous ranch hands dresses up in drag like Molly. The owner of the cattle being rustled spots him and jumps to a hasty conclusion.  Earlier, Tex and Jim encountered him, and he asked them to serve as witnesses that Molly was rustling.

“Brand of the Devil” opens as one of our heroes, Jim Steele (Jim Newill of “Spook Town”), attempts to infiltrate the gang of rustlers. The tight-lipped  chieftain, duded-up Jack Varno (I. Stanford Jolley of "Backlash"), refuses to hire him, even after Jim triumphed over an opponent in a bar room brawl.  Meanwhile, Panhandle Perkins (Guy Wilkerson of “To Kill a Mockingbird”) masquerades as "Branding Iron" McGee.  He claims he can forge branding irons that no rustlers can duplicate. Later, angry rancher Molly Dawson (Ellen Hall of "Voodoo Man") storms into the Gold Ace Saloon in Willow Springs.  She claims Duke Cutter (Reed Howes of "The Walking Hills") has purloined her white stallion. Molly starts throwing liquor bottles at the bar. Varno urges his henchmen to restrain Molly before she destroys his entire stock. Our gallant protagonists, Tex Wyatt (Dave O'Brien of “Reefer Madness”) and Steele, intervene for Molly.  Varno's gunmen tangle with Tex and Jim.  Adroitly, Jim blows the gun out of Panhandle's fist and then blasts out the saloon lights out. Jim is incredibly adept with his revolver. Molly, Tex, and Jim skedaddle into the night.  After Molly, Jim, and Tex have cleared out, Varno discovers a card with the mark of the devil's brand on it. Varno supervises a band of gunmen rustling beef in the territory.  The sight of the card unnerves Varno since the devil's brand serves as the emblem of his gang.  Moreover, only Varno and his three partners know about the symbol. The actual symbol is a white devil’s pitchfork against a black background. Mind you, the Texas Rangers aren’t advertising their official presence until they feel that it is necessary. Eventually, the villains to learn about their true identity, but not before Panhandle manages to infiltrate their ranks.  

The next morning our heroine rides back into Willow Springs. She locates her stolen white stallion along with its saddle in the stable where Duke had stashed him the night before for Varno to inspect. Panhandle watches with concern as Molly saddles her horse.  He suggests she contact the authorities.  "A lot of good the law does," Molly retorts defiantly, "Why in two months rustlers have taken most of my cattle.  I've complained and even written to the Rangers asking for help, and do they show up, they do not. From now on I'm taking the law into my own hands," Molly informs Panhandle as she appropriates her stolen horse.  "And if they want to stop me, just let them try."  No sooner has Molly ridden off on her horse than Varno and his henchmen pursue her.  Tex and Jim gallop up just as Varno and company have halted Molly.  "You two seem mighty interested in other people's business," Varno observes.  Varno's men invite Tex to look at the brand on the stallion. Tex admits the animal could belong to anybody because it has two brands. Molly pleads with our heroes. "There's not much anybody can do unless you can prove he is yours," Jim concedes.   "I'd like to give you two a friendly tip," Varno warns them.  "Keep out of my business, and you'll live longer." At this point, Tex and Jim have become Varno's mortal enemies. "You know," Tex states, "I didn't like you when I first saw you and right now I like you less because I think that horse belongs to Miss Dawson." Tex knocks Varno to the ground with a single blow when he tries to draw on him. Varno is pretty fed up with our heroes now and threatens them. "After that warning, we'll be sure to keep our backs away from you." Reluctantly, Tex allows Varno to ride away on Molly's steed.  Of course, Molly isn't happy with the outcome.  "You'll get your horse back," Jim assures her.  "You bet I will," she  vows,"but after what's just happened, I can see it won't be through you two."

 After our heroes have a rendezvous with Panhandle, they ride up onto a valley where they meet another fellow, Jeff Palin, who explains that his cattle are being rustled.  He gives Tex a set of field glasses to view the rustling.  From a distance, it appears that a woman is supervising the rustling when in fact it is Molly's ranch hand Henry Wilburn (Budd Buster) doing it.  Our heroes run down Wilburn and they give him to Panhandle. Meanwhile, the sheriff arrests Molly and puts her in jail.  Varno has a conference with his cronies and they pick cards to see who will "silence" Molly.  Bucko gets the task but cannot do it so Varno takes it.  Later that evening, Varno shoots into the jail cell that Molly occupies.  Afterward, Varno learns from the sheriff that Tex and Jim are Texas Rangers and they have taken Molly into custody.  Varno decides to set a trap for the Rangers and uses Panhandle to set it.  When our heroes show up at a cabin in the old cottonwoods, Bucko is waiting for them.  Tex and Jim go after the cattle while Panhandle rides off to protect Molly.  Bucko catches our heroes at the cabin while Varno and his henchmen chase Panhandle after he exits Molly's ranch. Varno leaves the chore of disposing of the Rangers to Bucko.  Up till now Bucko has been portrayed as a straightforward villain but he reveals his buffoonish nature when he is left alone with the Rangers to kill them. 

 Ostensibly, this low-budget, lightweight western is about defending the weak from the wolves.  Just as the heroes have standards, so do the villains.  When Varno asks his hired gunman Bucko Lynn (perennial western heavy Charles King) to "silence" Molly, Bucko balks.  He has no qualms about killing guys, but he draws the line at the opposite sex. Elmer Clifton's screenplay is satisfactory up until Bucko is left with Tex, Jim, and Panhandle tied up and ready to die.  The cretinous Bucko decides to strum a guitar while Jim warbles a lackluster version of "Old Paint."  So engrosses is Bucko in the melody that he keeps his eyes shut while Panhandle and Tex work their way out of their bonds and jump him.  Sadly, "Brand of the Devil" is available only as a scratchy public domain print.  This lame sagebrusher is strictly a potboiler, though Wilkerson is pretty funny.