Quicksands (1923) Reviews

With a screenplay by Howard Hawks and direction by Jack Conway, this Mexican border tale couldn't possibly have been anything less than a vigorously rugged production. The all-star cast, including some of the best-known villains of the day (Noah Beery and Walter Long among them), adds to the film's manly tone. Richard Dix stars as a first lieutenant working under Colonel Patterson (J. Farrell McDonald), who is on the trail of some drug smugglers on the Mexican border. Colonel Patterson has been keeping watch over a cantina, where the goings-on seem to be particularly suspicious. The first lieutenant is in love with a girl (Helene Chadwick), whose father (Hardee Kirkland) works for the U.S. government. At the cantina, the lieutenant finds himself strangely attracted to a sultry Mexican girl, but when he finds her outfit hidden away in a deserted cabin, he realizes it was the Farrell girl. His discovery leads him to believe she is part of the smuggling ring. It turns out that she was actually helping her father, but both she and the lieutenant are captured by the smugglers. The U.S. cavalry comes to the rescue in a exciting climax. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi