Forrest Burns Movies
- 1955
Tyrone Power is a Dutchman, and Susan Hayward is an Irish lass. If you believe that, then the rest of Untamed will go down a lot easier. Power is a Boer calvary commander attempting to bring peace to his South African homeland. He has an affair with Hayward, a married woman whose husband is killed during a Zulu attack. While rescuing the survivors, Power runs afoul of Dutch farmer Richard Egan, who insists that Hayward is his property. Egan turns bandit, targeting the diamond mines. Power is bound and determined to stop Egan--and, it is hoped, to clear the path towards lasting happiness with Hayward. The Untamed is a CinemaScope adaptation of a novel by Helga Moray. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tyrone Power, Susan Hayward, (more)
- 1955
The best thing that can be said about Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops is that it's better than the team's previous outing Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Set in 1912, the film casts Bud Abbott and Lou Costello as a couple of New Yorkers who are swindled out of their life savings by a crooked lout (Fred Clark). Pursuing the villain to Hollywood, the boys discover that the double-dealer is now posing as an autocratic Russian film director. To put A&C out of the way, the crook and his partner in crime (Lynn Bari) hire the boys as stunt men, intending to kill them off at the first opportunity. But the comic duo save the day when they enlist the aid of the Keystone Kops in capturing the fleeing villain, who has absconded with the studio payroll. Pretty dull stuff for most of its 78 minutes, Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops finally comes to life during the climactic chase, which is every bit as funny and thrilling as anything put together in the silent era. Though the film is rife with anachronisms, a measure of authenticity is achieved by such silent-era guest stars as Mack Sennett (who gets to throw a pie at Costello), Heinie Conklin, Herold Goodwyn and Hank Mann. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, (more)
- 1952
Fresh from radio and TV, "America's Favorite Family" stars in Here Come the Nelsons. That's right: this harmless little comedy is purely a vehicle for Ozzie, Harriet, David and Ricky. Since there must be a plot, the scriptwriters contrive to have Harriet uncharacteristically express jealousy over the presence of Ozzie's former schoolmate Barbara Schutzendorf (Barbara Lawrence). Meanwhile, Ozzie seethes when handsome young Charlie Jones (Rock Hudson) pays a bit too much attention to Harriet. To prove that he's still got what it takes, Ozzie competes against Charlie in a rodeo held in honor of the town's centennial (this sort of plot device usually happened to David or Ricky on the TV show). For no reason other than there are extra reels to go, little Ricky is kidnapped by a pair of bank robbers, played by Sheldon Leonard and Ed Max. Here Come the Nelsons was directed by Frederick De Cordova, whose other credits for Universal included such deathless entries as Bedtime for Bonzo. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ozzie Nelson, Harriet Nelson, (more)
- 1950
Gambling House is a low-key remake of the 1943 Cary Grant vehicle Mr. Lucky. Victor Mature stars as Marc Fury, a foreign-born gambler who is currently facing deportation. Always looking out for Number One, Fury seeks out a legal loophole so he can sidestep naturalization--and, incidentally, avoid paying his income tax. His civic responsibilities awakened by pretty social worker Lynn Warren (Terry Moore), Fury does an 180-degree turnaround, going so far as to shake down underworld kingpin Joe Farrow (William Bendix) for $50,000, which he promptly donates to a patriotic organization headed by Warren. A surprisingly melodramatic finale caps this easy-to-take yarn. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Victor Mature, Terry Moore, (more)
- 1950
Westerner Tim Holt and his sidekick Richard Martin are hired to act as border guards on the Rio Grande. This being a modern western (more or less), Holt is obliged to keep insurrectionists from smuggling machine guns into Mexico. The villainy this time around is in the grubby but formidable hands of Douglas Fowley and Tom Tyler; Cleo Moore, voluptuous leading lady of many a Hugo Haas "B" melodrama, is also around to rouse Holt's interest south of the border. A very modest western, Rio Grande Patrol has had its virtues blown all out of proportion by devotees of "cult" director Lesley Selander. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1950
Who is The Phantom Ruler? That's the question posed by the 12-part Republic serial The Invisible Monster. Using four illegal European aliens as his minions, the Phantom Ruler-possessed with the power of invisibility, as indicated by the title-goes on an unchecked crime spree. Insurance company investigator Richard Webb (later TV's Captain Midnight) is assigned to determine the identity of the Phantom Ruler, and to put the cuffs on him. Both Webb and his assistant Aline Towne are subjected to any number of life-threatening perils before justice is meted out in the final chapter. One of the best of the later Republic chapter plays, The Invisible Monster is also available in a 100-minute feature version, The Invisible Monster Strikes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1947
The fifth of seven "Red Ryder" westerns starring Allan Lane, Oregon Trail Scouts recounts how Red met his young sidekick, Little Beaver. Failing to acquire hunting rights on the Willamette Indian Reservation, evil Bill Hunter (Roy Barcroft) decides to kidnap Little Beaver (Robert Blake) and use the boy as leverage in future negotiations with Beaver's grandfather, Chief Running Fox (Frank Lackteen). Beaver's foster-father, The Judge (Earle Hodgins), is murdered in the ensuing fracas but the Indian boy finds a safe haven with fur trapper Red Ryder (Lane). Hunter and his men make another move to catch Little Beaver, however, but are once again foiled by Red, this time for good. Although pleased that his grandson is alive and well, Running Fox leaves it up to the child whether he wishes to stay with the tribe or remain with Red Ryder and his aunt, the Duchess (Martha Wentworth). Little Beaver chooses the latter option and a long-lasting friendship is established. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Martha Wentworth
In his first film after four-years of military duty, Gene Autry returns to a familiar setting: a modern western musical-comedy with accent on music and comedy. Crooning Jimmie Hodges' lilting "Someday You'll Want Me to Want You", cattle rancher Gene Autry is discovered by Hollywood talent scouts Sue Warner (Lynne Roberts) and Nelson "Nellie" Bly (Sterling Holloway), who convince him to give up ranching in favor of movie stardom. But unbeknownst to Gene only his voice is needed -- to flesh out cartoon character Ding Dong Donkey -- and the results prove highly embarrassing. Ashamed of her own part in the deception, Sue quits her job and obtains a position as Gene's ranch cook. Back at Paragon Pictures, a surreptitiously produced screen-test brings Autry's unquestionable talents to the attention of studio boss G.W. Rhodes (Pierre Watkin), who assigns former cartoon producer Jefferson Lang (Richard Lane) to lure the cattle rancher back to Hollywood. Desperate to get out of the animated movie business, Lang forms an alliance with Gene's sworn enemy, Big Gulliver (Ralph Sanford), but the resulting near-disaster is prevented in the nick of time by Sue and the ranch hands. Nearly wiped out, Gene signs a contract with Paragon and becomes a huge success as Hollywood's newest singing cowboy. Backed by the Cass County Boys, Autry performs Dick Thomas & Ray Freedman's title tune; "Oklahoma Hills" by Leon Guthrie; "Riding Double" by John Rox; and "Yours" by Gonzalo Roig and Jack Sherr. In accordance with a then new Republic Pictures policy, the latter is sung in both English and Spanish. A restored version of Sioux City Sue was released in 2001 by Gene Autry Entertainment. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gene Autry, Lynne Roberts, (more)
- 1946
This fast-paced western, geared entirely to the small-fry, was the first in Republic Pictures' long-running "Red Ryder" series to star Allan Lane. Lane had taken over from William Elliot, who had been promised A-westerns only by company president Herbert I. Yates. Ryder and his young Indian pal Little Beaver (Robert Blake) come to the aid of Ryder's stout aunt, "The Duchess" (Martha Wentworth), whose crusading efforts to open up a privately owned toll-road for all travellers has put the elderly rancher in danger from a powerful if corrupt civic leader, newspaper publisher Crawford (Barton MacLane). The second in the Lane "Red Ryder" series to be filmed, Santa Fe Uprising was substituted for a weaker entry in order to give the new Ryder the best possible chances for success. Wentworth, whose character name as depicted by series creator Fred Harman was, interestingly enough, "Martha 'The Duchess' Wentworth," replaced Alice Fleming in the role as Ryder's indomitable aunt. Lane, Blake, and Wentworth went on to star in six more "Red Ryder" westerns before the series moved over to Eagle-Lion (the former PRC) where the roles would be played by Jim Bannon, Don Kay Reynolds, and veteran B-western actress Marin Sais. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
