Saul Elkins Movies
- 1951
Raton Pass is a curious western based on the rules of Community Property. Dennis Morgan and Patricia Neal portray a recently married husband and wife, each of whom owns half of a huge cattle ranch. Neal is a tad more ambitious than her husband, and with the help of a little legal chicanery she tries to obtain Morgan's half of the spread. He balks, so she hires a few gunslingers to press the issue. In a 1951 western, the greedy party usually came to a sorry end; Raton Pass adheres strictly to tradition. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Morgan, Patricia Neal, (more)
- 1951
Randolph Scott stars as a former Confederate Army officer known only as "Sugarfoot." Hoping to start life anew in Arizona, Sugarfoot manages to incur the wrath of territorial bigwigs Jacob Stint (Raymond Massey) and Asa Goodhue (Hugh Sanders), who've carried a grudge against him since the Civil War. Fortunately he also gets on the good side of saloon-hall singer Reva Cairn (Adele Jergens), which if nothing else affords him comfort during the plot's darker moments. Somewhere along the way, Sugarfoot loses Reva's affections, and nearly loses his life to Stint and Goodhue's hired guns. The aggressively mittel-European S.Z. Sakall is featured in the cast as a local merchant named Don Miguel. Based on a novel by Clarence Buddington Kelland, Sugarfoot was renamed Swirl of Glory when released to television, to avoid confusion with the TV series Sugarfoot--which, in turn, was based on the 1954 feature Boy From Oklahoma. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Randolph Scott, Adele Jergens, (more)
- 1950
With Return of the Frontiersman, Warner Bros. continued to test the acting abilities of their singing star Gordon MacRae. While he does get to warble two songs, MacRae plays it straight for the most part in his role as Logan Barrett, the son of hard-bitten sheriff Sam Barrett (Jack Holt). Villain Larrabee (Rory Calhoun) frames Logan for a series of robberies, forcing the sheriff to lead a posse after his own son. Our Hero is aided and abetted by the daughter (Julie London, who surprisingly doesn't get to sing) of the town sawbones. With the exceptions of Jack Holt and Rory Calhoun, most of the supporting cast -- Fred Clark, Matt McHugh et. al. -- seem slightly out of place in western garb. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gordon MacRae, Julie London, (more)
- 1950
The Randolph Scott western Colt .45 was retitled for TV so as not to be confused with the TV series of the same name. The new title, Thundercloud, misleads the audience into expecting a Native American epic. Actually the film involves a gun salesman (Randolph Scott) whose sample case of Colt 45's is stolen by an outlaw (Zachary Scott--no relation to Randolph). Accused of being a member of the outlaw gang when they start using the Colts in their holdups, the salesman is obliged to track down the crooks. Thundercloud, or Colt .45, represented the last film of supporting actor Alan Hale Sr. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Randolph Scott, Ruth Roman, (more)
- 1950
Gold-mine operator "Boss" Kruger (Raymond Massey) has certainly earned his nickname. A frontier dictator, Kruger runs his mine like a prison colony; indeed, most of the workers are fugitives from justice, given dubious "protection" by Kruger. Two of the laborers are Judith Burns (Ruth Roman) and Bob Peters (Dane Clark), both on the lam from the law. Judith and Bob befriend lawyer Milburn (Robert Douglas), who seeks to prove that Kruger is a murderer. A bit too talky for the tastes of most western fans, Barricade redeems itself with a spectacularly violent conclusion. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ruth Roman, Dane Clark, (more)
- 1950
This Side of the Law stars Kent Smith as David Cummins, a man caught up in an epic subterfuge. At the behest of attorney Philip Cagle (Robert Douglas), Cummins poses as a man who has been missing for seven years and is presumed dead. Cagle insists that this deception is necessary to protect a huge estate from avaricious relatives. Cummins finds himself heir to a far-from-loving wife, a resentful brother and a seductive sister-in-law. That's right: there's much more to this than meets the eye. Top-billed Viveca Lindfors brings a bit of texture to the otherwise two-dimensional character of Cummins' "wife." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Viveca Lindfors, Kent Smith, (more)
- 1949
Virginia Mayo is Flaxy Martin in this complicated Warner Bros. melodrama. Flaxy is a bad girl but good company, especially when she's around criminal attorney Walter Colby (Zachary Scott). When Colby begins to have second thoughts about his gangster cohorts, Flaxy arranges a murder frame, forcing the attorney to go on the run. The bulk of the film is a thrill-packed chase teaming Colby with the film's resident Good Girl, Nora Carson (Dorothy Malone). Also figuring into the proceedings is Elisha Cook Jr., playing his usual shifty little creep. Director Richard L. Bare had only recently moved up from the "Joe McDoakes" comedy shorts to features when he guided Flaxy Martin with skill and aplomb. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Virginia Mayo, Zachary Scott, (more)
- 1949
House Across the Street was the second remake of the 1933 Paul Muni starrer Hi, Nellie. The original's satirical jibes against columnist Walter Winchell are downplayed in favor of undistilled concentration on the plot. Crusading newspaperman Dave Joslin (Wayne Morris) is kicked downstairs to the "Advice to the Lovelorn" column when he manages to offend a politically powerful racketeer. While pretending to stick to his job, Joslin conducts his own investigation to bring the villain to justice. Bruce Bennett, Warner Bros' busiest general-purpose actor (next to John Ridgely, that is!) brings subtlety and shading to the two-dimensional role of the racketeer. Likewise, Janis Paige avoids cliches as an intrepid girl reporter. One of the shortest top-of-the-bill Warners releases of 1949, House Across the Street clocks in at 69 minutes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wayne Morris, Janis Paige, (more)
- 1949
Zachary Scott uncharacteristically plays for laughs in Warner Bros.' One Last Fling. Scott plays Larry Pearce, the dullish husband of Olivia Pearce (Alexis Smith). When Larry enters into a perfectly innocent business arrangement with gorgeous Gay Winston (Veda Ann Borg), Olivia misunderstands, as does Gay's pugnacious husband Victor (Douglas Kennedy). The ensuing complications are fairly predictable, indicating perhaps that the screwball-comedy format was wearing thin in 1949. Some of the best moments are provided by stalwart supporting players Ann Doran and Jim Backus. Also featured in the cast is legendary radio humorist Ransom Sherman, who never did find a suitable screen vehicle. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alexis Smith, Zachary Scott, (more)
- 1949
British actor Robert Douglas stars in the Warner Bros. crime melodrama Homicide. Douglas plays police lieutenant Michael Landers, whose suspicions are aroused when the only witness to an accidental killing is found dead, an apparent suicide. Though the case is officially closed, Landers investigates in his off-hours. He soon uncovers evidence of an illegal wire-service gang, operated by an outwardly affable fellow named Andy (Robert Alda). Landers finds an unexpected ally in the shapely form of cigarette girl Jo Ann Rice (Helen Westcott). Old-timer Monte Blue has a juicy supporting role as a desert sheriff. Writer William Sackheim based his Homicide screenplay on his own story "Night Beat." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Douglas, Helen Westcott, (more)
- 1949
The story of the outlaw Younger Brothers is duly Hollywoodized in this Technicolor western. Wayne Morris, Bruce Bennett, Robert Hutton and James Brown star as Cole, Jim, Johnny and Bob Younger, who as the film begins have just been released from jail. They try hard to follow the straight and narrow path, but when ex-Pinkerton man Ryckman (Fred Clark) launches a campaign of vengeance against the boys, out come the six-guns. One of Ryckman's schemes is to use female bandit Kate (Janis Paige) to lure the Youngers back into a life of crime. The villain very nearly succeeds, but the boys are saved by the beneficence of the screenwriters. Prominent in the cast of The Younger Brothers is Alan Hale, who showed up in practically every Warner Bros. western made between 1939 and 1950. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wayne Morris, Janis Paige, (more)
- 1948
In this drama, a killer and a driver accidently run over a girl while fleeing a murder scene. The pursuing detective is sure that the driver is guilty, but he cannot prove it. Instead of pressing his case, the detective has the driver begin caring for the victim who received a massive blood clot from the accident and does not have long to live. As time passes, the crook finds himself falling in love with her. To raise the needed money for her care, he starts blackmailing the killer. Eventually, the driver marries his victim but his happiness is short-lived. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dane Clark, Geraldine Brooks, (more)
- 1948
In this melodrama a boxer-turned-minister counsels a troubled young fighter who is framed for murder after refusing to take a dive in an upcoming bout. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wayne Morris, Lois Maxwell, (more)
- 1948
Despite the film's title, socialite Linda Vickers (Virginia Mayo) isn't smart enough to steer clear of the gambling den operated by gangster Marty Fain (Bruce Bennett). Forced to join Fain's operation, Linda gets mixed up with duplicity and murder-not to mention a torrid romance with the gangster chief. Interestingly enough, Fain is the more sympathetic of the two leading characters. He seems like a basically nice guy stuck with not-so-nice associates, while Linda comes off as surfacey and selfish. In the end, however, it must be proven to the satisfaction of the censors that crime doesn't pay, especially when the life of Linda's brother "Doc" (Robert Hutton) is at stake. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Virginia Mayo, Bruce Bennett, (more)
- 1939
A disruptive Annapolis naval cadet refuses to tow the line and so gets booted out of the prestigious academy. Later, he takes to designing speedboats. They are innovative and soon the Navy comes a-knocking in hopes that he will design a fast and easily maneuverable boat to carry torpedos. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Dunn, Rochelle Hudson, (more)
- 1939
Pat O'Brien is his usual likably obnoxious self in the Warner Bros. newspaper yarn Off the Record. While trying to smash a numbers racket, star reporter Breezy Elliot (O'Brien) takes tough young numbers-runner Mickey Fallon (Bobby Jordan) under his wing. The kid gets a job as a copy boy, earning the enmity of one and all because of his inability to keep his fists to himself. Mickey redeems himself-and, by extension, Breezy-when he engineers the capture of his gangster brother Joe Fallon (Alan Baxter). The romantic angle is handled by Breezy's gal Friday Jane Morgan (Joan Blondell), who eventually agrees to marry the hero only if he adopts the troublesome Mickey as his son (gee, things were so much simpler in the movies!) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pat O'Brien, Joan Blondell, (more)
- 1938
In this prison drama, a female robber is sent to prison. She is the only one in the gang who knows the location of the loot and so the rest of them are anxious to free her. One of the desperate robbers frames the warden's daughter for murder so he can blackmail the prison leader. It doesn't work and the woman remains incarcerated. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wyn Cahoon, Scott Colton, (more)
- 1938
This RKO Radio "expose" film is loosely based on the career of evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson, who'd previously gotten the a clef treatment in Capra's The Miracle Woman (1931). Sally Eilers stars as ex-nightclub singer Connie Vinson, an enthusiastic but hypocritical Bible-thumper who turns her ministry into a profit-making business enterprise. Unlike McPherson, who ran her operation with a reasonable degree of honesty, Connie stages a series of phony miracles to separate her wealthier followers from their family jewels. The fact that she has retained a few gangster pals from the old days places Connie under the scrutiny of bunco-squad detective Cramer (Jonathan Hale). Our heroine ultimately mends her ways when she actually heals a crippled client, whereupon she works hand in glove with the cops to get the goods on her crooked cronies. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sally Eilers, Lee Bowman, (more)
- 1936
En route from Honolulu to Los Angeles by steamship, Charlie Chan (Warner Oland) is pressed into action when a fellow passenger is killed. The dead man was a prominent horse breeder, whose favorite stallion has been entered in the Santa Anita handicap. At first glance, it appears as though the victim has been kicked to death by his own horse, but further investigation reveals the complicity of a crooked gambling ring. The excitement of the "photo finish" climax is amplified when Charlie and Number One Son Lee (Keye Luke) are kidnapped by the gamblers -- and the murderer still hasn't been revealed! The best line in Charlie Chan at the Race Track occurs at the end, when Lee excitedly bursts into a room with a vital clue that Charlie has already revealed, whereupon Mr. Chan murmurs: "Please -- save clue for next case." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Warner Oland
- 1936
Otto Preminger was able to make his directorial debut on Under Your Spell solely because Darryl Zanuck couldn't care less about the film's quality; it was a contractual obligation film for Lawrence Tibbett, who was proving a washout as a film star. In Spell, Tibbett plays Anthony Allen, a world famous singer who has grown tired of the trials that come with celebrity. Seeking to avoid the spotlight, ceaseless publicity and determined fans, Allen enlists the aid of his butler in secretly escaping to a ranch in Mexico. Allen's manager (Gregory Ratoff) is understandably upset with his client's behavior and so sets in motion a scheme of his own. He contacts celebrity-hunting heiress Cynthia Drexel (Wendy Barrie) and lets her know where to find the reluctant star. Drexel quickly hunts down her prey and sticks to him like glue. Although Allen initially is exasperated with her, he soon finds himself attracted to her. In addition to arias from The Marriage of Figaro and Faust, Tibbert performs Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz's "Amigo," "My Little Mule Wagon" and the title song. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lawrence Tibbett, Wendy Barrie, (more)
- 1936
Star for a Night is Lady for a Day in reverse. Jane Darwell plays Frau Lind, a blind Austrian woman who comes to the United States to visit her three children Nina (Claire Trevor), Anna (Evelyn Venable) and Fritz (Dean Jagger). The three siblings have written regularly to their mother, claiming that they've all become fabulously successful. The unvarnished truth is that "Broadway musical star" Nina is a minor-league chorus girl; "famed concert pianist" Anna sells sheet music in a department store; and "powerful automobile manufacturer" Fritz drives a taxi. They cook up a scheme so as not to spoil their mother's illusions, but Mom has a big surprise for them! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claire Trevor, Jane Darwell, (more)
- 1936
Mercy killing is the primary topic of this crime drama when a doctor, who is disabled after a terrible accident begs his student to give him an overdose of pain killers so that he can die peacefully. The young doctor does not. Trouble ensues after the young medico falls for his mentor's wife. Soon the older doctor dies of a drug overdose. Naturally the young man is accused of the murder and must go to trial. In the film's surprise ending, it is revealed that the crippled man, did indeed kill himself. He did it by secretly hoarding small samples of lethal drugs until he had enough to end his pain. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gloria Stuart, Robert Kent, (more)
