Wed 23 May 2012
Archived Western Movie Review: TWILIGHT IN THE SIERRAS (1950).
Posted by Steve under Reviews , Western movies[7] Comments
TWILIGHT IN THE SIERRAS. Republic Pictures, 1950. Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Pat Brady, Estelita Rodriguez, Russ Vincent, Foy Willing & the Riders of the Purple Sage. Director: William Witney.
I was recently talking to a friend about the Hopalong Cassidy movies, and how he thought they were better than the B movie classification they’re lumped into. I still haven’t seen any of them recently enough to say whether I agree with him or not — and maybe I’m overstating his premise — but I just watched this Roy Rogers movie, and even though Roy was the “King of the Cowboys,” it’s a B movie all the way.
You probably know how it goes without my much telling you. Roy and his gang spend the movie singing around the campfire or up in the bunkhouse, and every once in a while a story breaks out.
In this case it’s a gang of counterfeiters Roy is after, and a parolee in Roy’s custody was once an engraver, if you get my drift.
The parolee has a sister, and if the gang can get their hands on her, well sir, they’re in business. There is also a hunt for a vicious mountain lion, lots of fights, a shooting or two and a couple of runaway buckboards.
What set Roy’s movies off from all the others, I think, is that they took place in the “modern” west, with buses coming into town instead of stagecoaches, and Roy, Pat and Dale communicating with each other by walkie-talkie. This is kids’ fare, all right, but even though I winced every so often at the wooden dialogue, I still thought it was neat.
February 1991 (slightly revised).

May 23rd, 2012 at 7:37 pm
Steve, while the material was often beneath him, you were in the capable hands of William Witney, one of the greatest action directors. I’m presently working my way through his Spy Smasher serial and hoo-hah does it move! Witney was to B movies what Norvell Page was to the pulps.
May 23rd, 2012 at 8:33 pm
Steve
You’re absolutely right about Witney being an action director. I don’t think there’s anybody who could take the opposing side in that argument and hope to win.
Your comment prompted me to take a look at the full list of his credits on IMDB. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0936823/
It’s quite a list!
His autobiography was titled In a Door, Into a Fight, Out a Door, Into a Chase: Moviemaking Remembered by the Guy at the Door (McFarland, 2005), and I have an idea that it might be worth the $35 list price.
May 23rd, 2012 at 7:48 pm
I think in the late thirties the Hoppys at Paramount were given a polished production. Same period the Autry westerns were given that treatment but with even better supporting people, Jimmy Durante, Ann Miller, Sidney Blackmer. The King of the Cowboys was the title of 1943 film designed by Republic to promote Rogers in the absence of Autry, and it succeeded. But, for whatever it is worth, Autry was top ten box office three years running. Gene, along with Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, and number one, Mickey Rooney.
May 23rd, 2012 at 8:23 pm
When we were much younger, my cousin and I used to have grand arguments over who was the greatest cowboy hero. He said it was Hoppy. I said it was Roy.
Now you’re telling us that we were both wrong. It was Gene!
May 23rd, 2012 at 9:00 pm
Gene Autry left an organization behind. The website has a fair amount going for it. Personal preferences aside it is very likely no one in show business history was more successful than Gene.
May 24th, 2012 at 9:03 pm
I agree that the Hoppy movies were better than Bs. From the writing to the acting to the production they were at least A- (yes I just created a category). And easy going Boyd was a relief from all the Gene and Roy imitators who flooded the market. He was very much his own man.
May 24th, 2012 at 9:15 pm
Ed
I don’t know if anything like this was in your mind, but I can’t remember that Hoppy ever sang in any of his movies. He also had a really great laugh, which made him seem like a guy you’d be comfortable around.
Not that Gene and Roy weren’t good singers, but I kind of wriggled in my seat as a kid whenever they pulled out their guitars, and for the most part, I kind of still do today.