Auf heißer Spur

Colonel Tim McCoy appears in this enjoyable entry in his Lightning Bill series of fine 1930's B-westerns. McCoy was more than another studio actor stuffed into a ten gallon hat ---- he was the real deal ! His knowledge of the Wild West and experience on the trail again shows through clearly in this fun oater.

McCoy, aided by the comic sidekick Ben Corbett, goes undercover as an oriental to get to the bottom of a border scam. The fights, shootouts and snappy dialogue that ensue make this one of the better entries in Lightning Bill film series.

McCoy was larger than life on and off the screen --and this film will surely be enjoyed by all fans of this towering cowboy star. I recommend this one to all who are nostalgic for this kind of entertaining family film !

A robbery at an express office leads to murder, and to Tim McCoy heading to Edgetown on the Mexican border in pursuit of the thieves/murderers. There, with assistant Ben Corbett he sets up as a Chinese jewel fence. His first purchase is from moll Nora Lane, for whom he obviously has a soft spot, After that, the ring's leader, Stephen Chase shows up, sells a few gems and offers many more. He claims the gems' holder is in Mexico and will meet him at the border. The plan is to use the gems as bait, kill McCoy, and take the money.

It's a decent enough western in the beginning, with a well executed robbery, but by the time McCoy shows up, the pace slows down, and his Chinaman-speaking-English bit is painfully slow, as is the final confrontation. Clearly, it's meant to increase the suspense of the situation. It doesn't work.

Director Sam Newfield could turn in a decently paced movie, as he would demonstrate in the late 1940s, given a decent script and a bit a budget. Working for Sam Katzman, he has neither, and the line readings are slow and a bit awkward. Veteran cinematographer Marcel Picard, clearly striving for efficiency, offers workmanlike but not very interesting shots.

I wrestling with the question about whether this counts as 'yellowface', a 21st-Century concern, but ultimately concluded that since it's a White man pretending to be Chinese, it does not. Those who are particularly sensitive to this issue will be offended. Still, they are not the audience for Gower Gulch B westerns. Even so, it's not a particularly distinguished example of the genre.

For a cowboy flick the 50-some minutes pretty much scrapes bottom. There's little action, while most time is spent indoors talking with Charlie Chan, and that's plus a wacko plot gimmick. Having McCoy trick the baddies by impersonating a Chinaman only minutes after he's confronted them as a cowboy really stretches the gimmick. It's like the film editor suddenly spliced together segments from two contrasting movies. Too bad that this mess follows a slam-bang robbery opening that really had my expectations up, along with a fine subtle turn from actress Lane clearly suited for better things. No need to go on. Had this now front-row geezer been back in my theater days, I would have gotten my dime back.

"Six-Gun Trail" begins with a daring robbery and most of the crooks get away with the loot. However, one is caught spills his guts--and it's up to Bill Carson to head to the border and bring the thugs to justice.

Tim McCoy is about my favorite western star. Part of it was because he did NOT sing, part of it was because he really was a charismatic actor and part was because he could actually act and not just look nice in his clean hero clothes! I particularly have enjoyed his 'Lightning Bill Carson' series of eight films--mostly because you get to see Tim expand his acting skills, as he's a secret agent who is a master of disguise in these films. Most of the time, he does a great job of playing Mexicans-pretty good acting and very enjoyable characters in a Leo Carillo sort of way. However, here in "Six-Gun Trail", McCoy shows there definitely is a limit to his skills and at the audience's ability to suspend disbelief. Here he plays a Chinese man! Yes, I said Chinese! But instead of Chinese, he comes off like having Warner Oland's version of Charlie Chan in a western!! It's all very silly and might have resulted in a rotten film. BUT due to some otherwise decent writing and McCoy's presence, the film works--provided you turn off that pesky part of your brain that says "who in the world would be stupid enough to believe that this guy is Chinese?!".

By the way, while McCoy does not sing, there is a scene with a yodler. Now I hate yodeling, but this guy's voice was pretty amazing.

Six Gun Law has Tim McCoy in one of his most embarrassing moments on the big screen doing a very poor imitation of Charlie Chan. In order to capture some jewel robbers McCoy [asses himself off as a Chinese fence.

When occidentals Warner Oland, Sidney Toler, and Roland Winters played Charlie Chan you did believe them in the role. How McCoy got trapped into this God only knows.

Adding to that tragic Nora Lane was mone of the worst singers of cowboy ballads I've ever heard.

This film was inflicted on the public by poverty row Victory Pictures with Sam Katzman at the helm.

Stay clear of Six Gun Trail.