Riders of the Timberline

A very familiar theme in many Hopalong Cassidy is an unseen baddie who is paying his evil minions to create 'accidents' and stir up workers. I've seen it done in Cassidy films about railroads, cattle and more....and "Riders of the Timberline" is about the same sort of thing...in lumber country.

When the film starts, workers at Jim Kerrigan's lumber camp are discontented after yet another accident. And, soon, they are stirred up by workers who really are being paid to disrupt things. But when Hoppy arrives, he vows to help his old friend, Kerrigan (J. Farrell McDonald). To deal with this, he does something the Hopalong Cassidy films ALSO did a lot...pretend to be a villain in order to get the bad guy behind all this to hire them...thus exposing himself and his crooked scheme.

If you've never seen other Hopalong Cassidy films, you'll no doubt enjoy this one. If you've seen most of his pictures, like me, you'll feel a strong sense of déjà vu since it's really too familiar...and therefore, very predictable. About the only thing I couldn't have anticipated was seeing Victor Jory playing a French-Canadian lumberjack, his wearing bulky padding to look macho and his NOT being a villain as he ALWAYS was in villain in other Hoppy pictures.

By the way, while Victor Jory never looked like a macho man to me, apparently when he was in the service he was a champion boxer and wrestler! And, he WAS born in the Yukon...that really is lumberjack territory!