I caught The Dalton Girls late last night on The Westerns Channel. It was a unique concept of female outlaws in the old west and I stayed with it all the way to the end because I wanted to find out the fate of each of the four girls. The story was easy to follow and the action scenes and stunt work were all well handled. The four Dalton Girls, sisters of the now deceased Dalton Brothers, are driven to a life of crime when Holly, the oldest, kills their brothers' undertaker for trying to rape her. She smashes him in the head with a shovel. With her three sisters, they set about robbing banks and stagecoaches. These girls are as good with guns and horses as any man. Holly (Merry Anders) tries to protect the youngest, Marigold (Sue George), who seems to not fit in with a life on the run. Rose (Lisa Davis), is a cold blooded killer doing just what she wants. Columbine (Penny Edwards) is an efficient criminal, but hopes to find a way out some day. It's even part musical. Rose sings "Can't Trust a Man" accompanied by Columbine on the harmonica. As I watched, I noticed a slight British accent creeping into some of Lisa Davis' lines, and I checked her out on IMDb. Sure enough, she was born in England. Penny Edwards was hand picked by Dale Evans to replace her as Roy Rogers gal pal in some RR movies when Dale was expecting a baby. John Russell is really good as the gambler who loves Columbine and keeps turning up wherever the girls go. This is a good western, overall, and is kind of a forerunner of the 1994 movie, "Bad Girls." Western fans will enjoy watching "The Dalton Girls."
