Three Men from Texas

Excellent & unusual for a B western. Has many features & plot elements that are unexpected for a B movie. More somber than most Hoppy films. The usual humor is there, but both Lucky & California show a more serious side. My only complaint is that Hoppy wears a tan outfit (with black hat), rather than his trademark all black outfit. Easily one of the very best Hoppy films.

Although William Boyd's Hopalong Cassidy is a more mature cowboy then Roy Rogers or Gene Autry, this one is darker than usual. There's still the same humor (provided this time by Andy Clyde) as always, but the humor is much more somber than usual.

There are fewer fight scenes then some, but the fight scenes are extremely well-done for a B-western. This is also one of the longest of the Hopalong movies.

The reason I love this movie so much is because it is of refreshingly hight quality, the characters are consistent and 3-dimensional (unlike many B-westerns), and the story is unusually good. Just goes to show why Hopalong Cassidy is one of the best cowboy movie heroes there is.

Hoppy was always my favorite western hero and all of his films were a cut above the Autry-Rogers films, which were fun but which I regard as more juvenile. Hoppy is an older, wiser, more cynical guy who sees through people pretty quickly. The stories always tried to be more serious as well, while maintaining some humor and excitement. This is one of my two favorite Hoppy films, the other being "The Eagle's Brood." They were clearly not intended for children and contain some disturbing, but realistic scenes and fleshed-out characters. I'm sorry that the IMDB synopsis basically tells you the entire story in detail and is thus full of spoilers, even though IMDB are sticklers for labeling spoilers. The story involves Hoppy being called to California to help put down a gang of thugs and land thieves. Among the more realistic elements is the outright theft of land from original Mexican owners by whites in California, something way ahead of its time. Andy Clyde joins the series as California Carlson and fits in perfectly. He provides comic relief but also comes through in the end at Hoppy's side. See the movie yourself and I think you'll agree it is far more like an A picture than a routine B western. It's Hoppy and his friends at their best, taking risks to help other people.

Hoppy and new sidekick California Carlson head to California to help out Lucky Jenkins in this action-packed Hopalong that has a nice plot and a good emotional drive. Also it's probably the most hard-hitting Hoppy I have seen in terms of action. There's a grim necktie scene where boots of the dead bad hombres are seen. So more effective than seeing the whole thing. Also there's a tragic ending one of the goodies dying. It's a really good Hoppy film.

The banker, Davison Clark wants something to be done about the lawlessness in town "Seth Pritchard was the 3rd Marshall to be buried in Boot Hill in the last 7 months." Texas Ranger Captain Andrews (Morgan Wallace) wants the best man for the job but Hopolong Cassidy (William Boyd) refuses. No fear, Lucky Jenkins (Russell Hayden) to the rescue. Hoppy runs into some problems of his own and hooks up with California Carlson (Andy Clyde). The Three Texans meet up at the Mexican border town of Santa Carmen. Morris Ankrum as Bruce Morgan is the head land grabber who's terrorizing California ranchers. He's got the best henchmen in the business with Glenn Strange and Dick Curtis. Lucky is lucky in finding beautiful senorita Paquita Serrano (Esther Estrella) and gives him extra motivation to help her father (Thornton Edwards). Three Men From Texas has a top notch cast, a great story and comic relief at the right time. This was the best of the Hopolong Cassidy movies and a must see for any true western fan.