Yet another good b Western from William Boyd and the team but Hoppy and California have a new partner for the next half a dozen movies in Breezy a proto-Audie Murphy in 1942.
A gang of mysterious raiders is robbing and looting on both sides of the US-Mexican border, seemingly getting plenty of information of where the next rich pickings will be. Hopalong & Co. come along to stop awhile at the Gonzalez hacienda, their mission to stop the hold ups and find out who's leaking the information to the baddies in the first place. Breezy's brief fling with Gonzalez's daughter is flung out of the script early while California supplies the comedy by proving yet again he has an enormous appetite, his love-life depending on it though! There's some nice countryside to be seen even when full of horses and men, and the general production was good for the type of film. The WW2 Good Neighbour policy was heavily pushed, but surely better than todays To Hell With The Neighbours policy? Favourite bits: Hoppy and Gonzalez (I wonder if one of them won the chess match) and their coteries chasing one another confusedly each thinking the other was the guilty party; following Bob to the bandits nest on a lovely evening.
It's my kind of undemanding low to middlebrow fun - one I can watch till the cows come home.
