An interesting and moving Western with a suspenseful premise , un ex-lawman is imprisoned at a jail surrounded and harassed by enemies thirsty for vengeance. Containing emotion, thrills , shootouts, fights and intrigue. In 1897 Arizona, an ex-marshal called Billy Reynolds (Dale Robertson) is sent to the territorial prison where many of his enemies, among wardens and inmates alike, are eager for a chance at payback and merciless revenge. Serving time in an Arizona prison, he's especially beset by a jailed killer seeking vengeance for his own incarceration. Complicating matters further is the incarceration of Gorman's girlfriend Abby (Virginia Mayo) who helps Gorman (Stephen McNally) plan a break-out while at the same time is unsuccessful hiding her feelings for Reynolds. Very savage thrill...every scorching scene...real as flesh! In 3-D, 500 desperate men caged-up with one woman!
A prison western with thriller, suspense, noisy action, violence and spectacular final scenes. This grim Western has a pretty extraordinary main and support cast, but no more remarkable that the plot and script, both of which are hard to swallow, especially when captured bandit queen Virginia Mayo is assigned to an all-male prison. However, the actual depiction of life in jail seems depressingly accurate, apart from Virginia Mayo's presence. Starring Dale Robertson gives a passable acting as ex-marshal Reynolds, sent to state prison for killing two men in self defense, and he learns that killer Jessie Gorman, brother of the two men Billy shot, is in the same prison and vows vendetta. Along with three main protagonists: the beauty Virginia Mayo, the tough Dale Robertson and baddie Stephen McNally, in Devil's Canyon stands out a magnificent support cast with plenty of familiar faces, most of them from Western genre, such as: Arthur Hunnicutt, Robert Keith, Jay C. Flippen, George J. Lewis, Whit Bissell, Morris Ankrum, James Bell, Earl Holliman, Irving Bacon, among others.
Cameraman Nicholas Musuraka's sombre lighting keeps Technicolor under control, though a better remastering being really necessary. Nicholas Musuraka is considered to be one of the best cameramen of the Film Noir genre. Well photographed by Musuraka (Cat People , I Walked with a Zombie) who along with John Seitz and John Alton are deemed to be the best photographers of the fabulous Noir Movies shot in the Forties and Fifties. The motion picture was uneven and professionally directed by Alfred L. Welker. This film was made from his last years, in fact Alfred L. Welker was working from the 30 in the business . He realized a catalogue of routine assignments broken by highlights including : ¨The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes¨ 1935 and ¨He walked by night¨ 1949 the prototype serial-killer film noir , and a string of Western oaters . Alfred Werker directed all kinds of genres : Drama , Film Noir , Adventures , sagebrush Westerns , such as : The Last Posse , Devil's canyon , Repeat Performance , Pirates of Monterrey , Whispering Ghosts , The Mad Martindales , Moon Over Her Shoulder , My Pal Wolf , Rebel in city , At Gunpoint , The Young Don't Cry , Canyon Crossroads and Sealed Cargo . His best film was ¨He walked by night¨ (1948), although this noir thriller is credited to Alfred Werker , a lot of it was shot, uncredited, by Anthony Mann, who had already made some top-notch thrillers in low budget. Rating: 5.5/10 . A good western but not too much . Worthwhile seeing .
