Four Guns to the Border

Richard Carlson is more known as an actor than as a director, and that's unfair because he brought us very good surprises, unusual and charming stuff as this one now. Wally Brennan and Rory Calhoun are in the cast and several other figures such as Charles Drake, George Nader and John McIntire Universal Studios "home" actors. It is short, a bit over eighty minutes, good paced, never boring nor cheesy. So, a good moment to spend. Rory Calhoun is not really a good hero here, rather ambivalent dude and that suits him well. In real life, don't forget that he was a bad boy, former inmate in institution for young offenders. Charles Drake in a sheriff role, not far from the one he had in NO NAME ON THE BULLET, where he fought against a very ambivalent Audie Murphy in the lead. A rather good character study that concerns the outlaws around the female, daughter of Walter Brennan.

This is a very enjoyable movie, though you wouldn't know it from its low (5.8) user rating. I guess that rating is due to its rather friendly disposition -- no evil bad guys, no murders, not so much action. There is a lot of amiable camaraderie amongst the protagonists, and maybe the theme of the movie (good women civilizing their menfolk) doesn't turn most Western fans on.

However, if you disregard this movie, you are missing a superior B-Western (or mediocre A-Western). It was directed by a TV and movie actor familiar to most of us, Richard Carlson, who acted in over 100 productions, including "The Creature From the Black Lagoon" and "King Solomon's Mines." Among the film's many pluses are:

¶ a surprisingly superior cast beginning with Rory Calhoun. As one reviewer said, "the rest of the cast is first choice with the a young Colleen Miller and remarkable supporting actors (the Best of Universal's contract actors) : Walter Brennan, John McIntire (in only a handful of scenes) and Charles Drake."

¶ By far, the best actor and scene in the movie is from Nina Foch. Calhoun and Drake used to be friends and hellions in town. Both apparently were friendly with Koch, who ended up marrying Drake, who became sheriff. Calhoun moved away, but continued as an outlaw. The best scene in the movie is when Calhoun returns to town to stage a fist fight with sheriff Drake as a diversion while his gang robs the bank. Great are Calhoun's reminisces with Koch, and Koch's breaking up of the fistfight.

¶ the entire production was competent and pleasant -- cinematography, scenery, color, music, direction, acting, etc.

I'm a western nut who's been watching horse-operas since the '50s and somehow I'd never heard of this before a TV showing here in England. The cast is superb, including Oscar-winner Walter Brennan in a more restrained performance than usual. Each of the four bank robbers has his own little quirks and it's fun to see Jay Silverheels in a more lively part than his legendary Tonto act, which was often so wooden you'd pick up splinters just from watching it. There's a familiar face playing the tiny role of the town barber - Paul Brinegar, who found TV fame five years later as trail-cook Wishbone on Rawhide.

Richard Carlson's direction is surprisingly effective. It's a darn shame he didn't do much else, though his 1964 low-budget Kid Rodelo was nowhere near as nifty a job as Four Guns, which must be filed as "underrated and worth a look." Both movies came from Louis L'Amour stories.

Decent Universal International production full of action , violent characters , thrills and lots of shots . A good example of B-Hollywood western genre mostly filmed in studios and including gorgeous exteriors . An outlaw gang (Rory Calhoun ,George Nader ,John McIntire , Jay Silverheels) on the lam encounters former associate Simon Bhumer (Walter Brennan) and his beautiful daughter (Colleen Miller), who's drawn to their leader Cully. They get together at a desert inn where scheme a robbing . As the band heads for the border after a bank heist, they encounter a band of renegade Apaches. One for all and all for trouble!

This is an exciting film , plenty action , thrills , fights , gun-down and breathtaking outdoors . One of a long series of colorful , double-features made at Universal International studies in the Fifties , films which made starts on of male actors : Rock Hudson , Audie Murphy , Ray danton , George nader and female actresses as : Rhonda Fleming , Yvonne De Carlo , Mauren O'Hara , , besides the stars of this Western : Rory Calhoun , George Nader and Richard Carlson himself . Well-made action sequences with rousing attacks and spectacularly made shootouts . Charismatic performance for whole casting .The rough outlaw Rory Calhoun and Colleen Miller as the luscious daughter Lolly deliver a nice loving chemical , in fact the best scenes happen at a stormy night, when Cully/Rory and Lolly/Colleen almost have an affair, including some erotic shots . Support cast is pretty good , such as the good-looking George Nader , the eternal secondary Walter Brennan playing an old gunfighter who still has a fast draw and now planning to retire on a farm, Nina Foch , the veteran John McIntire , Charles Drake , Nestor Paiva , Mary Field , Jay Silverheels as a half-breed bandit though he was better for his character as Tonto in the long -running Lone Ranger series .

The motion picture was well directed and in traditional style by Richard Carlson . Richard was a notorious actor who even played two classic movies such as It came from outer space and Creature from the black lagoon . He subsequently accepted charge of directing a silly pseudo-scientific premise entitled Riders to the Stars (1954), a low-budget enterprise bogged down at the expense of drama. In the course of the next twelve years, he directed some better second features, including the westerns Four Guns to the Border (1954) , The saga of Hamp Brown and Kid Rodelo (1966), many of them starred by Rory Calhoun , as well as a number of television episodes. He also wrote the occasional TV script, as well as contributing articles on non-fiction subjects to several magazines .

Distinguished by its overt, out in the open, relationships between Men and Women circa 1885 in the Old West. It is that Story flirtation that makes this one a bit different than most of the Westerns of the 1950's.

Behind the Women taming the wild Men of the Old West is a gang of bank robbers led by Rory Calhoun with John McEntire, and Jay Silverheels. They encounter Walter Brennan and his coming of age Daughter in tow and from the very first scenes this one sets itself up as a steamy, sexy Western.

"Didn't anyone tell you not to scratch yourself in front of other people? Dad Brennan asks the curvaceous and cute "Lolly" (Colleen Miller) as she awakens.

She is doused with water as Her blouse clings and the camera lingers from below on Her upper half.

You'd better sew up that dress," He tells the oblivious Gal after a roll around with Calhoun. And there's more.

She is Flirtatious with a Candy Cane and a Bottle of Sarsaparilla.

She goes out in a nighttime rainstorm in Her bed clothes and meets soaking wet with Calhoun in the barn.

There is dialog, once the gang gets to town about Men being hogtied by Women and Calhoun's ex-Lover is now His former Friend's Wife and She breaks up a fistfight by literally pulling a buggy whip on both of them.

This kind of Adults at play stuff was not available on The Tube and by 1954 it was obvious Movies had to offer something a bit different to get Folks off the couch.

The good Cast, color Photography, and the sexual stuff make this one stand out as an above average Entry in the crowded field of the Western Movies of that Decade.