Paradise Canyon

This is not by any means a work of art, as Big John sorts out the counterfeiters who sneak across the border. However, it is remarkably entertaining, especially given it cost about three bucks to make. The background of a medicine show adds a little by way of originality, and I suspect this is a relatively realistic picture of a not-long-vanished West, that most of the audience will have experienced and remembered. John Wayne is on good form, with a particularly enormous ten gallon hat catching the attention. Mary Astor-lookalike Marion Burns is the love interest, and the difficult father-in-law-to-be is a nice performance from Earle Hodgins, who manages even to ruin their wedding. Yakima Canutt's acting is seen to good effect, as a hard-bitten villain, and Reed Howes is a good heavy. The stunts are as usual incredible, and presumably not every horse survived the picture. High Noon it is not, but there are worse ways of spending 50 minutes of your time.

For fans of Lone Star-Wayne only. It's a pretty slender installment from our friends at Paul Malvern's production company. Wayne's an undercover G-man on the trail of counterfeiter Yakima Canutt. On the way he hooks up with medicine man Doc Carter (Hodgins) and his sloe- eyed daughter (Burns). We see a lot of the medicine show and some of it is a hoot—The Texas Two whose down-home ditties are memorably corny. But reviewer Chance is right: Hodgins takes up too much screen time for a brief 50-minute feature. Too bad producer Malvern didn't pop for a location shoot at scenic Lone Pine. That would have compensated for a lot. Instead, the boys have to ride around the scrubby un-scenic outskirts of LA. He did however pop for a well-staffed chase scene at the end. Then too, there is the usual hidden hideout that fascinated Front-Row kids like myself, along with a dramatic plunge off a cliff. But the sum-total is rather plodding and not up to the usual high-action standard. (In passing— sorry to say I counted 3 "trip-wire" induced falls, which make for a dramatic tumble of horse and rider, but is unfortunately often fatal to the horse. Happily, these stunts were eventually banned. On a more upbeat note-- for a really entertaining look at how these Saturday afternoon specials were made, catch Hearts of the West {1975}.)

John Wayne and a couple of reasonable action scenes are about all that keep this B-Western afloat. The plot is mildly interesting, with Wayne working undercover trying to break up a counterfeiting ring. But it strains credibility a little too often, and the goofy medicine show settings, while occasionally amusing, cause at least one too many groans. The action scenes are OK, thanks to Wayne and Yakima Canutt, who plays the bad guy. Wayne was still progressing as an actor himself, and would later have much more of a screen presence, but he was obviously above most of the material in this movie. The film itself is really only interesting because he was in it, and it gives you reason to be thankful that eventually he was given a chance to move on to better things.

I agree with all the positive reviews but I do have the original movie and some idiot(s) have removed all the original soundtracks and have substituted some truly ghastly, awful music - all the same for the those '33-'35 Westerns.

My advice? Watch and listen to the real originals on your IMDb/computer and not the rubbish that is being played on Encore/Autry Western station. For fans of the original movie(s) the changes made to the music are absolutely offensive.

The old John Wayne westerns-before STAGECOACH are terribly important because they always pursue the ethical and attempt to do the right thing. Law and order is understood to be clear cut. Whilst we have been in this day and age, encouraged to see all sides of an issue, when evil is clearly defined-which it was in the John Wayne westerns, there was the feeling, that right MUST triumph and if John Wayne was starring, you knew it would be-because it was his mission to ensure that right was the result. Trivial in a career? No! Wayne didn't compromise his values.

Thank heavens he always sought to portray a good guy in his later films as well. He set a great example for us all. Just a footnote: When I attended law school as an older adult, I was the only student to pass a legal ethics class taught by a judge! It was thanks to those principles taught by Wayne, Wild Bill Elliott, Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, et. al., that I think gave me that remarkable A!

John Wayne's final Lone Star cheapie has him playing a government agent with a huge hat trying to bust up a counterfeiting ring. He does so by joining the traveling medicine show of Dr. Carter (Earle Hodges) and his pretty daughter Linda (Marion Burns). They always had a pretty daughter in these things. Anyway, the bad guy's named Curly Joe. He's played by stuntman extraordinaire Yakima Canutt. At least you know the stunts are good. Hodges is fun as the medicine show huckster. There's also quite a bit of comedy and some songs including one about suspenders that needs to be heard.

Is it just me or are those the loudest horse clops you ever heard? Also, I'm not sure what era this was supposed to take place in. Lone Star wasn't known for caring about historical accuracy in these cheap B westerns. There were usually shots of telephone poles and the like in the background. Here there are 1930s-era cars and clothes but everything else says Old West. This western, like the other B's made in the '30s, will seem pretty much like kids stuff today. But there is some fun to be had with it. Fans of the Duke might want to check it out. Avoid the version with the bizarre modern electronic score added.