The Frontiersmen

William Boyd had no use for singing cowboys and tried to minimize the music in the Hopalong Cassidy movies every chance he got. He lost the battle in this flick. The Brendan Boys choir sing their little hearts out.

I am in perfect agreement with Mr. Boyd. But after you get passed the singing, this movie is a rollicking adventure even if the rustler plot has been done to death. There is a even slight twist to the proceedings that is somewhat of a surprise.

However, it isn't the fate of the Bar 20 cattle that holds your attention here. It's the fun that the three heroes (Hoppy, Windy, and Lucky) have competing for the affections of the new schoolmarm that steal the show. Don't pass up the chance to see Hoppy in an apron and Windy slicked up to go a courtin'.

At 53 minutes into the film, the children in the ceremony salute the flag and give the pledge of allegiance in the way it was given when the film was made in 1938--saying "I pledge allegiance..." and raising their right hand in a salute that would be discontinued when the U.S. entered World War II as the salute too closely resembled the fascist salute. I know of only one other film, Remember the Day starring Claudette Colbert, in which the same salute is given as the time was 1916. The pledge goes back to 1893 when it first appeared in the magazine Youth's Companion and went through several revisions until the present version was established in 1954.

Wow, the other reviewers here were not exaggerating. This was unlike every other Hoppy film. Some 90% of the movie was dialog with and about the new pretty female teacher. We were repeatedly told how important education is and how many ways the cowhands of the Bar 20 could love her — as a husband, brother, father, etc. Constantly fawning over her. It's OK to devote SOME time to things like this; they add local color, character development, flesh out the characters, etc. But it was way overdone here. The movie became a domestic family light comedy. Only ten percent or less of the film was devoted to the cattle rustlers. My advice is: skip the movie.

One observation: I don't know why the leader of the rustlers caused his doom by planning two events at the same time/day: (1) marrying and leaving the West with the school ma-rm, and (2) rustling the Bar-20 cattle with his gang. He couldn't be with the gang, so they exposed him.

Yes it's true, this isn't your typical Hoppy western, but that alone makes it a breath of fresh air, part comedy, part action. William Boyd's star power as Hopalong Cassidy carries much of the film as always, but good turns by Russell Hayden and Gabby Hayes also make good viewing, Evelyn Venables is one of the loveliest of female leads, and young Dickie Jones, the future 'Buffalo Bill Jnr,' is quite endearing and not too brattish! I can't believe that Boyd hated kids and horses and was hard to get along with, everything I've read about him suggests otherwise!

The three previous critics have given an excellent idea of how different this is from the typical B western, including most of the Hopalong Cassidy westerns. The most improbable feature is the superb singing of the boys choir in a frontier one-room schoolhouse, and, as noted by others, we get lots of it. I have one quibble with one of the other reviews. This is not by any means the closest Hoppy came to becoming romantically involved with the leading lady -- it happened rather often in the 1930s films. It is unusual in having both Lucky (Russell Hayden) and Windy (George Hayes -- not yet Gabby) courting the adorable young school teacher, and, indeed. all the men of the Bar 20 Ranch are interested in her. Most of this movie is pleasant, folksy light comedy -- good-hearted fun. I liked it quite a lot, so rate it 8 out of a possible ten. But this is not a typical Hopalong Cassidy western!