Border Patrol

This Hoppy film seems to have more IMDb "user reviews" than any other Hoppy movie I have seen. No sense repeating the info in those seven reviews. I'd like to add these comments: The story is very simple and straight-forward. For the first 30 minutes it moves very slowly; in fact nothing much happens except that Hoppy is sent off by the Mexican authorities to find out what happened to missing Mexican laborers sent to work in a particular US town. Once at the town, Hoppy and sidekicks are "arrested," find out the misdeeds of the local crime boss, escape, and round up the bad guys.

I noticed three particularly poorly produced action scenes: As noted in one of the reviews here, "Hoppy lassos an outlaw's feet some twenty feet above him on a giant boulder" and threatens to pull the outlaw off unless he confesses.

Hoppy and sidekicks are locked in the local jail awaiting their hanging, but are "saved" by the heroine sneaking a gun into the food of their "last meal." However, the gun turned out to be unnecessary as Hoppy, in effect, simply overcame the "lawman" as Hoppy and crew were ushered out of the cell, something he could have done with or without the gun.

Finally, Hoppy sets a ridiculous trap to catch the 10 bad guy horsemen charging Hoppy and his sidekicks. Hoppy has some wagons, driven by some outlaws (but loaded with freed, armed Mexican laborers), charging the 10 outlaws who are riding towards the wagons. Hoppy and his sidekicks are riding behind the wagons. Well, the 10 outlaw horsemen ride past the wagons, but for some inexplicable reason, retreat when Hoppy and his few sidekicks fire on the 10 outlaws. So they, then, end up encircled by the wagons and give up! The 10 should have continued charging Hoppy and wiped him out.

More plot-heavy than most. The trio are Texas Rangers trying to bust up a silver mine operation that's luring Mexican illegals (sound familiar?) across the border. On the way, they have to get past a cantankerous Mexican senorita (Drake) and a petty tyrant—hanging judge (Simpson). Some good scenery, especially the roaring Kern River, long a favorite of these oaters. Clever action climax does a neat twist on the old circle-the-wagons maneuver. I also like the charming dinner scene with the Commandant (Renaldo) that's well scripted and nicely played.

There's also a couple of interesting lesser-knowns to add to the stars-of-the-future list (Mitchum, Reeves, Renaldo). Claudia Drake managed a shot at immortality by landing a key role in the noir cult classic Detour (1945). Here, she gives a spirited performance as the willful senorita that really over-shadows everyone else. However, perhaps most notable and surprising is the screenplay. It's credited to Michael Wilson who later penned such A-list classics as A Place in the Sun (1951), Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), and Lawrence of Arabia (1962), among others. A victim of the early-50's blacklist, several of these were written undercover, but have since been restored to his credit list. Here, the plot deals with such potential political themes as exploited workers, a company town, and a rich man making up his own laws. So, perhaps Wilson's participation is not so surprising after all.

Border Patrol finds Hopalong Cassidy together with sidekicks Andy Clyde and Jay Kirby serving as Texas Rangers guarding the Mexican. A dead Mexican national and Claudia Drake's idea that they shot the man riding the horse that the dead man was riding that she claims belonged to her sweetheart George Reeves. Even after presenting their Ranger credentials to the Mexican border cop Duncan Renaldo doesn't convince her.

But back they go across the border to an outlaw town where it's rumored a lot of Mexican laborers have gone to work. What they find is a town run by Judge Russell Simpson who makes Roy Bean look like Oliver Wendell Holmes. Fortunately for their sakes Claudia Drake has a change of mind about Hoppy and his sidekicks because Simpson doesn't recognize their status as Texas Rangers, his is the only law where he has jurisdiction.

This Hopalong Cassidy film is notable for two things, it is one of the films that featured Robert Mitchum down in the cast as one of Simpson's hired guns. The second is the performance of Russell Simpson who even as he's deadly serious about hanging Hoppy and the sidekicks still laces his 'rulings' and 'jurisprudence' with a little humor.

Definitely a must for Hopalong Cassidy and Robert Mitchum fans.

After witnessing the murder of a Mexican national, border patrolman Hopalong Cassidy and pals are promptly abducted and taken to Mexico by a feisty senorita who believes them responsible. Set free by the federales, they investigate the disappearances of dozens of migrant workers seeking jobs in a silver mine and end up stepping into a madman's own private town.

A William Boyd/Hopalong Cassidy vehicle that comes real close to going over the top, there's a lot of fun and great stars here, with head villain Russell Simpson giving a spirited, amusing performance alongside henchman Robert Mitchum (billed here as Bob in a very early role!), as well as future Superman George Reeves and the Cisco Kid, Duncan Renaldo!

As offbeat as you're likely to get in a "Hoppy" movie, action and humor mix effortlessly, leading to a rousing climax, well directed by genre veteran Lesley Selander, who helmed low-budget westerns for major studios well into the 1960's, some of which are considered minor classics.

A number of Hoppy films revolve around a mining background, they sure wanted to get their money's worth out of that particular mine setting! This time it's a crook who is using forced labour to run his mine.Hoppy tracks missing Mexican labourers to both the mine and town that is ruled by the elaborately named villain, Orestes Krebs.

Framed by Krebs as both judge, jury and executioner, Hoppy, California and Johnny are sentenced to hang. Initially suspected to be outlaws by the leading lady, Claudia Drake as Inez, (a common occurrence it seems for Hoppy and his companions), she does however see the light and helps the friends to clean up the whole crooked town.

A fairly lightweight entry in the series, with enough action and story to keep things bubbling to the end. Krebs makes a suitable evil schemer, who doesn't know when he's beaten and Hoppy gets plenty of opportunity to use his patented steely gaze at the proceedings.