The Unknown Ranger (1920)

 

Starring: Rex Ray

Director: Harris Gordon

Studio: Aywon Films Corporation

PLOT SUMMARY:

Local ranch-hand Buck Manning (Rex Ray) discovers author John Chandler (Ben Hill) stuck on a county road and decides to bring him and his vehicle back to his ranch close to the Mexican border. Manning knows he has seen Chandler's face before but cannot place the name. Chandler claims to be unfamiliar with this part of the country, however is strangely aware of the cliffside hideout of two Mexicans. As it turns out, Chandler is not an author at all and is the headman of an opium smuggling operation. One night while believing everyone is asleep, Chandler escapes to the hideout. Unbeknownst to him, Manning is on his trail. Manning gets the drop on the bandits and chases Chandler along the cliffs and trails him back to the ranch where he seeks medical attention from Jo (Marie Newell). Manning enters the scene and gives Jo the entire story of how he was an undercover ranger sent to track down Chandler. Chandler escapes and Manning is about to shoot before being convinced not to by Jo as Chandler swims across the border.

FILM REVIEW: 

I have never seen a western with a pacifistic bent and, though I'm a pacifist myself, I hope to never see another again. Manning is the first western "hero" I've ever seen who allows the culprit to escape just because his girlfriend told him to. This was the most unsatisfying ending I think I've ever seen, it was akin to watching this past Saturday Night's Main Event where the villainous Gunther overtook and defeated the heroic John Cena. That match did not "send the folks home happy" and I doubt The Unknown Ranger did either in 1920. 

The enigmatic Rex Ray certainly lives up to the film's title. There is virtually nothing known about the wide-mouthed western actor aside from the fact that he made at least three films for Nathan Hirsh's Aywon Film Corporation before seemingly falling off the face of the Earth. Indeed, my friend, the noted western film historian Ed Hulse, was stumped as to who Ray was when I told him of my plans to pen this review. Honestly, it is for the best that Ray dropped out of the movie scene as he certainly does not make for a convincing cowboy hero. Ending notwithstanding, Ray is a diminutive man who possesses the widest grin this side of Joe E. Brown. His face was built for comedy and I'm surprised he landed in westerns instead of appearing in one of the thousand or so comedy shorts being produced at this time. Not once during the film did I believe in Ray and, in all honesty, even the weakest amputee could likely defeat him in a heartbeat.

The other actors are fair to poor and, with all due respect, Marie Newell is the homeliest heroine I've ever seen in a film. She looks less like a woman and more like a twelve year old girl, which makes the "love" scenes more than cringeworthy. 

I was both amused and shocked to see this was a drug smuggling plot and of opium no less. One must wonder who the intended audience was. Imagine the child who went to the theatre, expecting to see some cheap western thrills, coming home to ask his parents at the dinner table, "Mom? Dad? What's 'opium?" I am unsure if this was a common plot element in these near impoverished productions, but it was certainly a new one on me.

One of the elements that made the film a slog to sit through were all of the incessant flashbacks that occur during the film's brief forty-four minute runtime. There were three altogether and it felt like unnecessary padding just to get the film to feature length. The story was weak, the direction uninspiring and the acting was middling to poor. Not recommended unless you are a hardcore western nut like I am.

Until next time, pardners!

  

Ridin' Wild (1925)

Starring: Kit Carson (William Barrymore)

Director: Leon De La Mothe

Studio: Aywon Film Corporation

PLOT SUMMARY:

Jim Warren (Kit Carson) is onboard a train, headed to Tucson, Arizona to escape a dreadful plague which has swept the nation. Meanwhile, Scar-Face Jordon (Jack Richardson), a cattle rustler posing as a cattle buyer, sends his henchmen led by Red Hanson (C.L. James), to make camp while Jordon rescues count sheriff's daughter Betty Blake (Pauline Corley) and her kitten from a tree, all the while getting an eyeful of Blake's shapely leg. 

Betty's father Sheriff Frank Blake (W.R. Maly), who also operates the Circle X Ranch,  receives warning about Jordon and his gang. Warren finally arrives in Tucson and is promptly thrown out of a hotel as "invalids are not welcome." Betty sees Jordon rough-up Warren and goes to comfort the sickly, young man. She tells Warren to go live alone in the hills. At sundown, Warren stumbles along Wild Cat Gulch and discovers Jordon's men camped out. Warren approaches the no-good ruffians and pleads with them to let him spend the night by their campfire. Jordon returns to the campsite, abuses Warren some more and orders his men to keep close watch of him. 

Later that week,  Betty heads out with the stage to deliver gold bullion, while Jordon and his gang prepare Warren for his first holdup. Unbeknownst to them, the sheriff is headed to follow his daughter on the journey, to see no harm becomes of her. In order to save the shipment, the coach driver kicks one of the horses to start the stage moving. An angry Jordon and his gang gallop after it, with Warren in tow. Betty is afraid for her life in the speeding, runaway stage as Warren pursues her and saves the day. The sheriff sees this and promptly deputizes Warren to carryout the delivery and also provides him with a job and lodging on his ranch.

After visiting a local doctor, Warren, now cured of his bronchitis, returns to the loving embrace of Betty. Unfortunately for them, Jordon shows up and spies on them. Betty convinces Warren to enter a local rodeo contest. Jordon pulls Betty aside and attempts to assault her until Warren stops him and the two fight it out. Warren knocks the tar out of Jordon and Jordon seeks vengeance!

It's the day of the rodeo and as Warren prepares for the contest, Jordon and his men conspire to falsely arrest Warren and beat him to a pulp. One of Jordon's henchmen "arrests" Warren and leads him out of town, to be captured by Jordon. Meanwhile, Betty and her father anxiously await to see Warren enter the contest. Warren escapes his captors and races back to the contest. 

Meanwhile, Sheriff Waddell, from neighboring Canyon County, arrives to watch the rodeo. Waddell sees Jordon return to town and captures the marauder and his posse, while Warren wins the contest and marries Betty.

FILM REVIEW: 

Ridin' Wild was a surprisingly average silent western, released through impoverished Aywon films. I say "Surprisingly" given the producer and writer for this film was the notorious, bottom-of-the-barrel producer Robert J. Horner. Horner was the lowest of the low when it came to producing "B" westerns, his films were usually produced on the cheap (very cheap!) and usually weren't much good. Horner's films were marred by weak scripts, actors and editing and there are certainly hints of all three in Ridin' Wild. There are decent to middling performances, odd editing choices and misspelled intertitles. To contemporary audiences, it is best to compare Horner to prolific schlockmeister Ed Wood, however it is an unfair comparison to make as Wood, at least, had some artistic aspirations whereas the legless Robert J. Horner had none. The film was actually somewhat competently made and featured some decent performances, especially from hero Jim Warren portrayed by a man billed as famous frontiersman Kit Carson.

Carson was, in reality, Elia Bulakh, a Russian born actor who also went by the name of William Barrymore though he held no relation to the famous Barrymore acting dynasty. Bulakh was a Cossack soldier, who  escaped execution by using the lid of a can of beef to slit the throat of his executioner. He eventually found his way to the United States He acted in many silent and sound productions, perhaps his most infamous being Victor Adamson's serial-turned-feature The Rawhide Terror, in which he portrays the title role Bulakh, also known as Boris Bullock, passed away in 1973.

Horner was as tragic as he was sleazy. He was nearly killed at the age of six while he and his brother played on a train track. Horner made it safely across the track as an oncoming train sped towards his direction, but not before the vessel took his legs with it. From there, Horner was placed in a home for crippled children where he was abused so terribly, he lost his legs to the point where he had mere stumps. Horner was a conman of the highest rank, he would take out classified advertisements in trade papers promising young actors and actresses the opportunity to become movie stars if they would help fund the production of his movies. Horner would then steal their money and flee town. He also, allegedly, propositioned his female stars. Horner would die from cirrhosis in 1942 and left behind a legacy of films which range from mediocre to piss-poor. Ridin' Wild is in the former camp.

This film received a high definition cleanup by the Library of Congress and the resulting copy I viewed was immaculate and shows how good these films could look if treated properly. Even though this isn't a landmark film by any stretch of the imagination, it still deserved the beautiful treatment it received from the LOC and I applaud them for doing so given no big names are attached to the film.

This film is so obscure, I couldn't locate an original poster or lobby card for it, so you'll have to settle for the film's title card.

Until next time, pardners.