(1948) Panhandle
WESTERN
Co-produced and co-written by Blake Edwards- yes, that "Blake Edwards" of the Pink Panther movies. A non exciting Western which nothing actually happens until after the 1 hour mark for a movie that is an hour and 25 minutes, it's quite lackluster. It opens with customer Jean "Dusty" Stewart (Cathy Downs) throwing a hissy fit because she felt she is being ripped off as a result of a missing saddle.. With her rifle pointing at the worker, Juan, the store owner, Jim (Rod Cameron) manages to grab the rifle from her and calm her down, before checking her wagon. And when the missing saddle was found, which was on her wagon all along, she tells Jim of the misfortune she was experiencing from another nearby town called the Sentinel. Telling him about three respectful people who was killed there from each day, and by the time she mentions the third person, Billy Sands, he suddenly ignores her to go and grab Billy's gun belt. At this point viewers are not quite clear how Jim is connected to Billy Sands until after the half hour mark we find out that they are both brothers. And then on another revelation roughly after the 50 minute mark is that the feisty girl, Jean "Dusty" Stewart we saw at the opening who thought she was missing a saddle bag was engaged to Billy Sands, and that he may have been murdered by shady saloon owner, Matt Garson (Reed Hadley) who has a secretary, June O'Carroll (Anne Gwynne) working for him who eventually becomes Jim Sands love interest. And just when you think that alone would turn up the heat- it doesn't, for Jim Sands does not do anything until he knows for sure who murdered his brother as well as the people who are involved. Jim Sands kills like, three or four people, and in the most unexciting fashion, and it is not until way after the hour mark. I must admit though, the first time I saw the star Rod Cameron playing Jim Sands, I initially thought, it's really the actor Robert Ryan I am staring at and that he must have changed his name, but as it turned out according to the movie database, Rod Cameron is his own person.
