Sandflow

Of all the A-list stars of the B-western genre Buck Jones was perhaps the one most interested in providing serious and downright grim stories and portrayals; he seemed to go out of his way to show the arduous and heavy-hearted side of life in the old West. Here he had his own company produce such a program for himself, and sure enough, the story and characterizations are powerfully and relentlessly somber. To see a B-western nearly devoid of humorous moments or asides is rare, and leave it to Buck to provide it.

The title "Sandflow" alone has an mysterious, if not ominous, ring to it. The intriguing and desperate doings of these interrelating folks set in a far away western land are seemingly insignificant, set as they are against the backdrop of imposing Red Rock Canyon and the majestic eastern face of the Sierra Nevada Range. But toil they do, with mystery, intrigue, and tension to be had at every turn in their little world, apparently without connection to any larger, far away world.

The players attend to the story dutifully and somehow the complex series of events depicted during the film get sorted out after an hour. Life is shown to be dark, dangerous, unpredictable, and notably downright dusty; one discovers that there is precious little to trust in the way of situations or people, except with one obvious exception. A stark and somber adventure for the strong and stoic Buck Jones, this adventure is really quite satisfying.