User reviews

Despite the desert setting and saloons and the presence of a Mexican bandit, cavalry officers and senoritas, this is really an exotic romantic drama (based on a story by the renowned O. Henry) as opposed to a straight Western. Being an early Talkie, it's obviously creaky – with very dated acting – but retains plenty of interest for the non-casual film-buff even after all these years: for one thing, it basically served as a template for the myriad Westerns that followed involving the exploits of some famous bandit or other (beginning with King Vidor's BILLY THE KID [1930]); besides, the flirtatious character of Dorothy Burgess may well have inspired Linda Darnell's Chihuahua in John Ford's classic MY DARLING CLEMENTINE (1946) nearly twenty years later!

Warner Baxter was a popular star of the era who has been largely neglected over the years; his Oscar-winning performance here isn't bad, but seems hardly outstanding at this juncture – his talent is more readily evident, in fact, in such later films as 42ND STREET (1933) and John Ford's THE PRISONER OF SHARK ISLAND (1936). The same can be said of Edmund Lowe: if he's at all remembered today, it's for his "Quirt & Flagg" series of war films with Victor McLaglen (three of them helmed by this film's original director, Raoul Walsh), the Bela Lugosi vehicle CHANDU THE MAGICIAN (1932; in the title role), and the noir-ish gangster drama DILLINGER (1945). While his character curiously speaks in modern i.e. 1920s slang, he interacts well with both Baxter and Burgess – especially effective is the scene where he comes face to face with Baxter's Cisco Kid at a barber shop and, ignorant of the latter's identity, lets him slip away.

The film features a couple of songs (one of them, by the famed songwriting trio of DeSylva-Brown-Henderson, is heard several times throughout and even serves as an Overture to the feature proper) and archaic comedy relief by a number of minor characters – notably Burgess' long-suffering elderly maid. There's far more talk than action here, but the twist ending (subsequently much copied) is remarkable – if anything, because it's unexpectedly pitiless for a film of its era! Incidentally, the lead role was to have been played by Raoul Walsh himself but he was injured (eventually losing an eye) in a driving accident; Irving Cummings replaced him behind the cameras (and, oddly enough, alone received the Best Director nomination, despite Walsh's name still appearing in the credits)!

P.S. Baxter, Lowe and director Cummings were re-united shortly after for a sequel – THE CISCO KID (1930); one wonders whether copies of the film still exist as, ideally, it should have been paired with the original on the bare-bones Fox DVD...

It was so enjoyable going way back in time to the Year 1928 and view Warner Baxter,(The Cisco Kid) who played his role the way I would want to see an actor portray The Cisco Kid. Dorothy Burgess, (Tonia Maria) is the girl friend of Cisco Kid and gives a great supporting role as a gold digger who wants plenty of gold, romance and any man who desires her charm. Edmund Lowe, (Sergeant Mickey Dunn) plays a soldier who is hunting down the Cisco Kid and gets himself involved with Tonia Maria in order to set up a trap to catch the Cisco Kid. Sgt.Mickey Dunn is from New York and talks and sings about the Bowery and brags about the cost of a beer for only five (5) cents and all the food you can eat. It is nice to know that Warner Baxter won an Oscar for his performance as the Cisco Kid, who was also the star of many "Crime Doctor" films as Dr. Ordway. This is a great classic film that you will not want to miss from 1928 and also has sound for the voices. Enjoy

I have heard so much about In Old Arizona that I truly was anticipating a genuine 'western' experience since this was a Fox film . I know the production values and story lines in their silents were always entertaining . I kept waiting for a western but it never came .

One has to be able to be able to imagine the newness of sound to comprehend the audience reaction to this film at its release . The frying bacon scene has been recounted in several different publications . The newness of sound was evident throughout the picture with songs , continual dialogue (sometimes very inane ) , sound effects ,etc. The film tried to overload the senses of the viewers with sound that seemed to come in waves to awe the viewers.

The direction receiving an Academy nomination escapes me completely . It appeared the director knew it was sound , but used tried and true 'silent ' techniques . The constant smiling , grinning and bon vivant attitude of Baxter was reminiscent of second tier silent western stars ala Buddy Roosevely , Wally Wales ,Bill Cody , Bob Custer et al. They all used this carefree , devil-may care attitude constantly .

Probably the most noticeable 'throwback ' methods were the exchange between Baxter and Burgess at the end . Both had a double meaning for their phrases which could have translated into a very delightful scene . However both of them resorted to 'silent' facial expressions that let the audience in on the meaning , but not the other character . Cummings showed his lack of knowledge and faith in sound as well as subtlety in expressions , but it understandable given his background and the newness of sound.

Baxter handled himself very well , yet you wonder if the Oscar was for the sound element tied to his performance rather than the strength of his acting alone . He always did a creditable job in any picture . Burgess is another story . Her attempt to portray herself as a Hispanic vamp left a lot to be desired . Still you cannot help but see the definite ' borrowing ' for Pearl Chavez in Duel in the Sun . There is no mistaking the copy that Jones used .

Finally , the O. Henry ending for the film was a little different . You reap what you sow is very prevalent in Edmund Lowe and Burgess . They sowed deceit and reaped their just desserts . However , Baxter just goes on his outlaw ways with no consequences . He admits it will come one day for him, but we don't see it . So there is morality and amorality . Where there is no dialogue , I was fascinated how some outdoor scenes took on a John Ford Monument Valley look .

The scene where Burgess goes into the saloon to meet Lowe is priceless . She walks in and she and a customer start exchanging ' let's do business ' glances . Then she meets Lowe and begins to condemn the women who work there and castigates Lowe for comparing her to them . Her self-righteous air is her best piece of acting in the entire movie.

You knew this was precode with some of the dialogue . When Baxter tells Lowe he is known as " Conejito " , Lowe 's line asking ' is he that fast' is priceless . The allusions abound .

Still this is well worth the time to view . First for the historical as to the use of sound . Then there is the introduction of the Cisco Kid . You have to have this film to trace the evolution of the character in film . When Baxter was talking about Yaqui being his best friend , you almost expected a pan to Pancho based upon preconditioning to the pair .

The morality and the love triangle dominate this film . There is no issue to be resolved as none ever existed . You have a story of 3 people - interesting , but slow moving and slower developing . Glad I own it and watched it

"In Old Arizona" was made in 1928 at a time when sound was still a novelty in films. As such you can see in this film sequences that purely demonstrate sound but add nothing to the story. For example, in the opening scene after the stagecoach leaves, the camera moves to a mariachi band that appears out of nowhere to play a song, and later a scene begins with a quartet warbling a little ditty before moving over to the principle characters.

The story centers on the Cisco Kid (Warner Baxter) who is a likable rogue who robs stagecoaches (but not the passengers) and has a price on his head of $5,000. It seems that everyone knows the kid on sight except the town barber. His girlfriend Tonia Maria (Dorothy Burgess) is an obvious pre-production code prostitute, who "entertains" him when he is not robbing stagecoaches.

The army is asked to do something about all of the robberies. They send Sgt. Mickey Dunn (Edmund Lowe) to investigate. Along the way he meets Tonia Maria who seduces him (off screen of course) and the two plot to capture the Kid and claim the reward. Naturally the Kid uncovers the plot and prepares a surprise for the sergeant and his unfaithful girlfriend.

This film is rather dated when watched today. It is over talkative and has just awful acting in many of the supporting roles, particularly the actor who plays the stagecoach driver. But you have to remember that this was the first year of sound movies. Director Raoul Walsh used outdoor microphones for the first time in a major studio production. You'll notice a few "silent spots" in the out door scenes.

The three leads are OK but the Mexican "accents" of Baxter and Burgess are laughable. Actually as hard to believe as it was, Baxter won the 1929 Academy Award for his role. Walsh was supposed to play the Lowe part but lost an eye in an accident about this time.

J. Farrell MacDonald appears early in the film as an Irish stagecoach passenger.

This is likely the first sound western film as well as the first sound film done out-of-doors. Suggested by "The Caballero's Way", a short story by William Sidney Porter (O.Henry), the main character, "The Cisco Kid", has been considerably upgraded. Porter's "Kid" was a ruthless bandit who didn't like people who got in his way, especially sheriffs. When a sheriff seduced the "Kid's" girl-friend into betraying him into an ambush, the "Kid", ruthlessly clever, took his revenge in a sadistic fashion. In case one might want to read the story, I will say no more. In the film, the "Kid" is a bandit right enough, but a sympathetic one, and sufficiently clever to outwit a sheriff who persuades the girlfriend to disarm the "Kid". She does this by charming him into taking off his gun when he meets her for a tryst. Don't worry, the "Kid" is one up on this trick, too, but protects himself in somewhat gentler fashion than in the story. If one could view this film today it would seem a museum piece, but not without some pictorial charm. I remember the photography as very pictorial, as with some later sequels, and there is a scene of bacon frying over a campfire that rather startled 1929 film goers with the realistic sound.

In the late 60s i went to a Guardian Lecture given by Hitch at the NFT.He said that the critics were most impressed by this film because of the sound of frying bacon.Well i have now heard it and it didn't impress me.I am a great fan of early talkies.I had long wanted to see this film.Never shown on TV or at the NFT.I managed to obtain a copy.Even making allowances for its age it is pretty awful.The main problems are that whilst the camera moves the plot does not.So little happens.As for the acting it is quite apparent that the actors are unsure how to modify their style for the talking film.Most lines are accompanied by rather exaggerated rolling of eyes.I found it interesting from a historical point of view.This did not stop me dozing off now and again.

IN OLD ARIZONA (Fox, 1928/29), directed by Irving Cummings and Raoul Walsh, marks the new beginning in motion picture history as the first all-talking western and the first with sound to be use actual location scenes to take advantage of the great outdoors rather than using indoor shots with rear projection passing for exteriors. With silent films still essential at the time of its release (January 1929), novelties such as this hearing actors speaking their lines rather than reading what they're saying through the use of inter-titles would soon put the silent films out to pasture. While not the first motion picture about the Cisco Kid, this was the start of a long series of westerns featuring the bandito as originated in O. Henry's short story, "The Caballero's Way," from which this movie was based. Anyone familiar with the 1950s TV series, "The Cisco Kid" starring Duncan Renaldo and Leo Carrillo, and expecting IN OLD ARIZONA to have Cisco and his sidekick Pancho saving the day, would be disappointed mainly because this Cisco Kid is more true to O'Henry's creation than the future films and television incarnations. The Cisco Kid is a bandit who works very much alone, being one step ahead of anyone out to claim their reward on his capture, dead or alive. "Oh Cisco! No Pancho!"

The story gets underway with passengers boarding the Gila Tombstone Stagecoach bound for its destination. This scene is followed by the introduction of the Cisco Kid (Warner Baxter) taking the wanted poster sign from a tree bearing his name with a $5,000 price on his head. After holding up the stagecoach, he goes on his way. Sergeant Mickey Dunn (Edmund Lowe) is assigned by his Commandant (Roy Stewart) to capture this bandit. During his mission, Mickey finds time flirting with various tough bar women, namely Tonia (Dorothy Burgess), who's not only Cisco's girl but girlfriend to every cowboy in town. Wanting to collect the reward on Cisco's capture, Tonia sets a trap on him, but Cisco has other plans for her once he discovers her true "loyalty" towards him.

IN OLD ARIZONA looks like a western, plays like a western, in fact, is a western, but doesn't have the pace more commonly found in westerns of subsequent eras. Being a primitive talkie, that's to be expected. The only musical backdrop presented is during opening credits and exit music, each to the fine and beautiful theme song, "My Tonia." Aside from the Cisco Kid serenading to Tonia, there are others singing to the tune to "Bicycle Built for Two," while Edmund Lowe's vocalizes "The Bowery" For this first western with sound, the audio use of church bells, the mooing of cows, the hoofs of running horses and gunshots appear to be more essential and beneficial than the action itself, which may be the reason why IN OLD ARIZONA is hardly revived, regardless of its then popularity and Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. It's only known commercial television presentation was on a Hartford, Connecticut station, WFSB, Channel 3, in 1974.

As much as the Cisco Kid could have been enacted by natural born Hispanic actors as Antonio Moreno or Gilbert Roland (who later enacted the role in the 1940s), for example, the part went to Warner Baxter (his talking film debut), who won an best actor Academy Award for it. Baxter's accent and Mexican attire are believable, character acceptable, for that his achievement in a role not true to his background shows more effort than having an natural-born Mexican playing a Mexican. Whenever Baxter's Cisco is off screen for long intervals, and Mickey Dunn's involvement with saloon girls (one claiming "all men are bums"), taking too much screen time, the pace slows down considerably. Although Lowe's character weakens the film somewhat, especially with his portrayal being more to the liking of Sergeant Quirt, the role he originated so well in WHAT PRICE GLORY? (Fox, 1926), yet without Victor McLaglen as his counterpart, it misses something. Lowe does have a scene worth nothing, however, set in the barber shop where he is playing dice and conversing with barber Guiseppi (Henry Armetta) about wanting to meet up with the Cisco Kid, unaware that Cisco is sitting close by in the barber's chair with his face covered with a towel. Dunn and Cisco become acquainted before going on their separate ways. When Dunn discovers he shook hands with the man he's out to arrest, the noise made by a donkey is sounded behind him, making him feel like a "jack ass."

Dorothy Burgess (in movie debut), is fine as Tonia, whose performance makes one wonder how WHAT PRICE GLORY heroine Dolores Del Rio might have succeeded as the Mexican saloon girl if given to her, and a chance to be reunited with Edmund Lowe on screen again? Soledad Jimenez and J. Farrell MacDonald appear unbilled in smaller roles. Baxter reprized his role in THE CISCO KID (Fox, 1931) and again in THE RETURN OF THE CISCO KID (20th-Fox, 1939), which started the cycle of "Cisco Kid" program westerns with Cesar Romero taking over the role afterword's. After the series expired by 1942, the Cisco Kid was resurrected again in a whole new series for Monogram (1945-1948) and United Artists (1949-50) featuring Gilbert Roland and later Duncan Renaldo, who carried on his Cisco portrayal to television.

Having been fortunate to acquire a 2005 DVD copy of IN OLD ARIZONA is assuring to know that this western antique is readily available for film and western enthusiasts to view and study the movie that helped advance the career of Warner Baxter in an unlikely role as The Cisco Kid. (***)

How the heck do you rate this movie?

In its day it might have gotten a 9 or 10; but if this were a contemporary movie, perhaps a 2 or 3, with points for cinematography and a decent plot. Compare it to the Marx Brothers' The Cocoanuts - 1929, which is far more entertaining, though the acting is also rather rough, and the plot ... what plot?

The acting is sometimes quite bizarre, with very wide-eyed expressions and rapid gesticulation. It is overacting that is an obvious remnant from the silent days. The dialogue is mostly rough. The Cisco Kid's is good, but the rest sounds stilted. Oddly, the captain is generally not overacting, and seems to be ad libbing his lines, but they still don't seem realistic, though they are interesting. Are his expressions accurate to the 1890s or the 1920s? Either way, it is an interesting fly in the amber.

I can imagine the studio heads, perhaps watching the audience reaction, saying, hey, maybe we need to hire real actors? But the key players went on to successful careers, so the fault seems to lie with the direction.

Accents? Was there, is there an Arizona accent? For some unknown reason, Sergeant Mickey Dunn talks with a fake New Yawk accent (he is the only one that I noticed). In the O. Henry story, there is no mention of being from NYC. And Edmund Lowe was born in San Jose, Calif., so it was presumably Raoul Walsh's decision. Oh, and Lowe taught English and elocution before becoming an actor, so don't blame Lowe. Perhaps it had something to do with NYC having the special sound on film projectors needed to show the film?

What they did with sound was nothing short of astonishing for the time. The opening scene of ringing the bells shows the sound syncing, and also a lack of speed fluctuation - wow and flutter. There is a lot of ambient sound in the movie, but because of modern noise reduction anything too far off is usually inaudible in the remastered sound track. There are points where an actor leans over into a hidden mic, perhaps accidentally. There are only one or two moments where an actor fades to inaudibility.

All this is astonishing for location shooting long before tape recording. Perhaps the coolest part is filming the sound of the old Edison cylinder phonograph, the best they could do for providing a musical sound track at the time. This was the first film with an optical sound track, and it clearly is the reason it became the dominant system until magnetic sound tracks decades later. Watch The Cocoanuts to hear the problems with sound on disk films -- the sound quality varies a lot through the film.

The film is set somewhere between 1897 and 1901, as there is a line mentioning President McKinley, but the setting seems older. This makes it only about 30 years before the date of the film. Does 1983 sound like the olden days to us? Their sense of the passage of time seems different from ours (see the nostalgic Meet Me in St. Louis, for example), but why? Was it a shorter lifespan, or more rapid, dramatic technological progress? Those 30 years saw the invention of airplanes, automobiles, highways, buses and trucks, radio, moving pictures, and now talking pictures. The 19th century must have seemed long ago.

The best part about In Old Arizona is the cinematography. Not only are the scenics beautiful, but the buildings are full of character, as though it was filmed in Daguerrotypes.

I love old movies, perhaps because they were so hard to find. Growing up outside of New York City, there were several independent TV stations that showed old movies, though in the Sixties, that would have meant movies from the Fifties and Forties -- 10 to 20 years old! The best way to see old movies was to watch the Late Show on WCBS channel 2, which as I recall usually started around 11:30 p.m. When that movie was over, they would show an even older movie on the Late Late Show, perhaps around 2:30 a.m., always introduced by Leroy Anderson's The Syncopated Clock.

If the first two movies were short, there might be an even older movie on the Late Late Late Show, perhaps starting around 3:30 or 4 a.m. That is where I would have seen In Old Arizona, on the time slot for people with acute insomnia, a real challenge for a kid to stay up for. But I probably encountered it as a kid, amazed puzzlement that anything so ancient had ever been put on film, as though my TV had been turned into a time machine. (And for those early risers, next was the Sunrise Semester, Sunrise Sermon, or The Modern Farmer, depending on the day.) Now it is my computer that is the time machine.

There are some very old movies that I like to watch now and then, such as International House or Duck Soup. But I doubt I will ever watch In Old Arizona again, except perhaps in 15 years, 2028, when the movie turns 100. It will probably put me to sleep. It almost did this time.

As an artifact of cinema history that came along at a point of volatility in the industry, this creaker is worth a look. It was filmed in 1928 - Hollywood's main year of transition to talkies. Considering the time when it was made, it's extraordinary that it was actually shot outdoors in what looks like Arizona. It carefully recreates the look and feel of the late 1890's with authentic looking interiors (chiefly a ranch house and a sleazy saloon populated by grizzled cowhands and fallen women) and props, which include a cylinder phonograph player. Spanish is spoken liberally by the Mexican characters, adding to the realism. The acting is uneven. Warner Baxter's Mexican accent is not believable by contemporary standards, but at least his performance as the swaggering and good natured Cisco Kid is emotionally solid. Dorothy Burgess as the femme fatale overacts and mugs to distraction. Edmund Lowe as the soldier pursuing the Kid is obnoxiously self-confident but provides a refreshing counterpoint with his East Coast accent and slangy vocabulary. The dialogue, especially Lowe's and Burgess's, is delivered broadly and slowly and accompanied by facial expressions that linger long beyond necessity lest the audience miss the point; it also abounds with sexual double meanings. The ending is suspenseful and exciting. A pop song, "Tonia Maria," by DeSylva Brown and Henderson, who were under contract at Fox during the making of this film, plays on the soundtrack both as an overture and as exit music at the end. It doesn't sound right as accompaniment to an 1890's scenario. All in all, a very mixed bag, but reflecting a fleeting time of upheaval in movie history.

This film has been of interest to me for some time now, for a number of reasons. I finally managed to get a copy and saw it yesterday. I now understand why it is not currently generally available-it is dated, of, at best, average quality, not without charm or appeal, to be sure, but the interst here is for a relatively small audience. Not a bad film, by any means, just not terribly engaging. I will say that a knowledge of Spanish greatly enhanced my own enjoyment of this film, as two or three very good lines were delivered in Spanish.

I have now seen three of the five Academy Award Picture nominees in their entirety (and am unlikely to ever see one, The Patriot, as it is reportedly a "lost" film) and part of Alibi. I now understand how Broadway Melody won that year. Of the choices I've seen, it is clearly the best of an average lot. The Patriot may well be better, but I'm unlikely to ever be able to judge that point.

I enjoyed the film, warts and all, but it is rather dated. But, for my money, any movie that gives the leading man the nickname, "El Conejito" (Little Rabbit) can't be too bad. Worth watching. Recommended to old film buffs and film historians.

In Old Arizona made for Fox Films in 1928 has the distinction of being the first all sound film and by dint of that the first all sound western. Warner Baxter won the second Academy Award given out for Best Actor and In Old Arizona bringing to the screen that legendary Robin Hood of the West, The Cisco Kid.

This version of Cisco is a whole lot different than the show I remember as a lad. Duncan Renaldo was a gentlemen, a caballero in the full meaning of the word, ever ready to help anyone in distress. He was a Latino version of Hopalong Cassidy and Cisco and Hoppy had a revival of popularity in the early television days.

But both of those characters were far from what Clarence Mulford and William Sydney Porter wrote. Hoppy was a tobacco chewing rather profane cuss who worked on the Bar 20 ranch, not the kid's role model William Boyd made him. Similarly the Cisco Kid was a charming fellow even for a bandit. But he was a most unapologetic man about his profession.

For this film Baxter's Cisco is cleaned up somewhat, still though he exacts a terrible, but quite just vengeance for betrayal, something Duncan Renaldo never would have done.

Today with political correctness, a man like Warner Baxter never would have been cast as the Cisco Kid, let alone win an Oscar for the role. But Baxter went on to do Cisco in four more films before folks like Cesar Romero, Gilbert Roland and Duncan Renaldo took the character over. There's a reason for this, Warner Baxter did a superb job in the part. Though his accent is obviously fake, he in no way demeans Latinos with his portrayal.

Dorothy Burgess is Cisco's best girl, I say best because she's far from the only one. She's a girl with big ambitions though and a bandit's moll even for a guy as handsome and charming as Warner Baxter has its limits.

Cisco's reeking so much havoc in that country on the American side of the Rio Grande that the army has gotten into the act. With war with Spain imminent, Sergeant Edmund Lowe's been given an order, get Cisco dead or alive.

Lowe essentially brings his Sergeant Quirt persona to the part of New York born sergeant Mickey Dunn. He's about an inch too sure of himself and he too thinks he's best with the ladies.

In Old Arizona also got nominations for Best Picture, Best Director and it goes without saying Best Sound. Though it's ancient now, a lot of people thought the sound of those ham and eggs cooking on the stove for Cisco in Burgess's cabin was considered revolutionary in 1928.

I recommend it highly especially for the ending. As another Latino icon was fond of saying, someone had a lot of explaining to do.

Warner Baxter might have deserved an Oscar nomination for the great 42nd Street, but winning for this slow and dated western is amazing. He beat out Paul Muni, Lewis Stone, Chester Morris, and George Bancroft. Maybe because In Old Arizona was the first talkie to use lots of location shots. Baxter now seems like a very strange choice to have played the Cisco Kid (where was Ramon Novarro?), and it's hard to accept him in the role. Dorothy Burgess made her film debut here as Tonia Maria. She veers wildly from incredibly bad overacting to a few scenes where she is good. Edmund Lowe (like Baxter) was an established silent film star (What Price Glory?) and he comes off best here as the Sergeant. While Baxter and Burgess chew the scenery, Lowe underplays and seems natural and breezy. J. Farrell MacDonald is on the stage coach that Cisco robs; Soledad Jimenez is good as the cook, and Henry Armetta is the funny barber. The other actors are just plain awful. In Old Arizona also won an Oscar nomination as best film, losing (thank god) to The Broadway Melody. All 5 nominees were talkies. To be fair, there are some good outdoor shots in this film, but the sound is generally weak. And the song that opens the film (played to a black screen, before the title even comes up) is hideous.

Although this film was released in January 1929, it was filmed in 1928. That makes it truly amazing when you think that the first all-talking picture wasn't even released until July 1928 - "Lights of New York". As others have mentioned, this film does not have lots of action - much screen time is spent with characters just talking in specific locations. There are no exciting shoot-outs or chases as you would expect in a western made just five years later. This is probably due to the motion constraint of the early sound cameras. However, you do get some tremendous long shots of some stunning western vistas. This was because Fox was an early adopter of sound-on-film versus sound-on-disc. This gave Fox the ability to shoot outside and made the studio an innovator in the production of newsreels - they could take their cameras anywhere.

As for the film itself, I'd recommend it only if you're interested in early sound films. Otherwise, you'll probably be bored stiff due to the lack of action. Warner Baxter's portrayal of the Cisco Kid is quite good. He doesn't get too campy with a role that could have been over-the-top in the wrong hands. I do have to wonder - why is every single member of the army that is pursuing Cisco speaking with a Queens accent and why are they using urban New York slang? Was there a mix-up at central casting that day? Was the cast of this film supposed to show up for a Bowery Boys film or a gangster picture and wound up here by mistake? In 1928 there were dialogue coaches, but probably not many coaches on regional dialect. It's a shame to think that if John Wayne had tried out for this early sound western he would have been turned down because he didn't sound like he was from Brooklyn.

This film begins around 1897 in the old Southwest with a bandit known as "the Cisco Kid" (Warner Baxter) holding up a stagecoach and then riding off with some gold coins and a necklace he purchased from one of the female passengers. Needless to say, once the news of the stagecoach robbery is reported in the nearest town the local citizenry becomes anxious for justice which results in the commander of a nearby Army post to send his best Non-Commissioned Officer, "Sergeant Mickey Dunn" (Edmund Lowe) and two other soldiers to track down the Cisco Kid and bring him back-dead or alive. Likewise, the fact that there is a bounty of $5000 on his head makes the assignment even more attractive. Meanwhile, although he is aware that there is a bounty on him, the Cisco Kid thinks nothing of it as he values the love of a pretty senorita named "Tonia Maria" (Dorothy Burgess) more than anything else. Things change, however, when Sergeant Dunn arrives in the same village and casts his eyes on the beautiful Tonia Maria. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this film is definitely a product of its time and suffers accordingly. For starters, although the era of silent films was quickly coming to an end around this time, the rather expressive acting required for movies of that type tended to bleed over to a certain degree when sound was introduced-and this movie clearly exemplifies that spillover effect. Likewise, as far as the actual sound was concerned, there were differences in volume between scenes filmed outdoors from those inside a room. Be that as it may, I still found this film to be quite enjoyable due in large part to the acting of Warner Baxter who won an Academy Award for his performance. It also has some really good humor throughout with both Warner Baxter and Dorothy Burgess providing their fair share. That being said, however, this movie does require the viewer to disregard the technological limitations of that particular period, and if they can do that, then they might find this as equally enjoyable as well.

Sound came to Hollywood via many paths. But the system that stuck grew out of Fox's MovieTone Newsreels when John Ford & Raoul Walsh reasoned that those mobile sound trucks would work just fine for shorts & features. ARIZONA is generally considered the first 100% Talkie shot on location and if it's predictably lumbering, the first third is quite watchable with tasty character bits (at a snail's pace) & stunning lensing from the great Arthur Edeson who'd also shoot Walsh's 1930 70mm Western THE BIG TRAIL. Walsh originally directed & starred in this, but because of a car accident that cost him his left eye he shares directing credit w/ Fox studio hack supreme Irving Cummings. Accent challenged Warner Baxter stepped into the lead & even got an Oscar for his cornball perf. This was the first Cisco Kid pic & it's worth hanging in there not only for historical merit points, but for the ultra-pragmatic/Nietzschean ending which still packs a bit of a shock.

BROKEBACK ALERT!! Watch for a scene where Baxter's Cisco & Edmund Lowe's Sergeant first compare the size and then pat (!) each other's holstered guns.

In the early months when 'all-talkies' were filmed by committed Hollywood studios, motorized cameras were used instead of the hand-cranked ones from the silent movie era. These new 'sound' cameras had to be synched moving at exactly 24 frames per second, a universally-agreed upon rate for sound comprehension while using the least amount of film. This speed was adopted by the entire industry, unlike the slower silent film rate of 16 frames per second that didn't have to be quite as exacting. Because of the noise the motors made by the cameras, the din of the cameras forced them to be contained in soundproof booths. Consequently, directors opted for the controlled environment of the studios' interiors to film their sound movies.

Fox Film took the bold step by being the first to shoot an all-talkie outside the studio with its audio equipment. In December 1928's "In Old Arizona," Fox proved talkies could be filmed outdoors and capture clear audio. The early synchronized audible feature established a series of "firsts," including the first all-talkie Western and the first movie filmed outdoors with authentic sound. "In Old Arizona" was recorded using the Movietone sound format, embedding its audio track onto one side of the film strip instead of using a disc the existing Vitaphone system operated by, making the movie cinema's first sound-on-film full-length motion picture.

The Academy recognized "In Old Arizona's" importance by honoring the trailblazing film with a record five nominations, including Outstanding Picture (Best Picture). Other categories nominated were Irving Cummings for Best Director, Tom Barry for adapting his script based on the 1907 O. Henry story 'The Caballero's Way,' Arthur Edeson's camerawork for Best Cinematography, and Warner Baxter, who won for Best Actor playing the lead as the Cisco Kid, the first to win for a talking role.

Raoul Walsh had to be somewhat bitter about what a jackrabbit did to him soon after he was hired to direct "In Old Arizona" as well as play the role of the Cisco Kid. Fox Film gave him the dual responsibilities after seeing his director/actor performance in 1928's "Sadie Thompson" with Gloria Swanson. While driving through the desert to film the outdoor location, Walsh saw a jackrabbit suddenly jump through his car's windshield, sending glass shards into his right eye. He lost the eye as well as both the directing and the acting assignments because of the severe injury. Walsh sported a black eyepatch ever since his operation and never acted before the camera again. He did, however, resume his directing career, becoming one of the most prolific directors in Hollywood history.

Baxter, familiar to today's public as the stage director Julian Marsh in 1933's "42nd Street," claimed playing the Cisco Kid was his all-time favorite role. "I thoroughly enjoyed the building-up part," Baxter remembered "The film was originally scheduled to be a two-reeler. Instead, as filming when on, the studio decided to make it into a feature. It made me feel that I had helped create a new Cisco Kid for the pictures. Then, too, the fact that I got an Oscar for the job caused me no pain." He recalled the technical audio crew had to hide the microphones in the trees and behind rocks so they could record the voices of the actors. Baxter is also credited as molding the image of the singing cowboy when he belted out the first song sung by a cowboy on film.

"In Old Arizona" will also always be remembered for Baxter's immortal words while departing the scene when his former lover, Tonia Maria (Dorothy Burgess), is accidentally shot dead by her lover, Sergeant Mickey Dunn (Edmund Lowe), after she arranged for her boyfriend to assassinate the Cisco Kid in the dark of the night : "Her flirting days are over. She's now ready to settle down."

While Western, which 'In Old Arizona' is classified under when it comes to genres, is not my favourite genre in film (mystery, thriller and animation are the personal favourites, and also love musicals). There are though many Western classics, naming them though here will be unfair however, there are several Western icons in cinema (John Wayne being one of the best kown) and have always appreciated the genre. Am not really biased towards or against any film genre really.

'In Old Arizona' is most notable for two things. One being that it is the first talkie Western. The other being that the film's star Warner Baxter received the second Best Actor Academy Award in the awards' history, following on from Emil Jannings in 'The Last Command'. So of course there was interest as to how 'In Old Arizona' would hold up and also if Baxter was deserving of the Oscar. Seeing the film, it is an interesting and quite enjoyable film, but it does show its age and there are better Westerns about. The main reason to see it is historical interest, but of course that's not the only reason.

The film still looks pretty good and doesn't have too much of a primitive look. The big budget for the time shows in the handsomely produced sets and the photography is stylish. There is some witty scripting and the story engages enough, with some rousing action and charming moments.

Also spirited performances from Baxter and Dorothy Burgess (seldom better), Baxter's Oscar win didn't strike me as an undeserving one. While not being one of the ones that sticks in the mind unforgettably.

Pacing though could have been much tighter, as some of it is somewhat static and causes the story to creak. Some other parts of the script are rather awkward and doesn't have the zest that the dialogue for the two leads have. The editing could have done with more tautness.

Likewise with the direction. The supporting performances to me were not as good as the leads, some exaggerated acting going on from particularly Edmund Lowe.

Concluding, worth the look if not an essential. 6/10

In Old Arizona, produced and directed in 1928, was the first talkie Western. As the media was new, the film sounds a bit creaky. But there is no need to delve into the various indoor or outdoor sounds, like the frying of ham and eggs or the gramophone music or the mooing of cows or the funny jackass braying scene. One does notice – again because of the new media – overacting. Such exaggeration was generally needed – or was thought to be needed – in silent films to convey to the audience what the actor felt or thought. Directors even demanded it. So we should not be too harsh on the brave filmmakers that made the significant movie transition to talkies in the late 1920s.

The title of the movie is rather curious as the events occur only 30 years before it was made. There are references to the upcoming Spanish-American War (1898) and, early in the film, several soldiers sing, "Daisy Bell (Bicycle Built for Two)," a song popular in the 1890s. The US frontier officially ended in 1890, so one would think that the movie events in Arizona would have transpired decades earlier. But an 1898 Western is fine enough, as some areas were still wild. There is more talk than the action associated with Westerns, with the story really focusing on three people. But the finale is certainly unexpected unless one read the 1907 short story by O. Henry; that author's stories were known for their surprise endings.

Warner Baxter as the Cisco Kid won the Academy Award for Best Actor. But note that his role is not the "Robin Hood of the Old West" (Duncan Renaldo) of the 1950s TV series. Unlike Renaldo, the Kid here is harsh and unforgiving, although he is charming and is not a heartless murderer. He is somewhat the gentleman robber: when he holds up a stagecoach, he refuses to takes money from the passengers. Dorothy Burgess as the dithering and provocative Tonia Maria plays an alluring love interest for any man. Edmund Lowe, who looks like and has the mannerisms of an Irish Sergeant (Mickey Dunn), is supposed to have a New York accent ("Who is that goil?"). Then there are the typical stereotypes that lingered in Hollywood films for many decades (and still do). The Italian barber (Henry Armetta) is exuberant and a bit of a buffoon. The barber likes his women just plain "a-fat," not pleasingly plump.

Despite the film's showing its old age with its creakiness and slow pace for a Western, it is still historically important. So it is recommended for film and history buffs, and for the curious.

This has historical interest as the first talking western and the first talking movie with outdoors scenes. You can see in several scenes that the filmmakers were eager to show off the possibilities of the new sound techniques, like when having a group of characters singing or when frying eggs and bacon.

Apart from that, the story itself is interesting, although the action slows down too much in the middle of the movie. We get a lot of flirting and talking, until we get to the unexpectedly harsh twist ending. I have read that the technical limitations of the early sound recording may have resulted in avoiding the kind of action scenes we are used to in later westerns.

The acting, when viewed with modern eyes, is still stilted in a silent-movie kind of way. But there is some charm in this story, and also a sensation of authenticity in some details that come from being filmed close to the actual historical period.

Rating: 6 of 10

In Old Arizona was probably one of the two pictures of the 1928/29 "season" -- the other being The Broadway Melody -- that finally brought home to a resistant industry that sound was here to stay, rather than just a passing fad. As the first outdoor all-talkie, it tends to be remembered merely as a technical milestone, while patronized for its now primitive seeming sound film technique, stilted acting style, and slow pacing. In fact it is a surprisingly enjoyable movie.

A rather tongue-in-cheek Western, the emphasis is on character, color, and humor, rather than action. Not for fans of the shoot-'em-down-by-the-dozen Spaghettios, but well-tailored for those who like quieter, more subtle Western stories, even for those who normally don't like Westerns. Full of crackling dialog, authentic to the 1890's time setting, colorful, well-developed characters, and easy, ribald humor. In fact much of the humor was down-right raunchy. If you have ever wondered what they were saying in those 1920's silent flickers when it just showed them moving their lips and grinning naughty-like, this picture will clue you in! In Old Arizona rises above the limitations and the novelty aspect of the early sound equipment to present genuine entertainment -- the main point of a movie. Much of the credit for this goes to the three principle players. Warner Baxter is charming and exciting in his Academy Award-winning performance as the Cisco Kid. Edmund Lowe is a good foil for the roguish bandit as a cocky Bowery-bred Army sergeant out to collect the reward for Cisco's hide -- and his girl as well. Dorothy Burgess absolutely sizzles as Cisco's flirtatious, mercenary, and unfaithful mistress. The three stars get a big boost of support from Soledad Jimenez, as Burgess' sardonic old cook. Of course they all over-act -- at least by the standards of this present generation, who are so low key, one sometimes wonders if actually conscious. This picture is played mostly for laughs, a fun romp rather than a serious Western.

Much unfair criticism due to misunderstanding has been repeated in this forum. Ms. Burgess was not acting with a silent movie style. She never made a silent picture, but came to Hollywood from a successful career as a Broadway actress and dancer. Baxter was not an American playing Mexican. Cisco stated that he was actually Portuguese, rather than native Mexican. Acting style in this an other movies of the era was not quite so stilted as some think. It hasn't apparently occurred to some pundits that real-life people in times more than a century past may have actually acted and spoken with a completely different style than this generation.

Never mind. In Old Arizona was stiff all right. But the sets, costumes, and cinematography were first-rate, story engaging, dialog funny, snappy. Refreshingly absent were the inner titles between scene changes seen in many early talkies released as much as four years later. In Old Arizona is an entertaining picture all the way through, and a giant-step toward the wonderful mature sound movies of Hollywood's Golden Era.