Back in the 50s when the theaters didn't bother to post the title of the Saturday Matinée movie feature(s) It was always a crap shoot on what you were going to get.
Those of us who went to see the feature (as opposed to the kids just out to raise heck in the audience, were usually pretty pleased when the name Randolph Scott appeared on the opening credits. We knew there was going to be plenty of action and simplistic characters spouting rudimentary dialog to move the plot from action to action. It was cowboy day, and just about any oater would do but a Scott flick was usually considerably better fare than most of the films made for the 50s kiddie market.
I first saw Ten Wanted Men at the State Theater in downtown Schenectady New York. I don't remember if I got a soda or a Hershey bar on the way in, but those were my go-to matinée snacks at that time.
Scott made some pretty impressive "B" westerns but Ten Wanted Men had absolutely nothing going for it, other than Scott. The quality of the dialog was amazingly poor and every scene seemed to land with a palpable thud. By the middle of the movie I wished I was one of the kids who chose running up and down the aisles instead of watching the movie.
Naturally I would have chosen to avoid this film forever thereafter. But it popped up at least once again at a matinée. Time has not dulled my disdain for this remarkably poor excuse for a Randolph Scott western - but it has dulled my memory for titles. So, having no memory of the title - seen at least ten years before I started keeping notes on my watching habits, I ended up renting it recently from Netflix DVD. I realised my mistake during an early scene but it was too late. It was in my house, and I was left with no choice but to either watch the movie or send in back.
My sense of thrift just about compels me to be a good lad and sit in my seat paying strict attention to a movie I really would have rather avoided forever.Unless you are an absolute completest for Scott westerns I suggest you do your best to avoid my horrible mistake.
Pay no mind to the extensive list of reliable western bad men in the cast - even Richard Boone was a completely lackluster villain in this film. Leo Gordon almost saves the movie as Henchman Number One, at least his evil deeds do keep the plot moving briskly.
Those of us who went to see the feature (as opposed to the kids just out to raise heck in the audience, were usually pretty pleased when the name Randolph Scott appeared on the opening credits. We knew there was going to be plenty of action and simplistic characters spouting rudimentary dialog to move the plot from action to action. It was cowboy day, and just about any oater would do but a Scott flick was usually considerably better fare than most of the films made for the 50s kiddie market.
I first saw Ten Wanted Men at the State Theater in downtown Schenectady New York. I don't remember if I got a soda or a Hershey bar on the way in, but those were my go-to matinée snacks at that time.
Scott made some pretty impressive "B" westerns but Ten Wanted Men had absolutely nothing going for it, other than Scott. The quality of the dialog was amazingly poor and every scene seemed to land with a palpable thud. By the middle of the movie I wished I was one of the kids who chose running up and down the aisles instead of watching the movie.
Naturally I would have chosen to avoid this film forever thereafter. But it popped up at least once again at a matinée. Time has not dulled my disdain for this remarkably poor excuse for a Randolph Scott western - but it has dulled my memory for titles. So, having no memory of the title - seen at least ten years before I started keeping notes on my watching habits, I ended up renting it recently from Netflix DVD. I realised my mistake during an early scene but it was too late. It was in my house, and I was left with no choice but to either watch the movie or send in back.
My sense of thrift just about compels me to be a good lad and sit in my seat paying strict attention to a movie I really would have rather avoided forever.Unless you are an absolute completest for Scott westerns I suggest you do your best to avoid my horrible mistake.
Pay no mind to the extensive list of reliable western bad men in the cast - even Richard Boone was a completely lackluster villain in this film. Leo Gordon almost saves the movie as Henchman Number One, at least his evil deeds do keep the plot moving briskly.