Customer Reviews

Colt .45 / Tall Man Riding / Fort Worth

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4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
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This is one of two triple feature Randolph Scott Western DVDs produced by Warner Brothers. This is a great collection, featuring two very solid Scott Westerns, Colt .45 and Fort Worth, plus one of his very best, Tall Man Riding.

Fort Worth features Scott as a newspaperman who publishes a newspaper to the detriment of outlaw Ray Teal and his gang. Scott is also not sure he can trust an old friend played by David Brian, who is Fort Worth's leading citizen. The movie keeps you guessing about Brian's true intentions right up to the end of the film. A solid film with entertaining performances from Scott, Brian, Teal, and Phyllis Thaxter.

Colt .45 is even better. It stars Scott as a gun salesman working to recover two .45s from an outlaw who stole them from Scott and started a crime spree. Scott, Ruth Roman, Zachary Scott (as the villain), Alan Hale, Chief Thundercloud, and Lloyd Bridges make up a wonderful cast.

But the best film on the DVD is Tall Man Riding, which proves that Scott had the secret to the formula that worked so well in his films with great director Budd Boetticher, who directed Scott in most of his best films, including Seven Men From Now, The Tall T, Ride Lonesome, and Comanche Station. This film has a lot of the same elements of the Scott/Boetticher films - a hero bent on revenge, torn between a woman from his past and a woman in his present who is drawn to help him, overwhelming forces against him, and a great twist to the story.

In Tall Man Riding, Scott plays a cowboy back in town after five years. Back then, he was dating the daughter of the most powerful rancher in town, but was whipped and driven out of town by the rancher. Scott comes back to town seeking revenge as the rancher is fighting it out with the local saloon owner for control of the territory. Scott's ex, played by Dorothy Malone, has remarried, and Scott accidently comes to her husband's rescue. Soon, Scott finds himself in the middle of the war between the rancher and the saloon owner, and between his old love and the saloon owner's girl, who provides Scott with valuable information.

This film features great acting, writing, and lots of action. It actually ranks its own release on DVD, but if this was the only way that Scott fans could get it on DVd, it's worth it to buy it with two other fine films. But Tall Man Riding all by itself makes this collection worth owning.

That was a line from Blazing Saddles, but it sums up why you should get this triple feature. I think Warner Bros. has come up with a great idea by packaging movies like this. You get three pretty good movies for the price of one. The movie transfers are crystal clear and even more beautiful than I remembered. The photography in the western of this time is some of the finest I have seen. The stories are not just good guy against bad guy, they are a little more than that. Randolph Scott is a prototypical cowboy. Tall and lean with a hint of swagger and accent. Make no mistake though, he never protrayed a cowboy as a gunslinger. Scott's hero was educated, strong, and ethical.

Warner Brothers is to be commended for assembling this triple feature set of classic Randolph Scott films on a single two-sided DVD. Although this is not Scott's best work -- have a look at "7 Men from Now" or "Ride the High Country" -- these B-westerns are very, very entertaining and are not to be missed by any fan of westerns or good stories.

The early 1950s Technicolor looks great and the transfers appear to have been made from very good source materials. I only wish WB would have made at least a bare bones scene selection menu and/or added trailers for these and other Scott films. Also, anamorphically enhanced transfers would be nice considering the current proliferation of 16x9 monitors.

I shied away from buying this disc initially because these are indeed B-movies and not Scott's best work but I found them to be very, very enjoyable westerns. So much so that I'm ordering the other WB set of Scott's westerns. Sit back, relax and allow yourself to watch Randolph Scott ride again! (Pass me the popcorn, please.)

Warner Home Video presents "TRIPLE FEATURE: Colt .45 / Tall Man Riding / Fort Worth" (1950) - Randolph Scott --- (Dolby digitally remastered) --- relive those thrilling days when Randolph Scott took us down the dusty trails with hard riding and straight shooting hitting the bull's eye with excitement every time... the Randolph Scott series of B-Westerns were a staple of Saturday matinees in the 1940s and 1950s ... don't miss any of the Randolph Scott features loaded with action that will leave you wanting more of his B-Western adventures.

First up we have - "COLT .45" (1950) (74 min/Color) --- Under Edwin L. Marin (Director), Saul Elkins (Producer), Thomas W Blackburn (Screenwriter), Wilfred M. Cline (Cinematographer), Frank Magee (Editor), William Lava (Original Music) ------ the cast includes Randolph Scott (Steve Farrell), Ruth Roman (Beth Donovan), Zachary Scott (Jason Brett), Lloyd Bridges (Paul Donovan), Alan Hale Sr. (Sheriff Harris), Ian MacDonald (Miller), Chief Thundercloud (Walking Bear) . . . . . . our story involves a sample case stolen by Zachary Scott, in the case is a pair of Colt 45's ... our hero Randy Scott who is the salesman for same must capture Zach and retrieve the case ... our heroine is beautiful Ruth Roman, when on the screen keeps your attention as the plot thickens ... great supporting cast of Alan Hale Sr. (his last film), Lloyd Bridges (Sea Hunt TV series), Chief Thundercloud (famous B-Western actor play Tonto in The Lone Ranger film series) and Ian MacDonald (appeared as Frank Miller in "High Noon") ... the tension builds between Randy and Zach, as the two Scott's bring excitement and drama with this hour long oater, not to be missed in your collection of B-Westerns.

BIOS:
1. Randolph Scott (aka: George Randolph Scott)
Date of birth: 23 January 1898 - Orange County, Virginia
Date of death: 2 March 1987 - Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California
2. Ruth Roman (aka: Norma Roman)
Date of birth: 22 December 1922 - Lynn, Massachusetts
Date of death: 9 September 1999 - Laguna Beach, California
3. Zachary Scott (aka: Zachary Thomson Scott Jr.)
Date of birth: 21 February 1914 - Austin, Texas
Date of death: 3 October 1965 - Austin, Texas

Second on the triple bill - "TALL MAN RIDING" (1955) (83 min/Color) --- Under Lesley Selander (Director) , David Weisbart (Producer), Norman A. Fox (Novel), Joseph Hoffman (Screenplay), Paul Sawtell (Original Music), Wilfred M. Cline (Cinematographer), Irene Morra (Editor) ------ the cast includes Randolph Scott (Larry Madden), Dorothy Malone (Corinna Willard), Peggie Castle (Reva (Pearlo's Palace Entertainer), William Ching (Rex Willard), John Baragrey (Sebo earlo), Robert Barrat (Tuck Ordway), John Dehner (Ames Luddington), Paul Richards (Peso Kid), Lane Chandler (Hap Sutton), Mickey Simpson (Deputy Jeff Barclay), Joe Bassett (Will), Charles Watts (Pearlo's Palace Bartender), Russ Conway (Marshal Jim Feathergill) . . . . . . our story features revenge and vengeance with Randy Scott in the middle of this well written script by Joseph Hoffman and outstanding direction of Lesley Selander, who's films have always been first rate ... the heroine is Dorothy Malone with villain Robert Barrett head a great cast of supporting actors John Dehner, Paul Richards and Lane Chandler ... as always, Scott is in top form and the film succeeds with his presence.

BIOS:
1. Dorothy Malone (aka: Dorothy Eloise Maloney)
Date of birth: 30 January 1925 - Chicago, Illinois
Date of death: Still Living

Third and final feature - "FORT WORTH" (1951) (80 mins/Color) --- Under Edwin L. Marin (Director), Anthony Veiller (Producer), David Buttolph (Original Music), Sidney Hickox (Cinematographer), Clarence Kolster (Editor), John Twist (Screenwriter) ------ the cast includes Randolph Scott (Ned Britt), David Brian (Blair Lunsford), Phyllis Thaxter (Flora Talbot), Helena Carter (Amy Brooks), Dickie Jones (Luther Wick), Ray Teal (Gabe Clevenger), Michael Tolan (Mort Springer), Paul Picerni (Joe Castro), Emerson Treacy (Ben Garvin), Bob Steele (Shorty), Walter Sande (Deputy Waller), Chubby Johnson (Sheriff) . . . . . . our story has Randy Scott as a newspaperman, previously a gunfighter ... will he be able to hang up his guns and turn respectible, when the badmen arrive in town bent on taking over ... veteran actor Ray Teal is great as the powerful cattle baron who sends for David Brian and the plot gets exciting ... this is like a silent valcano ready to erupt, will Scott and Brian lock horns ... this sage brush oater is about as good as it gets.

BIOS:
1. David Brian
Date of birth: 5 August 1914 - New York, New York
Date of death: 15 July 1993 - Sherman Oaks, California
2. Phyllis Thaxter (aka: Phyllis St. Felix Thaxter)
Date of birth: 20 November 1921 - Portland, Maine
Date of death: Still Living

Special footnote, George Randolph Scott better known as Randolph Scott, was an American film actor whose career spanned the sound era from the late 1920s to the early 1960s ... his popularity grew in the 1940s and 1950s, appearing in such films as "Gung Ho"! (1943) and "Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm" (1938); but he was especially famous for his numerous Westerns including "Virginia City" (1940) with Errol Flynn and Humphrey Bogart, "Western Union" (1941) with Robert Young, "Seven Men from Now" (1956) with Lee Marvin, "The Tall T" (1957) with Richard Boone, "Shoot-Out at Medicine Bend" (1957) with James Garner, and "Ride the High Country" (1962) with Joel McCrea (a coin was flipped to see whether Scott or McCrea would receive top billing, and Scott won despite having a slightly smaller role) ... his long fistfight with John Wayne in "The Spoilers" (1942) was frequently cited by critics and the press as the most thrilling ever filmed; they were fighting over Marlene Dietrich ... another smash hit film together that same year called "Pittsburgh" (1942) once again with Dietrich, Scott and Wayne

Great job by Warner Home Video for releasing "Colt .45 / Tall Man Riding / Fort Worth" (1950) - Randolph Scott, digital transfere with a clean, clear and crisp print...looking forward to more of the same from the '40s and '50s vintage...order your copy now from Amazon, stay tuned once again riding the range with B-Westerns ... just the way we like 'em!

Total Time: 238 mins on DVD ~ WHV82144DVD ~ (11/07/2006)

Two pretty good films and one passable one. Tall Man Riding and Fort Worth good stories and decent performances with sufficient action. Our man Scott is fine in all three. Colt.45 was good story but Zachary Scott who played the bad guy was so over the top you wonder why any other individual, villan or otherwise, would have followed this guy anywhere. Good to see some of the earlier Scott films show up on DVD. And I was always a fan of the horse he rode in many of his films, a dark palamino with white mane and tail with white blaze on his face. One of the most attractive horses in film. Transfers are great for early 50's fare. No widecreen here but great and vivid color. I bought it and am pleased I did. Now just wish some of Scott's later films like Tall T, Commanche Station and Ride Lonesome would be released.

The three WARNER BROS. Westerns featured here are COLT 45 (1950), FORT WORTH (1951) and TALL MAN RIDING (1955) All are fine examples of B-Westerns from the best decade of the genre, starring stoic hero Randolph Scott perhaps the genres greatest exponent! A fine supporting cast in all three. Including the likes of David Brian, Zachary Scott, & Dorothy Malone (Peyton Place). Well-over four hours of western drama in glorious Technicolor. Best of the Three for me is TALL MAN RIDING. Good quality DVD transfers and all at a bargain price from Amazon. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for all Randolph Scott fans and western movie aficionados in general.

I bought the two pack of these old gems! Man was I impressed with the color and tranfers! The stories are...well... 1950's Western Oaters, as they were called back then. Mostly churned out quickly and frequently, and so these should be viewed with the Saturday matinee attitude, with buttered popcorn and soda in hand! But man the color is just GREAT! Yahoo Buckeroos!

See my review for Riding Shotgun, Thunder over the plains, and The Man Behind The Gun, as the same applies to these three movies. Pure entertainment. Happy viewing, Frank Harris

3 good Randolph Scott movies. Would like to have them on more then 1 dvd,
but the price was good.Good quality. Would like to see more from the studio

Both of the Warners Randolph Scott 3-fers are well worth owning for fans of the star or 50s westerns in general; if forced to pick just one I'd probably go for the other release: The Man Behind the Gun / Thunder Over the Plains / Riding Shotgun. But this no-frills set (decent transfers, no extras) is very nearly as good and it helps to show the richness of Scott's western filmography as well as anything up until the fabulous Budd Boetticher films at the end of the decade that capped his career so memorably. This is what you get here:

COLT .45 (1950, directed by Edwin L. Marin)
Steve Farrell (Randolph Scott) is a salesman for the Colt company, peddling the new, expensive and game-changing .45 revolver to lawmen in the 1840s. In the first scene in the film, Jason Brett (Zachary Scott), a young punk in jail on a minor charge, manages to kill the sheriff as Farrell is doing his spiel, and make off with a pair of the .45s. The wounded deputy and the rest of the town think Farrell was in cahoots with Brett and lock him up for several months, by which time Brett has blazed a trail of terror for which Farrell feels responsible - and it's time to bring him to justice. Soon he makes friends with an Indian Chief (Chief Thundercloud) whose people Brett is framing for stagecoach robberies, and manages to save a stage from a robbery - despite the attempted interference by Beth Donovan (Ruth Roman) who it turns out is being held along with her husband Paul (Lloyd Bridges) while the bandits hide out at their cabin. Farrell, meanwhile, ends up in the town of Bonanza Creek as deputy to the shady Sheriff Harris (Alan Hale), trying to figure out how to bring Brett to justice even as he is being conspired against.

This is a solid, very fast-paced affair directed by Edward Marin - who directed Randolph Scott in the same number of films that Henry Hathway did, eight - more than the better-known and more-respected Andre de Toth or Budd Boetticher. I've just seen two others (Christmas Eve and the reviewed-below FORT WORTH), and they're all competent and fast-moving b-pictures - not remarkable, but deserving of more attention than they get. This one I think is most notable for Zachary Scott's fun, sneering, absolutely amoral villain, and for the amount of time Randolph Scott spends smiling - a heckuva lot more than he ever would do for Boetticher. It's got decent color and music, and the rest of the acting is fine, but it's fairly cheap-looking, the costumes often look way off, and there are a few rather stupid moments - like the initial fight in the jail that leads to Brett getting the revolvers - that really come off as quickie ways to move the brief (74 minutes) film along rather than well-though-out narrative choices. It's also notable in having a generally positive portrayal of natives, in the same year as the much more-heralded Broken Arrow.


TALL MAN RIDING (1955, directed by Lesley Selander)
Despite the very generic title, and the relatively generic basic plotline (man seeking revenge against cattle baron who wronged him is caught in a more complex battle involving the local town's big cheese and his corrupt deputy (strangely there's no sheriff), and two women who both love or admire him), this 82-minute whip-fast specimen comes off as reasonably interesting in execution. Selander isn't a particularly exciting or inventive director, and the chase sequences and shootouts (apart from one that I'll get to) aren't any more wonderful than his tepid camerawork in the film as a whole, but the cast and the rapid pacing make up for this well enough.

Larry Madden (Scott) is the tall man who rides towards the town of Little River and his past; he's moseying along until he hears gunshots, and decides to help out in a one man against three situation, eventually shooting one of the besiegers and saving the would-be victim - who he finds out is a man from the hated Tuck Ordway's Warbonnet ranch (so much for shooting first and asking questions later). Soon we find out that Madden was once sweet on Ordway's daughter, but the old man didn't think he was good enough for her, and drove him out of town - with a whip! Likewise angry enough with Ordway to kill him is Cibo Pearlo (John Baragrey), owner of the biggest saloon in town and also possessing (in his mind at leat) Reva (Peggie Castle) whose friendship with Ordway's daughter Corinna (Dorothy Malone) complicates matters - as Madden's history with Corinna will come into play.

Boasting some fine work by John Dehner as (what else) a sleazy lawyer as well, and decent location work, TALL MAN RIDING may not be one of Scott's best films, but like everything I've seen with him in the 50s it's economical and well-crafted, somehow packing loads of action and riding back and forth, a couple of romances and a land rush sequence into it's brief running time. And it has a few standout scenes - in this case a gunfight in a dark room that's quite suspenseful, and a terrific knock-down, drag-out fight between Madden and the good-for-nothing deputy Barclay (Mickey Simpson). Oh and there's also the rather oily and nasty Peso Kid (Paul Richards) who gets a few memorable lines and a good if brief showdown in the street.


FORT WORTH (1951, directed by Edward L. Marin)
Last and I think possibly the best on this triple-decker is this newspaperman-fights-corruption story, with Scott as ex-cattleman and gunslinger Ned Britt, now a newspaper editor on his way to San Antonio to start up a new paper with partner Ben Garvin (Emerson Treacy) and their young apprentice Luther (Dickie Jones). They're travelling with a wagon train of settlers bound for Fort Worth, and at the beginning of the film they run into a couple of old acquaintances of Ned's, one welcome and the obvious love interest to-be - Flora Talbot (Phyllis Thaxter) - and the other not so welcome, troublemaker Gabe Clevenger (Ray Teal), who with his gang cause a stampede which results in a loss of life. We get an early example of this film's awesome punchy over-the-top dialogue (by John Twist - but it comes off as more than a little like Sam Fuller to me) when Clevenger tells one of his men, "he throws lead, jughead - type! And it's got plenty scatter to it."

Britt and Garvin eventually decide to detour and set up shop in Fort Worth instead of San Antonio - partly due to the charm of Ms. Talbot, and partly due to the influence of the engaging Blair Lunsford (David Brian), her fiancee. Fort Worth is hurting, it's population down, a promised railroad not coming through. But Lunsford's got great plans, and Garvin and Britt decide they're up for the challeng of running a paper in a town that NEEDS one. Unfortunately, Clevenger and his outlaw gang, an ineffective sherrif, and Lunsford himself - who isn't exactly what he seems at first - all end up causing plenty of problems, and make Britt soon unable to leave his six-guns locked away.

As I said, the dialogue here is just crackling - another good line, as Britt pushes Luther away from covering a story that's too dangerous, while strapping on his irons: "you don't cover that story with a pencil"; and referring to the man who gradually becomes his nemesis, "his crooked dream got too big for one man to hold." The action is punchy too, with a great little trick shootout at a corral - just after the first quote I gave - being a highlight. The film of course is implicitly about the coming of civilization and the taming of the west - trains and newspapers and cattlemen and cities replacing gunslingers and small towns - but it isn't terribly serious about it's themes and is mostly a great showpiece for a fine group of less well-known character actors. The 6'4" Brian is meant to be Scott's equal/opposite/dark side and does a better job of conveying this than many of Randy's adversaries in other films; Teal played a lot of scuzzy villains and does fine here; and Treacy is just wonderful as Britt's more cynical and wiser partner, who imparts some good wisdom in his short time on camera - he comes off a bit like a James Gleason character from a decade earlier. But Scott actually gets a good chunk of the most colorful dialogue and most of the best scenes, and he shows throughout why he's the star. This one doesn't add up to a lot besides just "fun", but it's a rip-roaring example of that.