Eyes of Texas (1948)

Director:

William Witney

Writer:

Sloan Nibley (writer)

Release Date:

15 July 1948 (USA)

Genre:

Western

Plot:

A ranch owner (Francis Ford) turns his place into a home for boys who have lost their fathers in World War II...

Plot Keywords:

Dog | Killer Dog | Veterinarian | Song | Trucolor

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)

Roy Rogers	...	U.S. Marshal Roy Rogers
Trigger	...	Trigger, Roy's Horse
Lynne Roberts	...	Nurse Penny Thatcher
Andy Devine	...	Dr. Cookie Bullfincher
Nana Bryant	...	Hattie E. Waters, Attorney
Roy Barcroft	...	Hattie's Henchman Vic Rabin
Danny Morton	...	Frank Dennis / Frank Cameron
Francis Ford	...	Thad Cameron
Pascale Perry	...	Pete - Henchman with whip
Stanley Blystone	...	Sheriff
Bob Nolan	...	Bob
Sons of the Pioneers	...	Musicians

Runtime:

70 min (original version) | 54 min (edited version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Trucolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:K-12 | USA:Approved

Filming Locations:

Walker Ranch - 19152 Placerita Canyon Road, Newhall, California, USA

Company:

Republic Pictures

Goofs:

Continuity: Keep an eye on that scene when Roy Rogers gets into a scrap with henchman Vic Rabin and the rest of his rowdies. The tear on the back of Roy's shirt changes size and shape throughout the fight.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Golden Saddles, Silver Spurs (2000) (TV)

Wildly illogical, even for a Western

A movie, obviously intended for the 10-year-olds at the kids' matinees, that looks as though it was written by a 10-year-old. (I guess there were still kids' matinees in 1948. I hadn't been to one in about 11 years.)

The film depicts post-WW-II Texas (from the title, not from anything within the movie itself) in 1947 as the same as in the 1870's, with everyone wearing cowboy suits - popular with 10-year-olds - riding around on horses or buckboards, wearing guns, and engaging in shootouts on the streets, with no official accounting for the bodies. The estate settlement is inexplicably turned over to 'the insurance company', and although all the money has officially been stolen by the fake will, the crooks appeal to the townsfolk to throw the bad Government man out and 'save the children'! (How a petition from the people will accomplish this isn't clear.) In the end, all the crooks, who are the only ones who know of and can testify to the facts in the conspiracy, are dead, and the 'happy ending' leaves all the legal entanglements up in the air.

If they had thrown out the wooden-sided Ford station wagon and the telephone, made the boys Civil War orphans, and assigned the estate settlement to a court instead of the insurance company, the film would almost pass for logical by Western flick standards.

The only things close to a redeeming value in this picture are a couple of pretty good songs by the Sons of the Pioneers.

The only reason this turkey doesn't make my list of 'The Ten Worst Films of All Time' (which currently contains about 35 titles) is that as a Cowboy flick, it isn't expected to be good.