Kansas Raiders (1950)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Ray Enright

Writer:

Robert L. Richards (story)

Release Date:

20 November 1950 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Western

Tagline:

THE FURIOUS, FIGHTING STORY OF QUANTRILL'S GUERILLAS! (original print ad - all caps)

Plot:

Outraged by Redleg atrocities, the James and Younger Brothers along with Kit Dalton join Quantrill's Raiders and find themselves participating in even worse war crimes.

Plot Keywords:

Atrocity | War Crime | Jesse James | Outlaw | Reference To Napoleon

Cast

Audie Murphy	...	Jesse James
Brian Donlevy	...	William Clarke Quantrill
Marguerite Chapman	...	Kate Clarke
Scott Brady	...	Bill Anderson
Tony Curtis	...	Kit Dalton
Richard Arlen	...	Union captain
Richard Long	...	Frank James
James Best	...	Cole Younger
John Kellogg	...	Red Leg leader
Dewey Martin	...	James Younger
George Chandler	...	Willie
Charles Delaney	...	Pell
Richard Egan	...	First lieutenant
David Wolfe	...	Rudolph Tate (as Dave Wolfe)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Helen Gibson	...	Bit Role
Jennings Miles	...	Bit Role

Runtime:

80 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (nf) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (PCA #14762) | UK:PG (re-rating) | UK:A (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Garner Valley, California, USA

Company:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Goofs:

Factual errors: Although brother Frank did join Quantrill, there is no evidence that Jesse, less than 16 at the time, ever joined the guerrilla raiders in Kansas.

Quotes:

William Clarke Quantrill: There are some things a woman simply cannot understand.

Flatter Than Kansas

When judging a movie, what matters is not the plot or content – those are both better expressed in writing or on stage. The key to this medium is the *camera*, not the actors or the just the action devoid of context.

What we have here is a complete cinematic nullity; ostensibly, it's all a staged enactment of the morality play. Not even the handkerchief fight thrills or convinces.

Is there a single piece of good acting or dialogue? Is there a single character that has dimensions beyond a cartoon? Oh, we know there won't be any ambiguity, irony or self-examination…but is there at least anything engaging about the way the camera discovers the narrative? Is there?

The world is waiting for someone to give this a Conradian 'Heart of Darkness' treatment(the gradual unfolding of the madness). Until then, the only intelligent treatment we have of this subject is "Outlaw Josey Wales".