This sequel to Jesse James (1939) reinvents historical facts, misses its mark, and has not aged well. Henry Fonda ably plays the famous outlaw's older brother Frank as an amiable, folksy, and seemingly nonviolent character. Simplistic scenarios and cheaply comic moments that verge on satire deflate the intensity of the drama. In her first film, Gene Tierney looks great, but is shrill, whining, and righteous as a dim bulb newspaper woman.
Review of The Return of Frank James
