Sagebrush Trail (1933)

Imprisoned for a murder he did not commit, John Brant escapes and ends up out west where, after giving the local lawmen the slip, he joins up with an outlaw gang. Brant finds out that '... See full summary »

Director:

Armand Schaefer

Writers:

Lindsley Parsons (story), Lindsley Parsons (screenplay)

Stars:

John Wayne, Nancy Shubert, Lane Chandler

Cast

Complete credited cast:
John Wayne	...	John Brant - aka Smith
Nancy Shubert	...	Sally Blake
Lane Chandler	...	Joseph Conlon - alias Bob Jones
Yakima Canutt	...	Ed Walsh
Henry Hall	...	Dad Blake
Hal Taliaferro	...	Deputy Sheriff (as Wally Wales)
Art Mix	...	Henchman
Bob Burns	...	Sheriff Parker

Storyline

Imprisoned for a murder he did not commit, John Brant escapes and ends up out west where, after giving the local lawmen the slip, he joins up with an outlaw gang. Brant finds out that 'Jones', one of the outlaws he has become friends with, committed the murder that Brant was sent up for, but has no knowledge that anyone was ever put in jail for his crime. Willing to forgive and forget, Brant doesn't realize that 'Jones' has not only fallen for the same pretty shopgirl Brant has, but begins to suspect that Brant is not truly an outlaw.

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Plot Keywords:

wrongly accused | romantic rivalry | stagecoach robbery | country store | escaped convict | 

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Taglines:

Romance rides in a drama of thundering hoofs and blazing guns!

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Romance | Western

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 December 1933 (USA)

Also Known As:

An Innocent Man

Filming Locations:

Bronson Caves, Bronson Canyon, Griffith Park - 4730 Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paul Malvern Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

54 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Balsley & Phillips Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The failure of the original copyright holder to renew the film's copyright resulted in it falling into public domain, meaning that virtually anyone could duplicate and sell a VHS/DVD copy of the film. Therefore, many of the versions of this film available on the market are either severely (and usually badly) edited and/or of extremely poor quality, having been duped from second- or third-generation (or more) copies of the film.

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Goofs

Multiple "modern" utility and power poles seen throughout the gunfight and chases at or around the mine towards the end..

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Quotes

[after eluding the sheriff by swimming underwater, John emerges on the far side of the lake at the feet of a tall gunslinger]
John Brant: Well, I guess you got me.
Joseph Conlon: [snorts] Come on out, stranger. I ain't the law. You're a pretty smart hombre and you got plenty of nerve. It strikes me that the boss could use somebody like you. What's your name?
[John glares at him]
Joseph Conlon: Smith, ain't it. That's the handle most of you fast travelers use. Aw, it's as good a name as any. Mine's Jones!
[they shake hands]
Joseph Conlon: Say, you're ...

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Alternate Versions

Also available in a computer colorized version.

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Connections

Remake of Partners of the Trail (1931)

User Reviews

A classic of its kind, great stunts, riding; great scenery, sets

Some reviewer earlier made disparaging comments about the fighting.

Obviously this 1933 movie came along before Yakima Canutt and John Wayne created the style of cinema fighting that is now standard.

Yak was the ultimate stunt man. His "gags" (as they called them) are still the measure. He is the stunt double in much of "Sagebrush Trail," a fact unfortunately obvious if you watch as I did, on a computer monitor.

He is also the head of the gang of bad guys.

John Wayne started as a prop man, according to legend, and did some stunt work to please John Ford. "Duke, show 'em up," is the line credited to Ford during a naval film in which cast members feared the choppy seas they were supposed to be immersed in.

John Wayne did "show 'em up" and jumped in.

He gets to swim in this one too, in a scene that was praised by Jon Tuska in his PBS series, "They Went Thataway." "Sagebrush Trail" has all the elements expected and more, such as the scene mentioned above.

Hank Bell has another uncredited role, and his presence always adds authenticity to any Western.

Lane Chandler has a good role, and he co-stars with John Wayne in another stagecoach-related film, "Winds of the Wasteland."

I have only two complaints: The sound is not very good; much of the gunfire sounds as if it came from a mine shaft. The final scene was completely inappropriate, considering what came before.

Otherwise, this is great. My copy is another in the Great American Western Series by Echo Bridge Entertainment. It comes in a two-disk set.