The Silver Bullet (1935) User Reviews

Nicely atmospheric little western

[JohnHowardReid · 6/10 · 20 November 2017]

Tom Tyler (Tom Henderson), Jayne Regan (Nora Kane), Lafe McKee (John Kane), Charles King (Luke Hargrave), George Chesebro (Slim Walker), Slim Whitaker (Scurvy) Lew Meehan (Pete), Franklyn Farnum (the real marshal), Wally Wales (Jake), Jimmy Aubrey (Jerry), Robert Walker (phony marshal), Tex Palmer, George Hazel (phony deputies), Blackie Whiteford (agitator), Gene Alsace (lyncher), Bruce Mitchell (barkeep), Emma Tansey, Tom Smith, Fred Parker, Ray Henderson, George Morrell, Eva McKenzie, Allen Greer, Herman Hack, Jack Evans, Robert Brower (townspeople), Barney Beasley (barfly), Hank Bell, Bill Patton (gamblers), Nelson McDowell (parson).

Director: B.B. RAY. Screenplay: William L. Nolte. Dialogue: Carl Krusada. Continuity: Rose Gordon. Photography: J. Henry Kruse. Film editor: Fred Bain. Art director: Charles Stevens. Assistant director: Gene George. Sound recording: Oscar Lagerstrom. Associate producer: Harry S. Webb. Producer: Bernard B. Ray.

Not copyrighted by Reliable Pictures Corp. Released through William Steiner: 11 May 1935. 58 minutes.

SYNOPSIS: After a run-in with the town's badmen, a well-mannered stranger accepts a job as sheriff. Perhaps he has his eye on the blind storekeeper's pretty daughter.

COMMENT: Tom Tyler acquits himself well against a strong line-up of villains in this nicely atmospheric little western. We like Jayne Regan's pert little heroine too. Lafe McKee's fans will also have a field day. And there's more than enough action to satisfy the matinée crowd.

All the same, I was very surprised to find the film listed as a 1935 release. Its lack of sophistication in almost all departments (writing, acting, directing, photography) except for an occasional spurt of inventive film editing (the cuts between really close close-ups of Tyler and Chesebro, which force the villain to back down), stamp the movie as a product of a more primitive school of Poverty Row movie-making!

"The Silver Bullet" Makes a Fun Impression!

[glennstenb · 7/10 · 8 September 2023]

Although "The Silver Bullet" is competently-enough made and moves along with a solid story, it becomes a surprisingly fun and engrossing western with some of the genres most-appreciated players plying their trade. The reason the film moves into the engrossing realm is owing to some unusual plot devices and some off-the-beaten-track characterizations. In addition, the title actually refers to something meaningful in the film!

The sets are attractively rustic and varied and there are many group scenes with the players interacting in happy times, stressful times, and tense times. For sure this effort was made on the cheap, but the cast and crew seem to be having a ball putting it together.

A particular treat is that Lafe McKee has a close-to-rare major role in this one. Yes, Lafe is usually one of the stiffest frequently-assigned actors west of the Pecos, but there is just no denying there is something about him that just yells out "old west." Adding to his allure here is that Lafe sports a head of black hair for a time, this during an unusual flashback scene to when he was a younger man.

Fans of B-westerns should find this Tom Tyler adventure exciting and satisfying.