Stick to Your Guns (1941) User Reviews

"The next guy that pulls a gun answers to me."

[classicsoncall · 6/10 · 3 October 2017]

Hopalong Cassidy (William Boyd) assumes not one, but two aliases in this outing, although the second one is a ruse he employs to trick the head of an outlaw gang. Hoppy and his pal California (Andy Clyde) go undercover so to speak, with Hoppy assuming the name Tex Riley, and Clyde's character going by California Jack. When they both infiltrate a gang led by Nevada Teale (Dick Curtis), Hoppy strings the baddie along by insinuating that he might be an outlaw who survived a shootout, going by the name of Tom Wilkins. Funny, but once that little tidbit is mentioned, it really doesn't come up again to affect the story.

With Cassidy using a couple different monikers, you'd expect California to get tripped up at some point and call him by his real name, and he actually did at one point, but it was overlooked when it happened. A real puzzler for me occurred when Nevada's henchman Gila (Weldon Heyburn) learned of Cassidy's real identity, and thought it would be a good idea to shoot it out with him instead of going to his boss. A pretty dumb move, not only on Gila's part, but the writers too, who could have come up with something more imaginative.

You don't get much in the way of singing in most Hopalong Cassidy flicks, but the addition of The Jimmy Wakely Trio in this one's lineup was a bit of a welcome change. The group sounded good, and Brad King even got to sing a tune as his character Johnny Nelson, done of course to romance June Winters (Jennifer Holt) in the story. The Wakely's harmonies behind Johnny made 'Blue Moon on the Silver Sage' a nice diversion for a Hoppy Western.

Speaking of Jennifer Holt, she was the daughter of another veteran B movie cowboy, Jack Holt, and brother of Tim Holt who starred in his own series of movies as a cowboy star. This was her first credited movie role, and following this one, she signed a six year contract with Universal, and along with Cassidy, appeared in Westerns along side stars like Johnny Mack Brown, Tex Ritter and Lash LaRue. She usually played a good girl type, but her favorite role was that of a villain and leader of an outlaw gang in the Eddie Dean film, "The Hawk of Powder River".

A credible remake of Bar 20 Rides Again with fabulous music.

[ajsordoni · 7/10 · 3 May 2015]

Stick To Your Guns can be judged outstanding on two points. First and most convincing is the music which features great songs performed by Brad King and/or The Jimmy Waklely Trio including the classics, Cimmaron Roll On by Johnny Bond (who appears in a speaking and singing role) and Smiley Burnette's On The Strings Of My Lonesome Guitar. The latter tune being scored and edited beautifully into the film. The effect is way beyond the resources of most b-westerns. In fact this element of production value is what elevated most of the Hopalong Cassidy features above the average series westerns of the day. The other is the directing of Lesley Selander, especially in the scenes that involve Charles Middleton and Dick Curtis in character as Long Ben and Nevada respectively. Forgive the few cheap, studio exteriors and focus on the many charming elements of this 1941 film.

JENNIFER HOLT'S FIRST ROLE

[frontrowkid2002 · 6 July 2004]

Jennifer Holt's first role on screen was in Stick To Your Guns. Billed as Jacqueline Holt for the only time in her career, a possible attempt to cash in on her famous father, Jack Holt, she did not care for the billing. In one scene, where she is riding with the posse, her saddle cinch becomes unloosened and she was in danger of falling off and being trampled. She was rescued by character actor Tom London who quickly transferred her onto his horse. Of course this scene does not show up on the screen. She was replaced by a double. Jennifer never cared much for horseback riding and in her words, "if you look closely in some scenes, you can see me holding on for dear life. For more about this film and her career, please check my memorial tribute as it appeared in Classic Images in November, l997. Our nickname for each other was "Scorpio."

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Rip roaring hoppy western

[coltras35 · 9/10 · 18 November 2020]

Enjoyable hopalong Cassidy western starring the charismatic William Boyd. Plenty of rootin' toot in' shooting, great scenery and galloping hooves - the staple diet of these films. There's some singing. The finale is quite nail biting.

Once a Bar 20 man always a Bar 20 man

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 18 July 2014]

Henry Hall former Bar 20 hand and now owner of his own spread is having his cattle systematically rustled. Which means that Hopalong Cassidy and the rest of the Bar 20 ranch can be counted on to help.

It's agreed upon that it's Dick Curtis and his band that's doing the rustling. But finding them and catching them with the stolen cattle won't be easy, Curtis's gang has got a nice hideout in the hills and no easy way to reach them.

Bill Boyd and Andy Clyde go undercover with the help of Charles Middleton who Hoppy arrested back when he was a US Marshal. Of course in the end the bad guys are dealt with in Bar 20 fashion.

Stick To Your Guns gave Jennifer Holt her film debut though she was billed as Jacqueline Holt. She and Hoppy's young sidekick Brad King are paired together.

Enough action in Stick To Your Guns for any western fan.

plodding unimaginative plot

[chipe · 5/10 · 7 February 2015]

Sorry, but this Hoppy outing disappointed me.

My main complaint is that the basic plot was laid out at the start of the movie. Hoppy was told the general area where the rustler gang was headquartered. Hoppy and California were to join the gang and smoke signal Johnny Nelson and the Bar 20 posse to round up the bad guys -- and that is exactly what happened. No mystery or surprises. Early on Hoppy happened to meet an old adversary who readily told Hoppy where the headquarters was. The boss of the gang learned of Hoppy's deception too late. There were a few twists that mainly served as filler.

I could do without the singing, and Brad King and Jennifer Holt as Hoppy's young sidekick and heroine did nothing for me. Other sidekicks and heroines in the series were much more engaging.

One scene surprised me, for a Hoppy film, for its unnecessary violence: Hoppy gets the drop on the gang leader at the end of the movie. He orders the leader to holster his gun, which he does. Hoppy then holsters his gun, encouraging a quick draw contest, which is what happens -- Hoppy outdraws and kills the leader, who was really not particularly villainous.

Just Before Hoppy Fell Off the Cliff

[wrbtu · 19 February 2004]

My summary title doesn't refer to the plot of any movie, it refers to the quality of the two Hoppy movies that followed this one: "Twilight on the Trail" & "Outlaws of the Desert," which are the two worst Hoppy movies of the 66 in the series. So somewhat surprisingly, this movie that preceded them is really a good movie. There are four songs, & although I frown on songs in my Hoppy movies (I leave that to Gene Autry & Roy Rogers), these songs are actually of good quality. This is a good, old fashioned western with lots of action, & not all of it involving Hoppy. There's plenty of gunfights, & unlike most later Hoppy movies, some of them are one on one gunfights (in later movies, the gunfights became one gang vs. another gang gun battles). This is a pretty tough western with plenty of excitement, & other characters have the stage quite a bit. Oddly, the Buck Peters character (owner of the Bar 20 Ranch that Hoppy works for) appears & has a few lines, but is not listed in the credits. Blooper: in one scene, California warns Hoppy of danger by yelling "Look out, Hoppy!" The problem is that Hoppy was supposed to be a character named "Tex Riley" at the time! No one in the baddies gang seemed to notice this, & apparently the film editor missed it also (or the director decided it would cost too much to re-shoot the scene). If you're watching the Hoppy series in chronological order, enjoy this one while you can, because as I said earlier, the quality of the next two Hoppy films "falls off the cliff!" I rate it 8/10.

NOTES: Number 40 of the 66-picture series.

[JohnHowardReid · 5/10 · 7 February 2018]

Copyright 19 September 1941 by Paramount Pictures Inc. U.S. release: 27 September 1941. No New York showcase. Australian release: 12 November 1942. 5,655 feet. 63 minutes. SYNOPSIS: All the Bar-20 cowhands gather at a word from one of its former crew who has become a ranch owner and is systematically being robbed of his stock by a rustling gang. Hopalong Cassidy and his leathery lieutenant, California, submit a plan of action: they will proceed to Snake Buttes, locate the hideout and try to work into the gang's roster. If they are successful, they agree, a smoke signal and sage signs will lead to the outlaw nest. While Hoppy's sidekick, Johnny Nelson, waits for the rest of the Bar-20 worthies to assemble at the ranch, Hopalong and California head for the desert town of Ojos Verdes. While California cadges a free lunch and resists all blandishments and entreaties from the bartender for a single purchase, Hoppy finds out the location of the rustlers' headquarters from Long Ben, a treacherous gambler who reveals the location because he has been caught cheating and beaten up by the rustlers and has a long-standing fear of Hoppy. Long Ben hopes each will wipe out the other. Locations scenes photographed in the Lone Pine region, California. Songs: "Blue Moon on the Silver Sage" and "On the Strings of My Guitar", both sung by Brad King, with the guitar-strumming accompaniment of the Jimmy Wakely Trio (Wakely, Bond and Rinehart). Jacqueline "Jennifer" Holt is the daughter of Jack Holt.

COMMENT: Hopalong Cassidy and California pose as a couple of outlaws and join a gang of cattle rustlers. There's a moderate amount of action in the last reel, some good location photography by Russell Harlan, some less painful comic interludes than usual, but some wet romantic footage instead. (An excellent Platinum Disc DVD).

Relatively dull for a Hopalong Cassidy film.

[planktonrules · 5/10 · 26 September 2020]

If you look on YouTube, you can find many of the old Hopalong Cassidy films. In fact, it's the best place to find them, as these are the original full-length movies and are in beautiful condition. This is a sharp contrast to many other B-westerns, where only truncated versions are available thanks to the films being cut down a bit to fit them into television time slots. This is where I found "Stick to Your Guns".

When the story begins, messages are sent out to the boys of the Bar 20 Ranch to come help, as rustlers are robbing an old friend of theirs. Hoppy and California (Andy Clyde) also receive word, but they are much closer. So they head there first and pose as bad guys...hoping to join up with Nevada Teale and his gang of thugs. They are successful in convincing these folks that they are evil...and one of their first duties is re-branding stolen cattle. The other duty is not getting their heads blown off, as the gang members are on edge an soon begin sniping at each other. How long they can remain in the gang without getting shot or discovered is anyone's guess!

I noticed that one reviewer felt that this was one of Hopalong Cassidy's last good films. Well, my reaction was pretty much the opposite. While I've seen better films he made later, I felt that this one was awfully dull. Not bad...just not that exciting. It's worth seeing...but had few memorable scenes aside from the poker game that ended...in death!!