Raiders of Old California (1957)

At the end of the Mexican-American War, a crooked U.S. Cavalry Captain and his men force a captive Mexican officer to sign the deeds to his vast lands and large hacienda over to the Captain.

Director:

Albert C. Gannaway

Writers:

Samuel Roeca (as Sam Roeca), Tom Hubbard (as Thomas G. Hubbard)

Stars:

Jim Davis, Arleen Whelan, Faron Young

Cast

Cast overview:
Jim Davis	...	Captain Angus Clyde McKane
Arleen Whelan	...	Julie Johnson
Faron Young	...	Marshal Faron Young
Marty Robbins	...	Cpl. Timothy Boyle
Lee Van Cleef	...	Sgt. Damon Pardee
Louis Jean Heydt	...	Judge Ward Young
Harry Lauter	...	Lt. Scott Johnson
Douglas Fowley	...	Sheriff
Lawrence Dobkin	...	Don Miguel Sebastian (as Larry Dobkin)
Bill Coontz	...	Turk
Don Diamond	...	Pepe
Rick Vallin	...	Burt (as Ric Vallon)
Tom Hubbard	...	Emmet

Storyline

Following the Mexican-American War, a small group of discharged U. S. Cavalrymen, led by Angus McKane (Jim Davis), stays on in California after the war and, through treachery, seizes a Spanish land grant, thereby gaining control of a vast area of what became the states of Arizona and California.

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Plot Keywords:

mexican american war | opening action scene | horse chase | horse | cowboy and outlaw | 

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Taglines:

They Plundered for Power Across a Fabulous Empire!

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Genres:

Drama | History | Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 November 1957 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Gun and the Gavel

Filming Locations:

Kanab, Utah, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Albert C. Gannaway Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

72 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Glen Glenn Sound)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

Although set in the years just after the Mexican War (1846-47) the US Army soldiers wore uniforms and equipment that weren't standard-issue until late in the Civil War (1861-65)--repeating rifles, breech-loading six-shooters, etc. The Mexican soldiers, however, appear to have the correct uniforms and equipment for the period.

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Connections

Edited into Six Gun Theater (2015)

User Reviews

Good cast, but flabby oater's cheapness and incompetence is irritating

Although full of actors with a lot of experience in westerns--Jim Davis, Harry Lauter, Lee Van Cleef, Douglas Fowley--this cheap and irritating film from Republic comes across like it was made over a weekend by a couple of guys who got some money (very little of it, from the looks of things) together and said, "Hey, let's make a western!". This was released by Republic near the end of its existence--the studio went out of business two years later--although it wasn't actually made by them but was an independent production they picked up for distribution. That at least salvages their reputation somewhat, since Republic specialized in making westerns and knew how to make efficient, action-packed horse operas; I can't think of any of its own product that is as tenth-rate as this mess is.

There are so many things wrong with this film that it's difficult to know where to begin. For starters, although it's called "Raiders of Old California", it's set along the Texas/Mexican border, nowhere near California. As pointed out by other reviewers, the US troops wear uniforms and equipment that weren't issued until 15 years or so after the period the film was set in (the late 1840s). The film opens during the Mexican-American War of 1848 with a US Army attack on a Mexican fort, and it's an indication of what's to come--the "action" is dull, slow, poorly staged and full of stupid mistakes (while attacking the fort, the US soldiers don't bother running but stand out in the open, where they are promptly shot; soldiers fall off their horses although no shots are heard being fired; after the battle is over and the Americans have taken the fort, a Mexican soldier rides through the front gate and starts speaking to his commanding officer--in English--apparently not noticing that the fort has been taken over by American soldiers), and the "fort" itself is a painfully obvious, shoddily made set that looks like it was slapped together with wrapping paper and plywood.

The story of greedy villains trying to take land away from poor defenseless peasants and farmers has been done a thousand times before (and a thousand times better) and despite the cast of western veterans, no one acquits themselves particularly well. I hope their checks didn't bounce so at least they got something out of it, because this flabby, badly written, sloppily made hackjob isn't anything any of them should be proud of.