Raiders of Old California

Former Cavalry officer Jim Davis and fellow heavies Lee Van Cleef and Marty Robbins take control of a huge parcel of land following the Mexican American War, pushing the Mexican peasant farmers off the property given them by it's former owner, a General in the Mexican Army.

Raiders Of Old California looks a bit cheap but it's so hard-boiled and action packed that the low-budget doesn't hurt it all that much, though I wish country stars Robbins and Faron Young could have strummed and sang a few tunes.

Speaking of Young, he's pretty good as Davis' nemesis, a justice seeking U.S. Marshall. If he had been fifteen years older he could have been an excellent Saturday matinée western star.

Lee Van Cleef too has a pretty meaty role as Davis' number one henchman. Here he's just as mean, cold, and cruel as he is in later performances. This is essential viewing for Van Cleef fans.