The Oil Raider (1934)

Thanks for the memories!

Fantastic!

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Larry 'Buster' Crabbe plays Dave, a 'wildcatter'. A wildcat is a term used for folks who go exploring for oil deposits--a rather high-risk but potentially very rewarding business. However, like many of the old wildcats, Dave isn't rich and needs an investor, Mr. Varley. Now you'd think Dave's only problem would be obtaining these finances, but there is a jerk-face named Simmons who gets himself fired...and he's determined to get revenge on Dave. Again and again, Simmons gets the snot beaten out of him whenever he attacks Dave. Ultimately, however, there is an evil plot that teams up Simmons with Varley--the guy who is supposedly helping Dave. What's next? Give it a look and see.Up until the end, I might have given this agreeable B-movie a 6-- which isn't bad. However, the very ending really was done poorly-- with Dave suddenly forgiving and forgetting all about Varley's treachery! Odd to say the least.

Long before the corporate structure of Ewing Oil ("Dallas") and Denver-Carrington ("Dynasty") came the wildcatters, and this is one story, an intriguing plot involving an independent oil rigger, the money man who backs him, and sabotage. Buster Crabbe is the equivalent of the later Jock Ewing, albeit a decade older, fighting to stay afloat in the era where every man was a fighter and had to be tough to stay afloat in a tough business. This especially works because it is a battle between good and bad and evil, the bad man a ruthless businessman who gets in over his head in trying to gain control, and evil being the saboteur who goes too far in his vengeance against Crabbe while in cahoots with the wealthy businessman. Two steps above the average poverty row programmer, it really is worth its weight...in crude.

Run of the mill oil drilling story starring Buster Crabbe about a driller with an investor who doesn't want him to succeed. Its got all of the things that similar movies from the period have, battling co workers, sabotage, investor troubles, romance. It's the sort of movie that they don't really make any more simply because the way we drill for oil is different than it was 70 years ago, and even then they only seemed to be able to be making basically the same film over and over again (trust me if you watch a handful or more of these films and you'll quickly see they are all the same). In all honesty this isn't a bad movie, it's just very similar to every other film with the same plot and your tolerance for the film will depend on on how many other similar films like this you've seen.