Barbed Wire (1952)
A cattle buyer, a federal agent and a newswoman snip a railroad plot.
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Sadly Over-hyped
People are voting emotionally.
Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.
The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.
One of Gene's later productions (1952), with same crew as filmed his TV series (1950-1955). Some great desert scenery as backdrop for lots of hard-riding. Also, lots of flying fists, even if some are less well staged than usual. Buttram does spots of comedy relief, but he's also more serious than usual as a rather inept government agent. Familiar old coot William Fawcett (Uncle John) gets bigger role than usual and is as grouchy as ever. Bad guy here (Rutledge) is one-armed land speculator who's plotting to block trail drives so he can get railroad rights. If the storyline sounds more complicated than usual, it is. And what's with poor leading lady Anne James. She acts as though she just swallowed a lemon—see if you can spot a smile anywhere in the 60-minutes. I couldn't. Anyway it all adds up to another worthy entry in Gene's matinée series, along with two great sing-along songs. But otherwise nothing special.A "6" on the matinée scale.
Just like every 50's kid did on Saturday morning...watch Gene Autry ride Champion to the rescue. In BARBED WIRE, Gene is a cattle buyer that returns to Texas and finds a lack of fresh livestock. The shady and influential Steve Ruttledge(Leonard Penn)is using barbed wire to fence off much needed grazing land, slowing down the local cattlemen from taking their stock to market. The underhanded Ruttledge is planning to profit from the rumor of a railroad needing land. Gene and Pat 'Buckeye' Buttram find a loophole in the law to legally put a hitch in Ruttledge's dreams and brings the villain down.Supporting cast includes: Anne James, Michael Vallon, William Fawcett, Clayton Moore and Terry Frost. You can always count on Gene and his comical sidekick Pat to save the day.
Watching these old Gene Autry films is, for people over 50, a blast from the way way way past. Especially fun to watch: Pat Buttram, the squeaky-voiced comedy relief sidekick. Buttram worked, often doing voice overs, right up until he died in the mid-1990s. Was also in Back To The Future III.