Review of Texas Terror

This is the twelfth of the fourteen Lone Star westerns in which John Wayne starred between 1933 and 1935. Unfortunately, it is not one of the most action-packed in the series. In fact, there are only three action sequences in the whole movie, including two at the beginning and the customary double climax. And none are staged with the breathtaking vigor of "The Lawless Frontier" or even "West of the Divide". True, a couple of the stunt falls are daring enough and the locations are well utilized, but writer-director Robert North Bradbury's camera in the hands of photographer William Hyer, is a bit light on running inserts. The stunts are all shot from fixed positions. And the climax is further marred by the obvious insertion of ancient stock footage. Instead we are treated to a comic milking contest between Fern Emmett and Henry Roquemore! As if all this were not inducements enough to give "Texas Terror" a miss, the heroine did not take my fancy at all, and the bad guys did not impress me either, though it was good to see Buffalo Bill, Jr. in a fairly sizable role as a sort of chief henchman to the chief villain. However, apart from Wayne himself, who turns in his usual capable performance, the most interesting player is George Hayes. Although he turns in an odd scene or two speaking in his usual wheedling old sourdough voice, for the most part he employs his natural accents. In fact, it's weird to see Hayes with such a neatly trimmed beard, let alone to hear this impeccably mellifluous voice issuing from his lips. Perhaps he felt the role needed more dignity – and he was dead right. In fact, Hayes is one of the very few members of the Lone Star stock company (Wayne is another) who can make writer-director Bradbury's clichéd and instant information dialogue seem at least halfway convincing.