Note: this review is based on a later reissue. The version I saw had a Production Code certificate which indicated a rerelease in 1934 that might have been trimmed.
Buck Jones' first sound picture is an entertaining affair. Buck has been leading vigilantes, but dirt has been dug up on him and he must clear his name and woo Vera Reynolds (who strums a guitar and sings a couple of lines). It's a plot that was reused several times. For this go-around, director Louis King (Henry King's brother) directs a lot of sequences with no dialogue, permitting the accomplished silent actors to perform well.
The sound, as you might expect at this stage, is not very good. There is a lot of hiss in the background, and voices are muffled. However cinematographer Ted McCord does a typically fine job and takes advantage of the dramatic and mountainous background to frame the shots. It's clearly a B western, but everyone handles their work in the new sound era very well.
Buck Jones' first sound picture is an entertaining affair. Buck has been leading vigilantes, but dirt has been dug up on him and he must clear his name and woo Vera Reynolds (who strums a guitar and sings a couple of lines). It's a plot that was reused several times. For this go-around, director Louis King (Henry King's brother) directs a lot of sequences with no dialogue, permitting the accomplished silent actors to perform well.
The sound, as you might expect at this stage, is not very good. There is a lot of hiss in the background, and voices are muffled. However cinematographer Ted McCord does a typically fine job and takes advantage of the dramatic and mountainous background to frame the shots. It's clearly a B western, but everyone handles their work in the new sound era very well.