Texas Stagecoach (1940) Poster

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5/10
Wagon Wheel Joe Lewis
boblipton6 June 2023
Charles Starrett's family is in the stagecoach business. So is Iris Meredith's. It's a friendly rivalry, until banker Kenneth MacDonald convinces each to run a new road to a neighboring town, then tells each the other has stolen their idea..... and starts to sabotage both. It's his plan to drive them into bankruptcy and scoop up their assets for himself.

Bob Nolan of the Sons of the Pioneers plays Miss Meredith's brother, and the boys sing "Tumbling Tumbleweeds" and two or three others. Director Joseph H. Lewis shoots a shot through a wagon wheel at the 24:20 mark, and allows Starrett a clumsy mount near the end -- Columbia may have been better financed than the Poverty Row studios, but they were not in the habit of wasting film or set-ups. A capable cast does its best with a typically poor Fred Myton script, and a pleasant time can be had by fans of B westerns.
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6/10
Rivalry leads to romance.
mark.waltz2 December 2023
Warning: Spoilers
Thanks to greedy banker Kenneth MacDonald, the friendship between the families of Charles Starrett and Iris Meredith over their stage companies turns from a minor rivalry into desperate scheming and plotting, with MacDonald standing by waiting for the dust to settle so he can swoop in and be Kung of the stage. It's much more of a complex plot than it sounds, with Starrett and Meredith trying to keep the peace while others around them allow the manipulations to get out of control.

The feistiness of Meredith's character makes her quite interesting even though she is not completely in control of the business and has to learn how to deal with Starrett's chauvinistic father Edward LeSaint. The Sons of the Pioneers get a couple of good songs to help liven things up, particularly a number when they sing while pounding rocks with sledge hammers, adding to the rhythm. A funny bit containing bit player Lillian Lawrence at the beginning had me amused, recalling her from minor roles in many other films, her ostrich like looks unforgettable. Serves its purpose as an entertaining B western that is more than just barely worth seeing.
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