Well boys, "the slickest band of rustlers ever heard of in these parts" are plying their trade again. This time, they are headed by the owner of the local saloon, would you believe? Unfortunately, this time, he is portrayed in a thoroughly routine and mechanical manner by Tris Coffin. Nothing startling about that, but what is somewhat odd is that Coffin is partnered by kindly-faced Steve Clark who is usually cast as the heroine's dad. In this movie, that role is assigned to Jack Rockwell, cast in his customary role as the local sheriff, while Ted Adams enjoys his customary role as a crooked deputy. Brown and Hatton also turn in their usual characterizations. Nice to see Kermit Maynard on the right side of the law as one of the ranch hands. He can be spotted in quite a lot of the footage, but he has very little to do. Lambert Hillyer's direction comes across as surprisingly routine. Even the action spots, although complete with a few running inserts at the climax, are pretty undistinguished. The dialogue is studded with clichés, the plot is familiar and little attempt is made to work up any sense of mystery or suspense. In fact, the movie is thoroughly routine in all departments. Some musical interludes by Smith Ballew at a long after-the-climax wedding breakfast sequence fail to rally an audience's interest. The songs are likewise unmemorable and the background music is a rehash of that recorded in previous Brown westerns. Production credits can be classed as no more than adequate. Likewise, production values rate no more than fair.
Review of Under Arizona Skies
