Johnny Reno (1966) User Reviews

The mistake I made was being born.

[hitchcockthelegend · 6/10 · 15 August 2013]

Johnny Reno is directed by R.G. Springsteen and written by Steve Fisher and Andrew Craddock. It stars Dana Andrews, Jane Russell, Lyle Bettger, Lon Chaney Jr., John Agar and Tom Drake. A Technicolor/Techniscope production, with music by Jimmie Haskell (title tune song by Jerry Wallace) and cinematography by Harold Stine.

Andrews is Johnny Reno, a tough no nonsense U.S. Marshal who after arresting suspected Indian killer Joe Conners (Drake), takes him to the jail in Stone Junction in Kansas. But once there Johnny finds a hostile and corrupt town that want Conners lynched before trial. Why? Does this town have a secret? Is Conners really as innocent as he proclaims? Reno must stand alone against the town to find the truth.

Safe Western film making 101, Johnny Reno has just enough about it to keep it from stinker status. There's a fine cast involved, but they are either winding down their long careers or merely going through the motions. The direction is standard fare, with the action sequences constructed only adequately, and the musical score is at times more befitting a comedy serial episode.

Yet the premise, as simple as it is, plays out well for dramatic purpose. Reno is a two fisted hard bastard type of guy, and it's fun to watch him tackle the whole of Stone Junction, including, naturally, affairs of the heart by way of Russell's Nona Williams. The narrative has some observations on corruption, racism and vigilantism that are to be applauded, while the Techniscope photography around Vasquez Rocks Natural Area Park is most easy on the eye.

It is what it is, a Western in the late 60s trying to keep with the formula traditions of the "B" grade Oaters from the previous decade. It succeeds on that front for sure, where even though it has plenty of faults, it's a decent enough time waster for fans of the stars or those who like the said undemanding Westerns of the 50s. 6/10

Worth a matinée

[Nazi_Fighter_David · 6/10 · 17 December 2008]

Lyle Bettger is one of those stalwarts whose names probably mean nothing to most average filmgoers but who enjoy instant recognition on the screen…

Bettger was far better knows as a blond, blue-eyed villain given to exuding pathological hated... His good looks worked for him in every determined effort, even as a menacing villain with a snickering charm...

Dana Andrews plays Marshal Johnny Reno, who used to be one of the top gunfighters… He just arrived with a prisoner called Joe Conners (Tom Drake) considered by the citizens of Stone Junction as a little Indian-killer…

Of course the Mayor of the town Jess Yates (Buttger) assures the marshal that Conners will be given a fair trial and asked him to get out of the town fast…

In spite of hearing that the lynch mob will be out there and one way or another they'll get Conners, the tough marshal tells everybody that his prisoner is in his protective custody and anybody who wants to get to him is going to have to step over his dead body…

That day, the way it happened—before the Connors mess—Reno was riding to see somebody he once knew, Nona Williams (Jane Russell). He knew the woman years before when he was the righteous lawman in the town where she lived… He has been wearing a badge ever since… Nona made a mistake and he couldn't forgive her…

Lon Chaney Jr shows up as a sheriff who forgets that his job is law and order…

Filmed in Technicolor and Panavision, "Johnny Reno" remains a tedious little Western worth a matinée

Tough Mayor Versus Tough Marshal

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 4 July 2007]

How ironic if Tom Drake and his brother hadn't fired on U.S. Marshal Dana Andrews one of them wouldn't have wound up dead and we would have had no film called Johnny Reno.

Dana Andrews plays the title role and he's drawn into a nasty local situation when that ambush happens. He brings Drake back to town to stand trial, but finds the town in a strange mood. They literally genuflect when their Mayor Lyle Bettger gives an order. Bettger really did not want to see Drake again.

Drake's accused of killing the son of a nearby Kiowa chief. That in it self is strange, why is Bettger and the town all worried about the death of an Indian which Drake protests he never did? Turns out there's a lot more going on than meets the eye.

A.C. Lyles once again provides work for several players of the forties and fifties who unless they were doing television found work increasingly hard to get. Jane Russell reprises one of her tough as nails, heart of gold women she took out a patent on. Lon Chaney, Jr. plays the part of an over the hill sheriff, very similar to what he did in High Noon. He does show why Gary Cooper did not want him backing him up in that.

Lyle Bettger adds another to his collection of twisted psychos he did like no one else could in the fifties. Richard Arlen and John Agar have decent size roles in this as well.

Not a great western, but thank you A.C. for bringing all of this cast together.

Jane Russell and Lon Chaney

[kevinolzak · 6/10 · 1 December 2014]

1965's "Johnny Reno" was number 7 of the 13 Paramount Westerns from house producer A.C. Lyles, returning many veteran performers from previous entries: Dana Andrews (second), Lon Chaney (7 for 7), John Agar (fourth), Lyle Bettger (second), Richard Arlen (sixth), Robert Lowery (second), Reg Parton (fifth), Rodd Redwing (second), plus first timers Jane Russell and Tom Drake. The Conners brothers are accused of killing an educated young Indian in the Kansas town of Stone Junction, where federal marshal Johnny Reno (Dana Andrews) hopes to rekindle old flame Nona Williams (the still scrumptious Jane Russell). Thinking the marshal is pursuing them, the brothers open fire on Reno, who kills Ab Conners (Dale Van Sickel) in self defense, taking the wounded Joe Conners (Tom Drake) into custody. Stone Junction's mayor, Jess Yates (Lyle Bettger), seems all too anxious for Reno to return to St. Louis and leave his prisoner with Sheriff Hodges (Lon Chaney), which only whets the marshal's curiosity about the facts behind the murder charge. The longer he sticks around, the greater his suspicions become, and with the formerly cowed sheriff regaining his pride by backing Reno, prejudice and bigotry are soon vanquished. Lyle Bettger makes for an effectively slimy villain, John Agar and Robert Lowery in compliance, while Tom Drake is believable in his desperation. Jane Russell ably provides the surprisingly strong love interest, her backstory similar to that of Johnny Reno, living down past mistakes made out of love or loyalty. His career slowly winding down, Lon Chaney once again enjoys a chance to shine as Sheriff Hodges, refusing to allow vigilantism in standing up for law and order, getting shot in his final act of selflessness. The lone actor to thus far appear in all seven Lyles Westerns, Chaney only did one more, 1967's "Buckskin" (the last of the 13 to be released).

''The Hard-Fisted Texan With The Easy-Loving Way!

[phillindholm · 6/10 · 12 July 2005]

"Johnny Reno" is one of the thirteen low-budget westerns produced by A.C. Lyles in the sixties. It stars Dana Andrews, Jane Russell, Lon Chaney, Richard Arlen, Lyle Bettger and Tom Drake. The premise is a simple one. Sheriff Andrews is heading to a small town in order to see his one-time sweetheart (Russell). On the way, he is set upon by two brothers who think he is after them. Forced to shoot one, he captures the other (Drake) and brings him into town. His prisoner insists he is innocent of the crime the whole town wants him hanged for, and after hearing his story, will Andrews believe him? The film is an enjoyable time waster, mostly for the appearances of the veteran stars, but the story is also fairly suspenseful. Previously available only on a full screen videocassette, "Johnny Reno" has been released on DVD in a well-preserved widescreen edition. Hopefully, the rest in the series will follow.

Awful AC Lyles production

[35541m · 3/10 · 11 March 2014]

This film is poor even by the standards of an AC Lyles 'old geezer' western. Audiences back when this was released must have realised that it was bottom of the barrel schlock and laughed throughout. Anachronistic songs and music, old rheumatic actors in need of doubles, pathetic choreography; anyone seeing this in 1966 must have felt that they had gone through a timewarp and re-emerged in the 1950s.

The highlight has to be the saloon fight between Dana Andrews and Lyle Bettger or, rather, the fight between their stunt doubles since the faces of the stuntmen are visible throughout and Bettger's has a different hair colour. I also laughed out loud when a rubber dummy was catapaulted into the air after an explosion and when a character was all smiles about 10 seconds after being told that her father was dead.

RG Springsteen was a hack but had directed a relatively competent film (Bullet for a Badman) only a little while previously so it is not clear why, other than cheap budget and rushed shooting schedule, he is so slapdash here. Note also that Andrews' ride to Jane Russell's house is conveyed by using footage recycled from earlier in the film.

A pleasant actioner

[discount1957 · 7/10 · 12 June 2017]

An above-average Lyles Western that gently eases its ageing cast through an intriguing plot. Andrews is the marshal and Russell, as boisterous as ever, the owner of the gin palace he comes to visit. However, on his arrival with Drake, he discovers that law and order in Stone Junction is lynch law and that the town is ruled by Bettger. The film is well scripted - indeed this is the best screenplay of all Lyle's Westerns - and imaginatively directed by Springsteen, especially at the climax where a bunch of Indians all but tear down Stone Junction. This is a pleasant actioner.

Phil Hardy

More of the same

[frankfob · 3/10 · 5 August 2002]

Another in producer A.C. Lyles' string of geezer westerns. This time, instead of just producing the picture, Lyles decided to try his hand at writing it. Bad move. The scripts on this series of westerns were never particularly good in the first place, and many of them were written by Steve Fisher, who also wrote this one. His teaming up with Lyles doesn't seem to have improved things any, and actually this particular entry is a bit more rambling and disconnected than the usual Lyles western. Although it's full of old and familiar faces, and worth a look maybe for that value alone, the picture itself isn't very good at all. Slow as molasses, it seems to be afflicted with the same arthritis that many of its principals probably had. Making an action picture with a cast whose youngest member is in his late 50s wasn't a real good idea. This isn't a real good movie. Skip it.

"I'm just getting' started on you, tough boy."

[classicsoncall · 6/10 · 29 February 2016]

The more I think about this story the less sense it seems to make. I'm speaking particularly of Lyle Bettger's character, the black-hearted mayor of Stone Junction, Jesse Yates. Where did all the hatred come from? He had the never seen Indian Ed Little Bear killed because his daughter Marie (Tracy Olsen) was interested in him romantically. But Yates had been married to an Indian squaw himself, so where's the rationale? If one was offered I missed it and I'm not going back to figure it out. But if Yates had all that power to sway the citizens of his town to get rid of Joe Conners (Tom Drake) as a fall guy, he could just as easily have convinced them to approve of a marriage between his daughter and the Indian. But then I guess, we wouldn't have had this story.

Unlike some of the other reviewers here, I'm not familiar with producer A.C. Lyles, but having read some of the comments my main question about the picture seems to have been answered. That being, why are the principals so old looking? I'm a long time Lon Chaney fan but gosh, he looked about ready to fall over any minute. As gunslinger and sheriff Johnny Reno, Dana Andrews was pushing nearly sixty himself, and even though Jane Russell was only in her mid-forties, she looked a bit worn and tired as well. Well now I know some of the history behind these films, making the picture slightly more palatable.

I'll say one thing that was hilarious though. Remember when Reno took that stick of dynamite and threw it toward the town folk shooting at him? What would possess someone to run over and pick it up, but that's just what Jake Reed (Robert Lowery) did, and got blown sky high for his trouble. At least the dummy stand-in did, that was priceless.

The other thing that caught my attention was the amount of money the town was willing to pay Johnny Reno to leave Conners behind and keep on riding - ten thousand dollars! It didn't look like there were enough folks in Stone Junction to come up with that kind of dough. But as I said earlier, not a lot here made sense, so that element just added to my puzzlement.

Rent movies when the leads are younger instead

[HotToastyRag · 2/10 · 28 August 2018]

In this late sixties western, Dana Andrews plays the title character who's forced back into town to face his demons and save an innocent man's life. That sounds a lot better than it is, trust me. And, since that doesn't even sound very good, I'm telling you to skip this one.

If the two leads were recast, this could have been just your average B-western with nothing memorable and only available on reruns on late-night television. There are cheesy bad guys, shootouts, saloons, horses, and barroom brawls-everything you expect and get out of a western. But, since Dana Andrews and his lady love Jane Russell have a few miles on them, it's a little bit sad to watch this movie. They aren't nearly as beautiful and fun to watch as they were when they were younger, so you're much better off renting movies from ten or fifteen years ago. I got a bit of a lump in my throat seeing them this way, so I wouldn't recommend it.

They manage to take a familiar idea and breathe life into it.

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 28 May 2011]

Aside from a sappy intro and closing tune, this is a pretty good western, though the main theme is a bit familiar. After all, there must have been a thousand westerns that had a big, bad boss-man who basically ran a town and got his own way...only to meet up with honest man who could not be intimidated or bought. Fortunately, however, there were enough new elements to the familiar story to make it worth seeing.

The film begins with Dana Andrews happening upon a couple men running from the law in a nearby town. They assume Andrews is after them and begin firing. Andrews kills one and captures the other. Oddly, they thought he was after him but he just happened to be in the wrong place at the right time. So, he takes the lone survivor to a nearby town for trial, but it soon becomes apparent that the town has no interest in a trial--they will hang the guy! Well, Andrews isn't about to let that happen and he gets the VERY reluctant Sheriff (Lon Chaney, Jr.) to help. There's way too much unsaid that he needs to investigate, but no one in the town seems to be talking--they all just want a good hanging and it's the local rich boss that seems to be behind everything.

Good acting and direction along with a few decent plot twists make this one worth your time. Not a great film but a very good one. And, like a typical A.C. Lyles production of the 1960s, it employs actors whose careers had seen better days--and makes good use of them.

Joe is a born loser

[dbdumonteil · 21 August 2015]

This movie already looked like an anachronism when it was released in 1966;the stars are aging actors such as Dana Andrews ,Jane Russell,John Agar ,Lon Chaney Jr ....;the score is awful and does not sound western at all;the last song is MOR pop.

The screenplay is not devoid of interest:it deals with responsibility (French title:" the whole town is guilty");and more than Dana Andrews ' sheriff and his old flame Russell ,Joe Conners is the most interesting character:a very restrained performance whereas John Drake could have turned on melodrama.He is a true loser in a way that Johnny and Nona are not.His sentences in a low voice go straight to the heart: "why my brother?he never did any harm to anyone" "I wish I was never born" "I've never had a chance in life" .The ideal scapegoat,he is the true hero of the final showdown,facing alone the whole bunch of villains.

Decent 'second feature' mid-60's Western with Dana Andrews and Jane Russell

[Wuchakk · 6/10 · 30 December 2021]

A Federal marshal (Dana Andrews) rides into Stone Junction with a prisoner (Tom Drake) whom the mayor wants lynched (Lyle Bettger), but he discerns that the mayor's minions are too gung ho and his captive may be innocent. Jane Russell plays his romantic interest while Lon Chaney Jr. Is on hand as the sheriff.

"Johnny Reno" (1966) is an A. C. Lyles Western, who produced over a dozen 'B' Westerns in the mid-60s, which all featured past-their-prime actors and shot in 10-14 days. The teams Lyles gathered always knew what they were doing and did it competently and efficiently, albeit with little artistic merit and just a notch above a TV movie. His Westerns worked well enough if you're in the mood for traditional town-bound Western with maybe a couple scenes shot in the nearby wilderness of Southern Cal.

Speaking of locations, while the events take place in Kansas, the sites clearly look like the Southwest. If you can ignore this glaring issue, the story is relatively absorbing and moves right along. Someone complained about the marshal's hat, but I didn't see the problem. It's not like James Caan's amusing hat in the contemporaneous "El Dorado." Men wore different hats in the Old West according to personal taste and Dana's marshal looks fine.

Jane of course stands out on the feminine front, 25 years after her debut in the infamous "The Outlaw" (which was shot at the end of 1940 and beginning of 1941). She was 44 during shooting, but still in fine shape. Meanwhile brunette Tracy Olsen as the mayor's winsome daughter is worth a mention.

The movie runs 1 hour, 23 minutes, and was shot at Paramount Studios, Los Angeles, and Vasquez Rocks, which is located in the high country just north of the city, east of Santa Clarita.

GRADE: B-/C+

Mediocre and short-budgeted oater produced by A. C. Lyles and regularly directed by R. G. Springsteen

[ma-cortes · 5/10 · 27 March 2020]

Dated, corny and laughable western,at times, that has US marshall Dana Andrews riding from Kansas to a small town where lives his old flame : Jane Russell. Along the way and heading to the town, he his shot by two brothers, and forced to defend himself, killing one of them. Dana Andrews after hearing him learns that they shot thinking he was after them . As he captures the survivor brother and attempting to save him. As the Marshal tries to protect an accused killer from lynching by some feared townsfolks who are set on his death . Later on, Marshall Dana Andrews and sheriff Lon Chaney Jr, on the trail of justice, hold the prisoner lockup , being besieged by the nasty citizens as the saloon owner : Tom Drake, Land baron : Jon Agar and Mayor Lyle Bettger.

Average Western with thrills, shootouts, and violent brawls at saloon between Dana Andrews and Lyle Bettger. Paramount made Western in low budget with a good but faded cast. Seventh of thirteen westerns producer Lyles movies made in the mid-Sixties, all of them realized in short budget and with similar tarnished stars of the 40s and 50s. Stars Dana Andrews as a sheriff who captures a fugitive insisting he is innocent, as he will have to protect him due to the whole town wants him hanged. He is accompanied by the always sex-pot Jane Russell as a mature Saloon woman, one-time girlfriend of the starring. Of interest for star-watching only, as here shows up known secondaries as the following ones : Lon Chaney , Lyle Bettger, John Agar, Tom Drake, Richard Arlen, Robert Lowery, among others

It contains a lousy cinematography in Techniscope by Harold Stine and atmospheric musical score by Jimmie Haskell. The motion picture was middlingly directed by R. G. Springsteen. This filmmaker made several Westerns since 1945 for Republic Pictures, as he was director of Red Ryder series. After that, he realized B Westerns as Cole Younger, Gunfighter, King of the wild stallions, Showdowm, He rides calm, Bullet for a badman, Taggart. Subsequently, he made for producer A. C. Lyles and delivered by Paramount Pictures , as follows : Black spurs, Apache uprising, Waco, Red Tomahawk, Hostile guns and Johnny Reno. Rating 4.5/10. So-so and very average oater.

Reasonable re-hash of familiar tropes

[Marlburian · 7/10 · 17 March 2023]

By 1966 the conventional Western was disappearing after countless movies had re-hashed themes that had become well worn to the point of deserving erosion. "Johnny Reno" (released that year) assembled many over-familiar tropes and somehow managed to present them collectively in a fresh manner that made for a reasonably entertaining film.

But ... at 57 Dana Andrews was far too old and time-worn for an action man, though it was evidently he who managed at least some of the agility required by his character. Lon Chaney at 60 looked even more a man who had lived a full life; by then his illnesses, not least alcoholism, were showing in his face.

At least Jane Russell looked good at 45 and effectively delivered a bathtub scene that was highly publicized at the time.

Stone Junction seemed a large town with a large saloon with several hostesses - but fewer than 20 fully-able men. A dozen remained to defend it against the Native Americans after several had been eliminated.) It was strange that Nona Williams didn't know where the nearest town with a telegraph was, not that she got very far on her mission to summon help.

terrible script, bad casting, careless make-up

[rightwingisevil · 19 January 2013]

at the first scene, it already showed that this is a lousy film. one was shot dead but no blood shown at all, the other was shot in the arm, but only got some careless cosmetic red dye on the shirt, the blood stain looked so fake, just in a round shape that never enlarged, and the arm just stayed that way, no blood dripping down beneath the long sleeve, no nothing, and the guy was acting just like a normal person instead of a wounded one. then the Indian showed up, talked like white man with perfect English. then went to the town where the lousy dialog became even worse. this is one of the worst western films i've ever watched and just failed to finish it. what a pathetic western movie!

Good Western, daring approach

[drystyx · 7/10 · 17 November 2021]

This is a Western that isn't made with enough hate for the Beavis and Butthead viewers that dominate the critics board of the late twentieth and early twenty first centuries.

Hopefully, the later generations won't be as negative and unprovoked in hatred' Dana Andrews plays a very daring role that most actors wouldn't dare to play, someone who isn't a homicidal maniac. But there are other homicidal maniacs to make the haters happy. Of course they don't fare so well, which is what makes this a different sort of Western.

A U.S. Marshal Fighting Against an Entire Town

[Uriah43 · 5/10 · 14 September 2022]

Although he was a notorious gunman in his early days, a man by the name of "Johnny Reno" (Dana Andrews) has since obtained a new lease on life and become a U. S. marshal intent on upholding law and order. To that effect, this film begins with him riding in the country when, quite unexpectedly, he is fired upon by two men who believe he is chasing after them. Much to their regret, neither of them turn out to be nearly as good with a gun as their intended target and as a result one of them named "Ab Conners" (Dale Van Sickel) is killed while his brother "Joe Conners" (Tom Drake) is subsequently wounded and forced to surrender. It's only then that Joe learns that Marshal Reno was going to Stone Junction on an entirely different matter and had never heard of him or his brother until that moment. That being said, having found out that Joe is wanted for murder, Marshal Reno has no choice but to take him into the nearest town where he can be bandaged before being escorted to Kansas City to stand trial. However, once he gets to Sone Junction, he finds that, rather than having his prisoner tried in a legal setting, the mayor of Stone Junction "Jess Yates" (Lyle Bettger) insists that he be lynched instead--and he is quite willing to do whatever is necessary to see that happen. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that, even though it wasn't necessarily a spectacular Western by any means, it had several well-known actors like Jane Russell (as "Nona Williams"), Lon Chaney Jr. ("Sheriff Hodges") and the aforementioned Dana Andrews all performing in their usual solid manner and I have rated it accordingly. Average.

Johnny Reno

[coltras35 · 7/10 · 28 March 2023]

A US Marshal, Johnny Reno, arrives in a little western town carrying with him a man wanted for the murder of a prominent Indian chief. The locals are eager to lynch him but Reno is going to have none of it. So begins a game of cat of mouse between him and the townspeople to keep his prisoner alive.

Part of the charm in an A. C Lyles western is the old-time actors as well as an old-fashioned shoot-em up where you know who the bad guy is and who is the good guy. The good guy here is Dana Andrews who is really good here despite looking worse for wear - alcoholism does that to you - and he got a lot of challenges stacked up against him. Jane Russel plays his ex-flame. Lyle Bettger still has that villainous smirk. This is an above average A. C Lyles' western that has a strong story and plot. Liked the title theme tune.

Paramount producer A.C. Lyles made several westerns with well known Hollywood stars in support roles.

[clive-38 · 8/10 · 22 September 2000]

JOHNNY RENO is just one of many second feature Westerns produced by A.C. Lyles at Paramount in the 1960's. These Westerns were of great interest to me when they were shown at our local cinema as they always had many veteran actors in supporting roles. For example take a look at the credits for "Johnny Reno" - Dana Andrews, Jane Russell, Lon Chaney Jr, John Agar, Lyle Bettger, Tom Drake, Richard Arlen, Robert Lowery, and (uncredited) DeForest Kelley. Quite an impressive cast for a second feature western!! I always used to sit up and pay attention when the words "An A.C. Lyles Production" came up on the screen as I knew this film was going to be rather special!! One of A.C.s best friends was James Cagney who only directed one film in his entire career - "Short Cut to Hell" (1957) which he did purely as a favour to A.C. to get him started as a producer. (It was a remake of the Alan Ladd film "This Gun for Hire"). Now in his 80's A.C. still has an office on the Paramount lot which he visits most days. A.C. can be seen regularly on the TV series "Biography" where he is often interviewed with his memories of the "Golden Days of Hollywood" and the many stars he knew personally from that era. Clive Roberts.

Good little western

[searchanddestroy-1 · 8/10 · 17 October 2022]

The most unusual and interesting line here is the fact that everything begins by a mistake; the two guys shoot at the sheriff because they thought he was after them. And then the problems begin for every one. One more time in a western, you have the picture of a small town community, hostile to strangers and always in a hurry to lynch for the least reason. It is tense, well done and I expected worse from that Lyles Productions, specialized in recycling old timers, has been actors and actresses. I was lucky to purchase a 2.35 ( letterbox) copy and that is one good reason to watch it. Dana Andrews is not the LAURA lead character but convincing enough for me.

Interesting Western, great cast

[crawford · 8/10 · 25 April 2024]

Dana Andrews, Jane Russell are both great in this and especially Tom Drake in one of his later roles, I really enjoyed the story and the performances and think it's worth watching. I wanna surprised to see it on cable with a one star rating, it's much better than that.

Dana Andrews has always been one of my favorite actors and though he's older here you still very much believe his character.

Tom Drake is similar in this to his role in Warlock from the late 50s, a nuanced bad guy who maybe, at least in this, isn't as bad as initially thought. That's what makes this a very fun Western to watch.