The title sounds like it might have been one of those exploitation flicks from the Thirties or Forties. In a way, I guess the picture delivers a bit on that idea if you think about it. A hillbilly gal (Sandra Dee) ditches her thieving father (Strother Martin) and siblings and hitches her star to Yancy Hawks (Audie Murphy), but due to the naiveté of both, she winds up as a dance hall saloon gal. This could have been a real downer if she ever actually went to work, but fortunately Yancy made the save just in time.
Anyone growing up during the era will recall Sandra Dee as a teenage heartthrob and I imagine she fluttered a few when this picture came out. Ben Stocker (Martin) had it right when he said she'd be real purty once you cleaned her up, but gee, I thought she was worth more than a couple of furs. Murphy's character had one of the best lines in the story when he told old Ben that "the Lord sure made a mistake lettin' people like you have children". Ouch!
For his part, Yancy initially had his eye out for saloon gal Marcy Howard (Joanne Dru), but I couldn't understand why he couldn't put two and two together when he found her passed out among the ferns. Yancy was a bumpkin in more ways than one, and even though I can imagine that there once might have been people as clueless as he was, it still had a hard time translating on screen.
In it's own way, the story had a nice, happy ending if you can get past the idea of thirty five year old Murphy finally hooking up with a teenager half his age. But it wasn't as ridiculous as Sheriff Paul (Gilbert Roland) putting the move on her himself, I'm glad the picture didn't go too far in that direction. You know, I had to wonder what the town folk must have really thought about their saloon owner lawman. Right after Yancy shot the sheriff (sounds like a good idea for a song), one of the citizens says to Yancy, "That was great shootin', fella". Not too much sympathy there for a guy who cleaned up the whole town.
Anyone growing up during the era will recall Sandra Dee as a teenage heartthrob and I imagine she fluttered a few when this picture came out. Ben Stocker (Martin) had it right when he said she'd be real purty once you cleaned her up, but gee, I thought she was worth more than a couple of furs. Murphy's character had one of the best lines in the story when he told old Ben that "the Lord sure made a mistake lettin' people like you have children". Ouch!
For his part, Yancy initially had his eye out for saloon gal Marcy Howard (Joanne Dru), but I couldn't understand why he couldn't put two and two together when he found her passed out among the ferns. Yancy was a bumpkin in more ways than one, and even though I can imagine that there once might have been people as clueless as he was, it still had a hard time translating on screen.
In it's own way, the story had a nice, happy ending if you can get past the idea of thirty five year old Murphy finally hooking up with a teenager half his age. But it wasn't as ridiculous as Sheriff Paul (Gilbert Roland) putting the move on her himself, I'm glad the picture didn't go too far in that direction. You know, I had to wonder what the town folk must have really thought about their saloon owner lawman. Right after Yancy shot the sheriff (sounds like a good idea for a song), one of the citizens says to Yancy, "That was great shootin', fella". Not too much sympathy there for a guy who cleaned up the whole town.