El Paso

Plot synopsis:
Clay Fletcher (John Payne) is leaving South Carolina and heading west. A rebel officer during the Civil War and also a lawyer, he wants to ease back into law practice with something not too difficult, so he travels to El Paso, Texas with estate documents to get the signature of an attorney there, Henry Jeffers (Henry Hull).
Stagecoach Nellie (Mary Beth Hughes) steals his wallet along the way. Then, in a saloon, Clay sees a man convicted of murder by a drunken judge in a trial held in a saloon. The judge is Jeffers, and when Clay speaks up on the defendant's behalf, he is charged with contempt of court. Unable to pay the fine, his fancy clothing is auctioned off.
Clay is rescued by rancher Nacho Vazquez (Eduardo Noriega), who offers him a place to stay. He also meets the judge's daughter, Susan Jeffers (Gail Russell), who owns a hat shop. Clay learns the man found guilty of murder was framed by rich land owner Bert Donner (Sterling Hayden) and his stooge, Sheriff La Farge (Dick Foran).
La Farge brutally beats and jails a man named John Elkins (Arthur Space) who had once been a friend to Clay, who volunteers to represent him. He needs the judge to be sober, so old-timer Pesky (George 'Gabby' Hayes) offers to take Jeffers out of town and away from the saloon for a while. La Farge is furious and tries to have Clay killed.
The judge is respectable again by the trial date and clears Elkins of any wrongdoing. La Farge responds by having Jeffers dragged by horses and killed. He also arranges the murders of Elkins and his wife (Catherine Craig).
Vowing revenge, Clay forms an outfit of vigilantes to set things right. But in so doing, he is warned by Susan that he is becoming as ruthless as the men he's after. Donner ends up dead and La Farge is set to be lynched when Clay comes to his senses and asks that El Paso's next judge be the one to hand out justice.

Tags: murder

Review:
Long Arm of the Law !.
This Cinecolor Western from 1949 boasts a terrific cast and an interesting storyline.
John Payne stars as a gun-toting attorney who takes on the so-called "lawmen" of El Paso.
Sterling Haytden and former singin'cowpoke Dick Foran have fun roles as the bad-guys running the town.
With the help of a drunken Judge, they rule with an iron fist ....
until Payne arrives !Gabby Hayes has a featured role and is as endearing as ever.
This film is fun and well-produced, but is a little long & drags a bit in the middle.Those with patience and a 100+ minutes to spare should enjoy this old-fashioned cowboy movie..
I think El Paso started out to be a much more ambitious western than it eventually turned out.
There was a lot more potential there than for what did eventually make it to the screen.Except for a short subject he did at Warner Brothers in 1939 El Paso was the first western that John Payne did and he definitely seemed comfortable in the genre.
He plays a lawyer and former Confederate veteran who goes west to El Paso from Charleston, South Carolina in search of an old friend of Payne's grandfather H.B. Warner.That friend is Henry Hull who went west with his daughter Gail Russell for health reasons and is now a drunken pawn of town boss Sterling Hayden.
With Hull as judge and sheriff Dick Foran to enforce some trumped up foreclosures, Hayden's grabbing all the real estate he can in and around El Paso from veterans who were not paying taxes while they were fighting in the Civil War. Payne tries it the legal way, but he's learned a few things as well in those war years.
When it doesn't work he finds himself leader of a guerrilla band who are exacting justice after a couple of murders of cast members sympathetic to Payne.Editing was pretty botched in El Paso.
There are references during the film to scenes that were obviously cut out.
The film also seemed to be building to a terrific climax and the end was quite a let down.
You'll see what I mean if you view the film.El Paso was produced by Pine-Thomas Productions, two guys with the first name of William.
So cuts were made that I think spoiled the overall quality of the film.Still fans of the western and of John Payne will like it.
Note the comic relief performances of Mary Beth Hughes as Stagecoach Nell and Gabby Hayes for once an Easterner in a western..
Desite the very familiar nature of the film, it's well worth seeing..
"El Paso" is an ugly looking film.
I assume it looked a lot better when it first debuted, but the print from Netflix is yucky looking.
Part of this might be because it used Cinecolor (a very inexpensive but far from perfect color system) and part of it surely is due to the effects of degradation over time.
All I know for sure is that the film is full of sepia tones and green-grays but many other colors are absent.The film begins just after the Civil War. A lawyer (John Payne) is sent from Charleston to El Paso to get some papers signed by a judge who used to live in South Carolina.
Unfortunately, when Payne arrives, he finds that the judge (Henry Hull) is a drunk and the town is run by an evil boss (Sterling Hayden) whose aim is to steal away everyone's land.
Can Payne use the law to his advantage or will he and his new friends have to take the law into their own hands?
The evil boss-man theme is a very, very familiar one in American films of this era--perhaps THE most familiar.
I am pretty sure it was used long before it was in "Birth of a Nation" (this was an evil boss film despite its sick racist message).
Because it's become a bit of a cliché, "El Paso" certainly lacks originality.
But, despite the familiar, the film is handled well on several levels.
While the boss-man story is overused, using an alcoholic judge to help make the land-grab 'legal' was an inspired change to the standard story.
Additionally, Payne and Hayden are both good actors and make the most of the material.
In addition, it was nice to see the way Mexicans were handled in the film.
Too often, they are simpletons in westerns, but here they are both noble AND manly--with Eduardo Noriega's character being one of the better ones in this era.
Along for the ride is old reliable Gabby Hayes for a nice bit of comic relief.
In addition, while the film might be a bit blood-thirsty, it sure did make it exciting and better than the usually over-sanitized western of the day.
The overall package manages to breath life into an ancient sort of story and makes the film a lot better than it should be.
Worth seeing--particularly if you like westerns..
El Paso is directed by Lewis R.
It stars John Payne, Gail Russell, Sterling Hayden, George 'Gabby' Hayes, Dick Foran, Eduardo Noriega, Henry Hull and Mary Beth Hughes.
Location filming is at the Iverson and Corrigan Ranches and El Paso and Gallup.
El Paso, and lawyer and ex-Confederate captain Clay Fletcher (Payne) is forced to go against his principles and go outside the law to bring order to the town.
It's a town where the judge is alcoholic and manipulated by the corrupt sheriff and a nefarious landowner.In the mix here is a very decent film, and certainly there's a story that if given a bit more meat could have been most potent.
Unfortunately it's a bit choppy in its telling and execution, while the Cinecolor it was shot in looks washed out and cheapens still further what was already a picture being made without a big budget.Thematically it's strong, there's a vigilante thread that's attention grabbing, with some nice suggestive shots used by the director, and a theme of ex-soldiers returning from the war - only to find their land and rights being vanquished by the self imposed powers that be - carries with it some pertinent sting.
There's also some good humour in here, notably a running gag involving Hughes' Stagecoach Nellie.Cast are fine, with Hayden and Payne fronting up for their fans, Hayes does another grand grizzled old coot turn, and Noriega, in spite of being under used, is excellent.
Crude back projection work undermines some half decent action sequences, whilst the extended shoot-out finale is nicely played out during a dust storm - which may be to hide some flaws in the production?
But regardless it has good effect.Frustrating picture for sure, but for Western die-hards there's enough here to enjoy and not feel angry about.
"What good is law without enforcement?".
As kids we're always told to stand up to bullies; but try putting that into practise at work with your boss!
Lawyer John Payne proves similarly naïve in thinking Sterling Hayden and his brutal henchman Dick Foran will be as easily dissuaded by due process; and after 80 rather garrulous and conventional minutes this film finally makes you sit up and take notice when Payne and the rest of the townsfolk at last take the law into their own hands and fight fire with gunfire.But did anyone ever stand trial for the accidental lynching of the newly arrived minister?.
interesting western, could have been better.
I decided to see this film, after reading that it was part of Martin Scorsese's list of top westerns.
John Payne is Clay Fletcher, a lawyer that goes to El Paso where he meets his former sweetheart Susan (Gail Russel) and her father Henry (Henry Hull) who is a judge, but became a drunkard and is subservient to Bert Donner (Sterling Hayden) who is trying to get for free all the nearby land of the ex confederate soldiers that fought in the civil war which has just finished..
Fletcher tries all he can in a peaceful way, but when he realizes he will not win against the dirty tactics of Donner, forms and leads a guerrilla group.
The film tries to show that he is wrong, that he must respect the law, but does so in a hurried manner in the last part and that spoils the film which could have been a good western.
The unconvincing, not elaborated rapid change of attitude of Payne and the members of the guerrilla group just makes you think they had to finish the film in a set time , and got carried away and let it go on too long, and then had to hurry to end it.
The presence of Gail Russel who was an excellent actress and a great beauty is a positive factor..
Vigilante justice replaces corrupt judicial injustice, post-Civil War..
This is a message post-Civil War western.
Unfortunately, it espouses 2 conflicting messages: (1)When the local judicial system is inadequately present, or present in a corrupt or prejudicial form, it is a natural right of the injured and threatened to defend themselves or extract equal revenge against the perpetrator(s).(2) No matter how inadequate, corrupt or prejudicial the local judicial system is, it is the duty of individuals harmed by it or by others to submit to the existing judicial system.
Those who attempt to take the law into their own hands are subject to prosecution no matter how seemingly valid their reason.
After exercising the first of these messages, the film ends upholding the second message.
I suspect the production code people weren't about to pass a film which glorified rebellion and vigilantism as sometimes necessary to achieve real justice........John Payne, in his first western, is the main protagonist.
He's a lawyer, newly arrived from Charleston, S.C., who objects to the methodology of the first trial he sees here.
After several killings of his friends and the judge for thumbing their noses at the corrupt Sheriff Lafarge(Dick Fortran), he becomes the leader of a sizable group of rebels who go about searching for, killing and perhaps burning the houses of the friends of the Sheriff(whom I will refer to as loyalists).
The climax of the film consists of an all out gun battle in the middle of El Paso between the rebels and loyalists.
This is complicated by the occurrence of a very violent dust storm that made visibility and walking difficult.
After a number of each are killed, the two groups ride out of town, meeting at a river, where the loyalists, outnumbered, surrender.
Several are about to be strung up when Clay arrives with the demand that the ropes be taken off their necks.
He's a born again legalist, advocating that the sheriff and other loyalists be tried for real or suspected crimes.
Thus, from the viewer's viewpoint, the film ends on a rather unsatisfactory note, as the sheriff is neither dead nor visibly in jail, while the victors march down the street in parade formation.
........Gail Russell, the female lead, plays Susan Jeffers, daughter of the usually inebriated judge.
She's Clay's girlfriend, a relationship threatened by his sojourn into vigilantism.
One of the victims of the loyalists is Clay's grandfather: a judge from Charleston.
Just why he came to El Paso is not discussed.
Edwardo Noriega played Nacho Vazquez, who saved Clay from a tormenting saloon crowd, and taught him how to be an effective gunslinger.....
Much bewhiskered Gabby Hayes generates some amusement playing a simpleton trader, who's always getting cheated by Mexican Joe......Stagecoach Nellie(Mary Beth Hughes) is another clownish character.
While riding in a stage, she emphasizes that Indians or bandits often attack the stage, then offers to hide the men's wallet in her things.
If the man forgets to retrieve his wallet at the end of the run, she takes it to her room and divests it of currency.
A "Grade B" Feel from Start to Finish.
In the immediate aftermath of the Civil War a Confederate officer by the name of "Clay Fletcher" (John Payne) returns to his home in Charleston, South Carolina, to restart his law profession.
Upon hearing that a former sweetheart named "Susan Jeffers" (Gail Russell) and her father "Judge Henry Jeffers" (Henry Hull) have moved to El Paso, Texas, he volunteers to take some important legal papers to him.
When he gets to El Paso he finds that a group of thugs have taken control of the small town and are manipulating the alcoholic judge to enforce their corrupt interests.
Now, rather than detailing the entire story, I will just say that this film had a "Grade B" feel from start to finish.
None of the actors distinguished themselves, the plot was shaky and some of the scenes seemed a bit corny at times.
To be fair though, some of these criticisms can be attributed to the time-period in which this film was made.
Violent "A" Western!.
"El Paso, a Pine/Thomas production has a large cast and plenty of violent action to satisfy the most demanding western fan.
However, most of the real violence happens off screen to appease the censors.Clay Fletcher (John Payne) goes to El Paso to have Judge Henry Jeffers (Henry Hull) sign some legal documents for his grandfather Judge Fletcher (H.B. Warner).
Clay also hopes to see his lost love Susan Jeffers (Gail Russell) as well.
On his journey he becomes acquainted with bewhiskered Pesky (Gabby Hayes), a peddler.What Clay finds is a lawless town run by landowner Bert Donner (Sterling Hayden) and his corrupt sheriff La Farge (Dick Foran).
Clay himself a lawyer, witnesses a mock trial of a prisoner accused of murder presided over by an intoxicated Judge Jeffers.
Clay goes to see Susan and the two try to find a way to sober up Judge Jeffers.Farmer John Elkins (Arthur Space) is told that his ranch is being sold for unpaid taxes.
Ellis escapes to the hosienda of Mexican Don Nacho Vazquez (Eduardo Noriega) for protection.
Clay decides to defend Elkins and hatches a plan to have, with Pesky's help, the Judge sobered up.
The Elkins ranch is raided by La Farge's men who burn down their home and murder Elkins and his wife.
Their son Jack (Bobby Ellis) witnesses the attack.
At the same time, Judge Jeffers is dragged to death.When Clay learns of this he loses it and forms a gang of vigilantes to exact their revenge.
Young Jack identifies some of the attackers who are promptly strung up.
Unfortunately, Jack identifies an innocent man who is killed before the error is discovered.Judge Fletcher comes to town and he and Sally try to reason with Clay to stop his attacks.
He agrees to do so but relents when Judge Fletcher's body is brought to him.
This incites the final showdown with Donner and La Farge and................................................................................The finale for some reason, takes place in a sand storm which makes it difficult for the viewer to see all of the action.
The brutal deaths of the two judges even though they occur off screen, are shocking.Payne and Hayden are convincing in their roles and the tragic Russell looks absolutely beautiful here.
Gabby Hayes nearing the end of his long career, turns in another typical Gabby performance.
But the big surprise is the casting of Dick Foran as the brutal sheriff.
He normally was a good guy so this about face caught me off guard.The most surprising thing about this picture is the fact that Payne and his cohorts are not punished for the murder of the innocent Minister.Also in the cast are Irving Bacon as a stagecoach passenger, Mary Beth Hughes, Chief Yowlachie and Dewey Robinson as the bartender (what else?)..
Lawyer decides to take the law into his own hands....................
Fine upstanding ex - Confederate officer Mr John Payne tries to Clean Up The Town by lawful means but has to resort to violence in the face of endemic corruption.
The end justifies the means,eh,John?
If "El Paso" has a moral message that appears to be it.
Aided,if that's the word by Gabby Hayes and Gail Russel,hindered by the great Henry Hull,with heavyweight "help" such as Sterling Hayden,Mr Payne finds that friends in need are friends indeed.
Mind you,nobody said either he or Haynes was clever judging from the ease with which " Stagecoach Nellie" parts then from their wallets before they arrive in town.
I watched a horrible orange and grey print of this on Freeview the other night and it is a tribute to the performers that stayed to the end.
Way too many familiar faces, plotlines, plot twists, graveyard plots and potholes on the streets of this Rio Grande River locale.
John Payne takes the opportunity after the end of the civil war to move out west from Savannah and finds himself in trouble with the law while fighting against the corruption.
This Pine/Thomas western, beautifully filmed in color, has the potential of being a great saga of settling and civilizing, but overstuffs everything like a 10 layer burrito.
When the plot is set up with a pretty stagecoach con-artist Mary Beth Hughes hoodwinking the passengers, the predicted plot goes nowhere and her character simply vanishes until an appearance at the end.
For romance, there's pretty Gail Russell; for conflict, Sterling Hayden, and for the bulk of the laughs, George "Gabby" Hayes.
There's hardly any racial tension, just the fights for justice between the good guys and bad guys.
It is impressively filmed, but for a good majority of this 100 minute film, I pondered the basic plot, and could only come up with a simple story with a bunch of conflicts, and nothing to really tie them together.
There's a touching cameo by the ancient H.B. Warner as Payne's worried grandfather, and a shootout amongst a giant windstorm, but those are "moments".
The lack of a continuity factor is the nail in the coffin of this not bad but obviously missed opportunity western