Listonixio Fresh and Exciting

Spidersecu Don't Believe the Hype

Console best movie i've ever seen.

CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

JohnHowardReid Copyright 1958 by 20th Century-Fox Film Corp. New York opening: not recorded. U.S. release: 15 April 1958. U.K. release: May 1958. Australian release: 1 May 1958. 7,459 feet. 83 minutes.SYNOPSIS: When John Cord, tough and hated cattle boss, returns to Hamilton after spending five years in prison for allowing his men to shoot up the town after a cattle drive, he is attacked by a mob. Later, local leaders approach him and ask him to drive their cattle to Fort Clemson. The drive is long and tough and only Cord has the kind of experience that can get the job done. He agrees and plans a double-cross.NOTES: Claimed to be the 100th film in which Joel McCrea appears.COMMENT: A good cast and promising plot, somewhat undermined by routine handling and lack of development. All the same, it looks grand enough in 'Scope to more than carry the entertainment day. Mr. McCrea is his usual rugged self (though it's hard to believe that any judge and jury would be so collectively lacking in character insight as to convict him). Miss Talbott makes not only a mighty fetching heroine, but according to the studio Press Sheet, "she did all her own stunts. She owns a riding stable near Glendale, California, which keeps her fit for such acrobatics. This is her 2nd appearance opposite McCrea, her first being The Oklahoman." Also in the cast, serial queen Phyllis Coates ("Jungle Drums of Africa", "Panther Girl of the Kongo").

MartinHafer The film begins with a group of townsfolk dragging John Cord (Joel McCrea) from a rope tied to a man's horse. Yes, their plan is to drag him to death. Apparently five years earlier, Cord and his gang of cowboys entered the town and tore the place apart and spread a lot of misery. Inexplicably, he's back as one of the leading citizens in the town has hired him to take the town's cattle to market. How could this be?! After all, he was convicted of standing by and doing nothing to stop his men from an orgy of destruction. And, why is Cord so angry?! After all, the dragging seems more than justified when year hear about all the hellish things his men did to the town! And, why does Cord agree to take the job?! None of this makes any sense....and that's okay. Just keep watching!! It will make sense by the end.This is a very good western...which isn't a surprise considering it stars Joel McCrea. Even the most ordinary of westerns were made better by his solid acting...and this is a decent film to boot. Well worth seeing...mostly because it is unique...and that's very rare with westerns.

gary1792-1 There are plenty of good B westerns out there. This isn't one of them. To be brutally honest, this movie plays like it was written by 10-year-olds. Even the great Joel McCrae can't save it. I noticed that one other reviewer complained that the film was too short. I disagree. I think it was too long. In addition to the weak plot and some truly awful dialogue, the supporting cast is none too good either.The story concerns a man just out of prison, having been wrongly accused of letting his trail crew shoot up a town. He returns to the same town at the request of its leading citizen (who was blinded in the ruckus created by the trail crew, no less) in order to head up a cattle drive which is supposed to save the town. I'm not sure I've ever encountered such a lame premise for a dramatic film. Maybe a comedy, but that's not what "Cattle Empire" purports to be.All in all, I'm sorry I sat through the whole thing, but I guess I just expected it to get better. It didn't.

Marlburian I'm not usually too keen on cattle-drive Westerns ("Red River" excepted), but this one isn't bad at all. It's not too formulaic, and the love interest is muted - all too often it gets in the way of a good plot, which in this case rolls along nicely. McCrea comes over as a real anti-hero for the first part of the film, and there's an ironic twist to the plot towards the end. McCrea is fine in a role that Randolph Scott would also have done well in.My only quibble is the usual one I have when the hero gets dragged behind a horse - his clothes never come off too badly, though McCrea's shirt-sleeve does get ripped.