Rough Riders' Round-up

1939
5.4| 0h58m| en| More Info
Released: 13 March 1939 Released
Producted By: Republic Pictures
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Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Synopsis

Roy Rogers is a cowboy who joins the Border Patrol, only to have his buddy Tommy get killed at a local saloon. Determined to get revenge at any cost, Roy and Rusty cross the border in search of Arizona Jack, the man responsible for Tommy's death.

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Reviews

Tuchergson Truly the worst movie I've ever seen in a theater
Ceticultsot Beautiful, moving film.
Hadrina The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful
Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.
JohnHowardReid An unusually complicated story-line finds Rogers, Hatton and Acuff joining the Arizona Border Patrol after a stint in Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders. The territory is being terrorized by a gang of bandits led by a mysterious "Arizona Jack" who hides out across the Mexican border between raids. What seems at first a standard goodies-versus-outlaws chase (compounded by vengeance, though this aspect is soft-pedalled) is made more complex by the runaway daughter of a rich mine-owner who wants to marry her father's manager. Unfortunately for her, the manager...It can be seen that Rogers' role is less central than in most of his vehicles. Indeed it's the girl who has the main part - and that makes this a very unusual "B" western indeed. Rogers still finds time to sing a couple of pleasant songs plus a chorus or two of "Johnny Comes Marching Home", but all the numbers are staged in odd circumstances. What's more the musical interludes are not built up as ends in themselves, but are treated in a much more realistic and casual fashion. Compared to their obligatory central staging in his later westerns, here the songs are almost peripheral to the main action. Rogers' personality is more likably subdued here too, allowing the other players to make much more of an impression. Of course if you're a rabid Rogers fan, you may find the amount of screen time devoted to the other characters - Miss Hart, Pawley, Meeker, Miss Sebastian, even Rockwell - unappealing, though I really enjoyed their performances. (It was also good to see George Chesebro up to his usual villainy. Glenn Strange can easily be recognized as one of the bandits, while the more eagle-eyed will pick George Montgomery in a triple-threat role as a rough-rider, a bandit and a double for Rogers).Kane omits this picture from his filmography, though it's certainly nothing to be ashamed of. The director makes good use of his locations, his players and a surprisingly expansive budget. There's more than enough chase, fisticuffs and shoot-out action to satisfy the fans, though the final rounding-up of the bandits is disappointingly short.OTHER VIEWS: Herbert J. Yates had the bright idea of re-naming Miss Roberts as Mary Hart so that he could bill "Rogers and Hart" as the new sweethearts of the west. To this end, he probably ordered his scripters and directors to focus more - or at least just as much - as on Leonard Slye! (Slye didn't actually change his name to Roy Rogers until 1942).
Michael Morrison Frankly, if it says "Roy Rogers," the odds are it will be good. And this one is. For several reasons.One, the historical setting is very interesting. It's around the turn of the 1900s and this contingent of Rough Riders is returning to these United States ... well, actually, considering the time, to a territory of these United States: Arizona, and the border with Mexico.The Rough Riders' leader, Colonel Teddy Roosevelt, is being talked about as a vice-presidential candidateRoy Rogers nearly always played either himself or a character named Roy Rogers, which was the case this time. It seems an odd practice, but was also done with Gene Autry, among others. Often, it detracted and/or distracted from the movie, but here it doesn't matter.Soldier turned Border Patrol officer Rogers is joined by, among others, Rusty Coburn, played by veteran Raymond Hatton, an actor who had been around since the silent days and who often hammed it up like a B-class John Barrymore but who, here, was restrained and believable.Other talent, and I do mean talent, included the beautiful Lynne Roberts and former chorus girl Dorothy Sebastian, as well as the prolific Eddie Acuff and the almost ubiquitous Hank Bell, again uncredited!Seriously, it's hard to think of westerns without thinking of Hank Bell, he of the handle-bar mustache and Western drawl, and a superb character actor. Here he got some lines and again showed he should have been given many more speaking parts and many more-important parts. Maybe he never complained but many of us, his fans, do.Amazingly, also uncredited were Duncan Renaldo and George Montgomery. The latter had a small part, but Duncan Renaldo's character was very important to the story.Chris-Pin Martin and the really talented I. Stanford Jolley were also uncredited even though Martin also had an important part.So, even if the story or directing or music were minor -- and they weren't; they were quite good; after all, the director was Joseph Kane - - the cast alone makes this more than worthwhile.
wes-connors Roy Rogers (as Roy) and sidekick Raymond Hatton (as Rusty) join Teddy Roosevelt's "Rough Riders". Soon, they get suspended in order to "Round-up" the killer of partner Eddie Acuff (as Tommy) along the Mexican-U.S. border; they discover creepy gold runners in the process. Notice how, even suspended, Mr. Rogers is able to get the Rough Riders to join in his Round-up! This is not one of the better Roy Rogers westerns. The fighting scenes look like choreographed dances. Rogers sings/yodels "Ridin' Down the Trail", one of two relatively ordinary songs; and, a stand-out moment, overall. ** Rough Riders' Round-up (3/13/39) Joseph Kane ~ Roy Rogers, Raymond Hatton, Lynne Roberts
classicsoncall It's 1900, and Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders have returned from Cuba. Roy Rogers and friends Rusty Coburn (Eddie Acuff) and Tommy Ward (Ray Hatton) seek work as border patrol agents, with the personal recommendation of Roosevelt himself. The border patrol captain is willing to take them on, especially since outlaw Arizona Jack is marauding the border passes and seeking refuge in Mexico. Adding drama to the plot is the presence of Dorothy Blair (Mary Hart), as the daughter of the owner of the Amco Mining Company. Rogers has orders to detain her, but when a fight breaks out in the cantina she escapes on a Mexican stagecoach, only to be captured by the bandits.Roy Rogers has the uncanny ability to walk into any situation, no matter how grim, and pick up a guitar to sing a song. This happens twice in Roundup - first in the unfriendly environs of the local cantina, and then again when captured and secured in Arizona Jack's bandit hideout; it's not very believable given the situation.Be attentive for a continuity goof in a chase scene in the second half of the film; as Arizona Jack's gang pursues Roy and Rusty on horseback, the good guys string a rope across their path to knock the first two riders off their horses. But as the bandits get up to dust themselves off, the rope is back in place again."Rough Riders Roundup" moves along at a brisk fifty eight minute pace, and as mentioned, has the obligatory fisticuffs, chase scenes and gunfights expected in a "B" western. One overlooked detail though - Roy appears to ride his trusty palomino Trigger in the film, however Trigger is not top billed as "The Smartest Horse in the Movies" in this flick. I assume he fired his agent before the next picture!