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Comwayon A Disappointing Continuation

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Bluebell Alcock Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

mark.waltz Handsome John Ireland comes out of the civil war with a chip on his shoulder and ends up out west where he finds it doesn't take him far in a corrupt town. Having vowed never to handle a gun ever again, he finds that only brings him more trouble, ending up in jail for shooting a member of a ruthless gang of thugs (lead by veteran tough guy Lawrence Tierney, working for the ruthless land owner Lon Chaney Jr. and his evil daughter, Myrna Dell) which controls everything that goes on in the town. Falling in love with newspaper woman Dorothy Malone, he finds out that the road to righteousness isn't always paved with peace and resistance. This B western has its share of action, but made on a nickel, it shows. Chaney seems to be channeling Walter Huston in "The Furies" in his all-white hair, but for once, he isn't chewing the scenery. This might have had more emotional impact regarding Ireland's character had it dramatized more as to why he decided to leave the South rather than simply rushing him out west after the end of the war, only vaguely commenting on his life there afterwards. It ain't bad, but there's hardly any thing memorable.

Rainey Dawn This is a pretty good western drama. Good cast and fairly interesting story concerning the railroad and bushwhacking gunmen. The film is set in a time right after the civil war ended and many railroads were starting to be built.Artemus Taylor, his daughter Norah and a couple of roughnecks try to run the rest of the town out of the area by bushwhacking them in order to claim their land for themselves and sell that land to the railroad. Once the town starts piecing together the puzzle they have to find a way to fight back against the bushwhackers. There is one man that might can help save the townspeople, Jefferson Waring. Waring was in in the in civil war but swore to never use a gun again - can he, will he help the townsfolk? Worth watching if you Western films.7.5/10

kevin olzak 1951's "The Bushwhackers" is a very tight, tough hour-long Western, featuring a solid cast of capable veterans. The Civil War has just ended, and confederate soldier Jefferson Waring (John Ireland) believes he'll never again have to point a gun at another man. Unfortunately, he soon finds himself in a lawless Western town where the settlers are battling to defend their homes against evil, greedy homesteaders headed by Artemus Taylor (Lon Chaney), a crippled, wheelchair-bound madman whose bitterness is matched by his devoted daughter (Myrna Dell), who may be even more ruthless than he is. Among the many familiar faces, Wayne Morris easily stands out as a marshal clearly working out of Taylor's pocket, yet trying vainly to keep the peace, mainly through jailing the unarmed Waring. Third-billed Lawrence Tierney, never at home in Westerns like his younger brother Scott Brady, is totally wasted as a hired gun, dispatched midway through, while Jack Elam relishes his bad guy role, whether lasciviously eyeing the ladies or simply killing people. Despite playing the lead villain, Lon Chaney has very little screen time (only three scenes), but this elderly, arthritic character led to his being cast as Gary Cooper's elderly, arthritic Marshal in the subsequent "High Noon."

classicsoncall I found it interesting that the film's original working title was "The Rebel", since some of the early footage was also used in the opening sequence of the 1959 Civil War TV series, "The Gray Ghost". I'm pretty sure I've also seen it recycled in other movies with a Civil War theme.John Ireland stars as tired ex-soldier Jefferson Waring from Virginia, heading West without a gun and a vow to never use one against men again. Of course that's just the set up for the eventual finale when he does just that to take the side of settlers against scheming landowners led by Artemus Taylor (Lon Chaney). Chaney's character is wheelchair bound throughout the story, but that doesn't prevent him from looking about as spooky as he did in any of his horror flicks.The most complex, actually frustrating character in the story for me was Marshal Harding (Wayne Morris). He's in the pocket of villain Sam Tobin (Lawrence Tierney), but is on the fence most of the time trying to keep a level playing field for Waring and his new friends. Curiously, he never uses his six gun, and actually seems to have an aversion to firing one; he isn't even part of the finale when the settlers stand up for their rights.Where the film gets really gritty has to do with the treatment of Taylor's daughter Nora, who's every bit as ornery as her father. Following the ambush on Taylor's hired gunmen, she attempts to make a getaway with money from the local bank, and shoots banker Stone (Charles Trowbridge) in the process. Now it's not unusual for a woman in a 'B' Western to get shot, even killed, but here, when Stone recovers, he shoots her IN THE BACK - Wow! That was something I never thought I'd see, in fact, never even thought about it, even though it happened all the time when men were involved.A couple of things to keep an eye out for - early in the story when Waring first meets Peter Sharpe (Frank Marlowe), they sit down, and Sharpe begins his conversation with "You know Randall...". Ireland's character looks at Sharpe as if to say, 'hey, that's not my name', but the scene continues. Later on, I got a kick out of the funeral service being held in the local saloon for a couple that was killed by Taylor's goons. Right there on top of the bar was a sign stating - 'Bar Closed During Services'!