Riders of Destiny (1933)

Riders of Destiny (1933)***

Monogram Pictures
Director: Robert N. Bradbury

   As we work our way into the 1930s, we begin to see the proliferation of the B-movie western. These films tend to become quite formulaic though there is a lot of good acting. This is where John Wayne earns his stripes as well and we will be covering a lot of his films from 1933 through to 1939 and John Ford's Stagecoach where Wayne breaks into the big leagues. John Wayne really shines here as "Singin' Sandy" Saunders, an agent sent from Washington to deal with a man named James Kincaid (Forrest Taylor). Kincaid has dammed up the river and is forcing townspeople to sell their land or go without water. Saunders enlists the help of Charlie Denton (George "Gabby" Hayes) and his daughter Fay (Cecilia Parker). Yakima Canutt makes an early appearance here as one of Denton's Henchmen. This is also Wayne's effort in the singing cowboy genre as Saunders sings a solemn tune throughout the film. Wayne's singing voice is dubbed however and this idea of faking it never sat well with him. Director Robert N. Bradbury would go on to work on several Lone Star Productions with the Duke. All in all, not a bad flick.