THE MARSHAL OF MESA CITY (1939)

Mesa City, Arizona, has become overrun by lawless scoundrels who are given free rein by their buddy, the sheriff (Leon Ames). Schoolteacher Virginia Vale, fed up with the chaos in the streets and with Ames's unwanted attentions, leaves for Yuma. When Ames's masked men hold up the stagecoach, George O'Brien, a retired marshal from Red Valley, intercedes. The stagecoach turns back for repairs, and O'Brien (who retired after cleaning up Red Valley) gets friendly with Vale and she decides to give Mesa City another chance. O'Brien plans to leave but Vale asks him to join her at a dance that night, and when Ames tries to make trouble, O'Brien stays and the mayor appoints him marshal to deal with the hooligans. His first move is to enact an ordinance banning guns in public places except for law officers. Ames, sensing trouble, sends for an old gunslinger pal (Henry Brandon) to help him get rid of O'Brien, but Brandon surprises everyone by taking the marshal's side. O'Brien deputizes Brandon so he can legally carry his gun. The bad guys start plotting in earnest to keep their status in town, but O'Brien and Brandon keep the heat on until a climactic gunfight. This efficient hour-long B-western from RKO is apparently an unofficial remake of an earlier RKO film, THE ARIZONIAN. I found this to be a notch above the norm for a couple of reasons. First, the (for me) unexpected twist of the villainous hired gun turning good (a plot point mirrored with Mongo on BLAZING SADDLES), and second, for the solid acting. O'Brien was a well-regarded silent film star, best known now for SUNRISE, who became a top western star in the talkies, and though he doesn't have a lot of personality, he's solid and commanding without being stiff and boring. Vale is fine and Ames is nicely slimy as the chief bad guy. Mary Gordon, who plays Vale's landlady, is best known as Mrs. Hudson, the landlady of Sherlock Holmes in the Basil Rathbone film series. The climax is a major gunfight but it plays out quickly and in a thick fog of smoke, maybe due to budget limitations. Still, enjoyable. Pictured are O'Brien and Brandon. [TCM]