Imperio del crimen

John Sands is a famed ex lawman ,most celebrated for having faced down Billy the Kid .He is now living in Mexico ,having fallen foul of the law in the States,and is working as a storekeeper when news reaches him that his brother has been murdered .He vows to return to America to avenge his brother despite knowing full well this places him at risk of arrest . He is drawn into enmity with the ruthless Matt Garson who is also his rival for he hand of Garson's secretary (Joan O'Carroll)and to complicate matters he law is on his tail.

Blake Edwards -a man mostly known for his acerbic comedic scripts-co wrote this movie and the screenplay is above average for the genre, and the era .Add some lively action ,including the old genre staple of a bar -room brawl ,and some capable performances and the result is a good and watchable B movie that devotees of the Western will especially enjoy

So, can ex-marshal, now outlaw, John Sands avenge his brother's killing by ruthless town bigwig Garson and his band of toughies. Still and all, Sands is played by a rugged 6'5" Rod Cameron who looks every inch of it and handles it, as well. But, he'll need to because Garson's played by 6'4" Reed Hadley in what amounts to a potentially towering face-off. Plus, there's Garson's over-eager gunsel Floyd (Edwards) who just can't seem to wait for any kind of gunplay. At the same time, hovering in the background are unbending arms of the law. All in all, things look bleak for the compromised ex-marshal.

It's a B-Western with a number of unusually good touches not often found in the genre. For example, take that nifty showdown in the rain, a real oddity; then there're the great Amarillo area scenic shots, dry as a bone; plus, which of the two lovely town gals will Sands end up with, blonde Dusty or brunette June; and lastly catch those unforced humorous touches that fit right in. Still, it's Cameron's impressive presence and understated performance that rivets the show, along with an unexpectedly memorable ending. At same time, I can't help thinking the producers of the Gary Cooper classic High Noon (1952) were influenced by this sneaky little 1948 gem. So catch up with it if you can.

( In Passing - that's the same Blake Edwards of later fame who produced and-or directed many of the Pink Panther flicks along with the classic Peter Gunn TV series, among others. Meanwhile, thanks to this flick, I won't be visiting a barber anytime soon, especially if I have to open the door. Just don't tell the wife.)

Panhandle is directed by Leslie Selander and written by John C. Champion and Blake Edwards. It stars Rod Cameron, Cathy Downs, Reed Hadley, Anne Gwynne, Blake Edwards, Dick Crockett and Rory Mallinson. Music is by Rex Dunn and cinematography by Harry Neumann.

John Sands (Cameron) has to return to his gunfighter ways when news reaches him that his brother has been murdered...

Filmed in Sepiatone and a little more serious than many other 1940's Westerns, Panhandle is a satisfying experience for genre enthusiasts. Formula is rife as we would come to know it in Oaters, though, as picture ticks off the check list: badman turned good who is forced to turn bad again for revenge, romance tingling in the air, quick draw shoot-outs, punch-up, weasel villain and his hired cronies, poker games with the inevitable cheat called out and the "hooray" finale. All of which is nicely directed and performed by the cast. The location scenery doesn't get much chance to shine through, and in truth the Sepiatone does little to improve the picture, but this is easily recommended to the Western faithful. 7/10

Randolph Scott lookalike Rod Cameron is "Sands", a former lawman who travels to a Texas town to investigate the shooting of his newspaper-man brother. Upon arrival, he quickly discovers the town, indeed the territory, under the heel of "Matt Garson" (Reed Hadley). With the help of his secretary "Dusty" (Cathy Downs) he vows to avenge his brother's death. It's quite eerily shot - much of the action takes place at night, in torrential rain, but the story is all just a bit too well travelled, and neither the actors nor the script offer much by way of innovation. This is still a perfectly watchable B-feature that dawdles for the first half hour before finally picking up just enough speed to hold the attention. It's too long - but then films were frequently elongated to accommodate the paying public's appetite for cinema, rather than because the story justified it.

A sombre Rod Cameron western remembered today because the 25 year-old Blake Edwards, after five years languishing in bit parts, collaborated with John C. Champion behind the camera as writer & producer. He is also billed fifth as the youngest, most sharply dressed and slightly built of chief baddie Reed Hadley's trio of henchmen (which Edwards acknowledges in the script by having Cameron condescendingly address him as 'sonny' and 'Little Boy Blue').

I was proved right near the end (SLIGHT SPOILER COMING) when I thought it unwise of Cameron to take a chair with the window behind it to join a card game; and someone seems to have tossed a coin to decide which of the two female leads Cameron eventually ends up with.