Under Nevada Skies

An above-average Roy Rogers oater, with plenty of songs, intrigue and a more cohesive plot than many. It's a satisfying and fast-moving piece of fluff. Roy is, as usual, likable, and Dale is far sexier than I remember her in the 1950s tv show. If you like B-grade westerns, you can do far worse than taking the time to watch this.

An almost enlightened view toward Native Americans is a large part of the fun. The pow-wow that the local tribe is holding is treated sympathetically, and Roy's relationship with the Native Americans is treated in a matter-of-fact, friendly manner. The Native Americans themselves are never treated in a stereotypical, demeaning manner; when Roy gets the local tribe together to chase the villains, it's such a warped parody of the usual cowboys-n-Injuns scene that I had to laugh!

When an important business leader is targeted and killed by previously unknown gangsters, looking for a mystery item of apparently great importance, Roy Rogers and sheriff Gabby Hayes set about finding the killers and discovering their motives.

Another okay murder-mystery, this has a few good twists and some pretty good action scenes staged by the legendary Yakima Cannut. The atomic-age twist at the end was pretty neat too.

The chemistry between Roy and Dale Evans is on full display here, with Evans looking especially pretty this time around, playing a sophisticated, glamorous singer from back east.

The music by Roy, Dale, Bob Nolan, and The Sons Of The Pioneers is plentiful, with the highlights being the whole gang around the campfire of the local Indian pow-wow, singing the title tune and The Sons Of The Pioneers' big stage number "Ne-Ha-Nee", in full pirate costume.

I like old B-westerns. Sure, they are usually pretty predictable but they also can be a lot of fun. Some of them feature a hero who sings and romances (such as Roy Rogers or Gene Autry) and some don't (Hopalong Cassidy or Tim McCoy come to mind). I like both types. But something I've noticed about a few of the singing cowboys films....that after a while the TYPE of songs they sang and the style really changed. I adore the simple western tunes sung by Autry or Rogers...but in "Under Nevada Skies" the songs are completely wrong for ANY western. In fact, in the case of one of the songs, it seemed more like a showcase for Rogers' then girlfriend...and soon to be wife. She sings a song that might fit in well with a contemporary nightclub setting...but not in the west. The same with a weird song and dance number later in the film...not the least big country western in style and more like something you'd see in the nightclub once again. Fortunately, later Dale and Roy since a slower, nicer song...though it, too, isn't really the style you'd expect in a Rogers film. It's as if the film is a parody of other Rogers' films....and I found myself longing to hear Roy and the Sons of the Pioneers who performed in the best films of in the series.

As far as the story goes, it starts of VERY, VERY badly....and you wonder about what the writers were thinking. As Roy is out palling around with his American Indian friends, Dale comes barreling through in her car...nearly killing several folks and showing complete disregard for everyone. Then, when her engine is flooded and the car stalled after splashing water on Roy and the Indians, she whines about how unfair it is that her car won't start and takes no responsibility for her actions. This is NOT a 'meet cute' but seems like the perfect start to the film IF Dale is playing a villain...which she wasn't. Bad, bad writing!

Soon a guy named Tom is murdered and Dale indicates that the real reason she came out west was to get some sort of family crest Tom stole long ago. The rest of the movie consists of Roy, Dale and the baddies all working to find this crest.

Now to say that there is zero suspense about the identity of the baddie leader is an understatement. This is NOT a spoiler!! After all, in EVERY B-movie (not just westerns) Douglass Dumbrille plays a evil scum-bag...a complete rotter! This, combined with the awful songs and Dale's hateful entry into the film make this a terrible Roy Rogers film...one that would clearly disappoint fans. The only saving grace is that the film features Gabby Hayes and everyone likes Gabby!

Overall, I'd place this among Roy Rogers' worst films...one that seems to have forgotten the formula that made him such a popular cowboy star.

I specifically looked up movies with the Sons of the Pioneers in it. They sing the best western ballads guaranteed to put a smile on your face. Roy Rogers plays the guitar and sings a lot in this too. The music is so relaxing & lulls you into the warm memories of days gone by.

Roy plays along as usual as the stupid dupe of the real crooks and gabby as usual falls into the hands of the enemy and discloses all he knows at the drop of a hat ... sound familiar ? ... of course it does. its a gaffe they often play ... roy gets it right without dale but its gabby's clockwork that stumbles onto the answer