"Pals of the Golden West" is an important film, as it's the last Roy Rogers film he made for Republic. Soon after this, he switched to making his television show and only rarely making movie appearances. As for this wife, Dale, it's her final film. Unfortunately, they both are saddled with the absolute worst supporting player in these Republic films, the ever-annoying Pinky Lee. If you've never seen Lee, he's a lot like combining Pee Wee Herman with Sylvester the Cat....and making the final result 100 times more annoying! Believe me, there really was no one more annoying and unwanted in B-westerns than Pinky Lee. He' so bad you barely notice Estelita Rodrigquez...another annoying person who was frequently in Roy's later films.
The story begins with a poor kid about to be attacked by a bear. Unfortunately, it wasn't Pinky Lee...seeing him get mauled would have improved the story quite a bit. But fortunately, the kid was saved by Bullet, Roy and his Mexican friend. You then learn that the baddie in this story is Lucky Grillo (Anthony Caruso), a wanted murderer who is living under an alias in Mexico. He and his gang illegally bring diseased cattle over the border to sell....and murders a Mexican border agent. Naturally, Roy is determined to stop him, bring him to justice and make the world a swell place. As for Dale, she plays a spunky newspaper reporter...sort of like Lois Lane but significantly pushier.
So is this any good? In some ways, yes. Anthony Caruso always plays a great crook and he' in his element in this film. But it's also a chore to watch because although he and Roy are excellent, not only are Pinky Lee and Estelita annoying, which I expected, Dale is also at her very worst. They really make the viewer hate them....and are nothing but a distraction in the story. Sad to see Roy in such a sappy story...he was better than this.
By the way, if you aren't acquainted with B-westerns, such as those of Roy Rogers, Gene Autry or Hopalong Cassidy, you might be surprised how positively the Native Americans and Mexicans are portrayed. The films were way ahead of their time in this regard....and you'll notice how positive the Mexicans are in this picture. Heck, all the bad guys, Lucky and Pinky, are Americans.
