Summary
In the rugged hollows of Tennessee, Buck Lane, a stoic native, becomes fascinated by a stranger’s experimental use of dynamite while prospecting for mineral riches. The outsider, intent on reaching the enigmatic Sunset Gap, is cautioned by Buck’s compatriot, Bud, who warns that the local populace, inflamed by recent moonshiner raids, would view the intrusion with hostility. Defying the admonition, the stranger ventures onward, only to return grievously wounded, prompting Bud to assume his mission. Assuming the mantle of the stranger’s work, Bud proceeds unchallenged until Lem Gill, a native who has resurfaced after years in the wilderness to aid in the moonshiner roundup, arrives. Lem, aware of the Farley family’s illicit still hidden somewhere nearby, cannot pinpoint its location. Bud’s sudden appearance triggers Lem’s suspicion, leading him to label Bud a potential spy. Driven by the promise of copper veins rumored to lie beneath the Farleys’ land, Bud manipulates the law‑enforcement’s pursuit, planting a charge of dynamite beneath the still. The explosion not only obliterates the illegal operation but also exposes a lucrative copper seam. When the officers converge, Bud declares ownership of the land and announces the discovery of a rich copper deposit. Lem, recognizing the mutual benefit, consents, and the dispute resolves with a tacit agreement that secures both the law’s authority and Bud’s newfound wealth.
Synopsis
Buck Lane, a native of Tennessee, becomes interested in the use of dynamite by a stranger who is investigating mineral deposits in the mountains. The stranger is bound for Sunset Gap. Bud warns him not to go because the populace is aroused by recent raids of the moonshiners. The stranger goes but returns wounded. Bud offers to do his work. Bud takes up his duties and no one questions his right except Lem Gill, a native who has returned after several years' absence to help round-up the moonshiners. He has heard that the Farleys operate a still in the neighborhood but cannot locate it. When Bud appears, Lem becomes suspicious and intimates that he is a spy. Bud is anxious for the Farleys to benefit by the copper that he is sure is on their land. The officers are closing in on the still, but Bud has anticipated their find and set a charge of dynamite under the still. He blows it up and unearths a vein of copper. When the officers appear he tells them that he has bought the land and that he has located a rich copper vein. Bud and Lem reach a complete agreement and all is settled.
Review Excerpt
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A Tale of Dynamite and Destiny
The opening frames of The Raiders of Sunset Gap unfurl like a sepia‑tinted map, each contour of the Appalachian ridge whispering of hidden wealth and buried grudges. Buck Lane, portrayed with a stoic gravitas by Harry Hammill, is not merely a countryman; he is a conduit for the film’s central paradox—progress versus tradition. When a stranger arrives, clutching a sack of dynamite as if it were a holy relic, Buck’s curiosity ignites, setting the narrative in mo..."
