Between Fighting Men: A Dusty, Forgettable Scramble

Is it worth your time?

Honestly, only if you are a completionist when it comes to old westerns or you just really like watching guys in hats yell at each other in the desert. If you want a tight, logical plot, keep walking. This one is for the folks who enjoy the raw, slightly unpolished feel of early sound-era horse operas. If you hate scratchy audio or plots that move like a runaway train with no brakes, maybe skip this one.

The whole thing is built around the classic "cattle vs. sheep" tension. You know the drill. The cattlemen think they own the grass, and the sheep men just want a place to graze. It feels like a setup we've seen a thousand times before, but there is a certain charm to how quickly they just start swinging punches.

Ken Maynard is doing his usual thing, and he’s fine, I guess. He spends a lot of time looking intense while staring off into the distance. There is a weird subplot about him and his brother Wally fighting over girls. It feels like a distraction from the main conflict, almost like the writers realized they needed a reason for the two brothers to act like idiots for forty minutes.

Then there is the murder. When Judy’s father gets killed by Butch, the movie suddenly remembers it’s supposed to be a drama. The shift is so jarring. One minute they are bickering about fences, the next it is a full-on revenge flick.

Specific Observations:

• The sound quality during the outdoor scenes? It’s rough. Sometimes the wind sounds like a jet engine is landing in the middle of the ranch.
• I’m pretty sure the same three background actors play about twelve different roles. If you look closely, you can see one guy die, then pop up ten minutes later as a shopkeeper.
• The horses look bored. Like, genuinely bored. They know they’re in a B-movie.
• There’s a scene where they are arguing by a creek, and for about thirty seconds, nobody says a word, and they just stare at the water. It’s oddly hypnotic.

Watching this made me think about Mister 44. Both movies have that same frantic energy where it feels like the director was trying to finish filming before the sun went down. It doesn't have the polish of, say, The Golden Pince-Nez, but that’s not really the point, is it?

The ending comes out of nowhere. It’s like they ran out of film stock and just decided, "Okay, someone shoots someone, and then we roll credits." It works, technically, but it doesn't leave you with much to think about. It’s just a blur of hats, dust, and bad tempers.

Still, for a rainy afternoon? It’s not the worst way to kill time. Just don't go looking for high art. You’ll be disappointed. 🤠