End of the Trail: Old School Westerns and Not Much Else

Is it worth your time?

If you have a soft spot for grainy, black-and-white horse operas, you’ll probably find something to like here. If you need a movie that moves faster than a tired pack mule, skip it. It’s definitely not for the modern viewer who gets antsy without a CGI explosion every five minutes.

Tim McCoy carries the whole thing on his shoulders. He’s got that stoic, granite-faced look down to a science. When he’s on screen, you believe he’s actually spent time in the saddle, which is more than I can say for some of these other B-movie leads.

The Setup

Major Jenkins is the kind of villain who sneers just because he can. The framing of Captain Travers happens so quickly it’s almost funny. One minute he’s in the Army, the next he’s a social pariah living with the tribe. It doesn’t dwell on the injustice, which is fine—we’re here for the inevitable shootout anyway.

I caught myself looking at the background extras during the fort scenes. There’s a guy in the back left who seems to forget he’s supposed to be scared for about three whole seconds. He just stands there, hands on his hips, watching the camera. It’s those little moments of unintentional comedy that make these old flicks feel human.

A Strange Pacing

The middle act sags like a wet blanket. We spend way too much time watching people look at horizons. If you want a tighter experience, maybe watch The Fighting Strain instead, though it’s hardly a masterpiece either. The transition from the desert to the fort feels like two different movies taped together by someone who ran out of glue.

• The horses look like they’re having a better time than the actors.
• The dialogue is mostly just people shouting orders at the sky.
• That one scene in the mess hall is lit so dark I thought my screen had died.

There’s a moment toward the end where the Indians attack the fort. The sound design is… well, it’s mostly just loud, distorted noise. It’s charming in a way, like a home movie filmed by someone’s grandpa. It’s not art, but it’s definitely work. I appreciate the hustle.

Don't expect the world. Just expect a lot of dust and some very dramatic hat-tipping. It's a relic, but at least it knows what it is.