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6.8/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6.8/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Helldorado remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you have a soft spot for 1930s B-movies that don't take themselves too seriously, you’ll probably find something to like here. It moves fast, the desert sets are charmingly fake, and the whole thing feels like it was put together on a lunch break. If you need your movies to make perfect sense or you get annoyed by convenient plot turns every five minutes, just skip it.
The whole thing starts with a bridge washing away, which is the classic "stuck in a place with no phone service" trope, but it works fine. Watching Arthur T. Ryan and Glenda Wynant try to survive a ghost town while pretending to be a married couple from the past is actually kind of fun. It’s got that breezy energy you see in movies like The Road to Yesterday where the plot is mostly just an excuse for the characters to bicker and fall in love.
Abner Meadows is easily the best part of this. He’s this old guy who just lives among the dust and talks to ghosts. There’s a scene where he’s convinced Art and Glenda are these long-dead pioneers, and instead of correcting him, they just kind of roll with it. It’s a strange, funny bit of roleplay that keeps the movie from being a total slog.
I couldn't help but notice how empty the town felt. It’s supposed to be this relic of the gold rush, but sometimes the streets look like they’ve been swept five minutes before the cameras started rolling. It doesn't matter much, but it’s one of those little details that pulls you out of the story. Like how clean everyone’s clothes stay while they’re supposedly "climbing" out of a canyon.
The ending is a total mess of people rushing around and demanding gold, but it wraps up exactly how you think it will. Glenda ditches the rich fiancé, Art gets the girl, and everything ends with a hug. It’s not deep, it’s not life-changing, but it’s a quick hour or so of entertainment. Just don't go looking for the kind of emotional weight you might find in something like Wuthering Heights. This is strictly popcorn stuff.
Also, the way they handle the side characters is pretty rough. It’s a different era, for sure. Sometimes you just have to look away and appreciate the scenery instead of thinking too hard about the script. The desert shots are actually kind of nice, even if they’re obviously painted backdrops half the time. 🌵
IMDb —
1927
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