His Fighting Blood: A Cowboy Tale That Doesn't Waste Your Time

Is it worth your hour?

If you like your movies short, dusty, and filled with people wearing hats while yelling at each other in the desert, you will probably dig His Fighting Blood. It’s not going to win any awards, and honestly, if you need deep psychological character studies, look elsewhere. But if you want a Saturday afternoon vibe where the plot is simple enough to follow while you’re eating a sandwich, this fits the bill perfectly.

The story is basic: Kermit Maynard plays a cowboy trying to pull his brother out of a life of crime. Naturally, the bad guys aren't too happy about that. They decide the best way to handle a pesky sibling is to make the brother do the dirty work. It’s bleak, sure, but it moves fast. 🤠

Notes from the trail

There is something inherently comforting about these old B-westerns. They don't have the weight of something like Tide of Empire, but they don't pretend to either. The action here feels almost like a choreographed dance. You can tell exactly when the stuntmen are about to take a dive into the dirt.

• The horses look like they have more personality than half the gang members.
• The dialogue is so clipped it sounds like everyone is in a hurry to catch a train.
• I’m still trying to figure out why the bad guys hang out in such inconveniently located hideouts.

There’s a moment about halfway through where Kermit Maynard looks directly at the camera, or at least it feels like it, and you can just sense he's thinking about his lunch. It’s those little, messy moments that make these movies feel real. It’s not polished, and the sound mix is a bit crunchy, but it’s got a pulse.

I found myself thinking about The Wolver while watching this. Both films share that same obsession with the wide-open frontier, even if the budget for this one clearly went mostly toward hats and ammunition. The showdown at the end? Yeah, it’s predictable. But you’re not watching this for the twists. You’re watching to see the good guy win, even if the scene lingers a bit too long on the falling body of the villain.

It’s charming in a way that modern stuff just isn't. No CGI, no green screens, just a bunch of guys running around a canyon and having a grand old time. It’s not high art. It’s just a movie. And sometimes, that is all you really need. 🐎