Sundown Trail: A Dusty Little Western That Knows Its Place

Is it worth your time?

If you like old-school black-and-white westerns where the good guys are genuinely good and the scenery looks like it hasn't changed since the dawn of time, sure. Give it a look. If you need something with a plot that moves faster than a tired pack mule, you’ll probably find yourself reaching for your phone halfway through. Honestly, it’s a perfect rainy afternoon movie for someone who wants to switch their brain to low power.

The whole thing kicks off with a classic range war setup. Cattle versus sheep. It's the kind of thing you've seen in a hundred other flicks, maybe even something like Fightin' Mad, but here it’s all wrapped up in a nice little bow.

Jack Kirk is doing his best to keep his men from turning a flock of sheep into mutton stew. The second he lays eyes on the girl, the movie pretty much decides it’s done with the conflict. It shifts gears into this awkward, sweet romance that feels very 1934.

The dialogue? It’s about as subtle as a sledgehammer, but that’s the charm. Nobody is winning an Oscar for these lines, but they land exactly where they need to. There’s a scene near the fence line where the tension is supposed to be thick, but it mostly just looks like people trying to remember where to stand so the camera can see them.

I couldn't help but notice the way the horses look a bit bored in the background. They probably knew they were in for a long day of standing around while the humans argued about fences. 🐴

The pacing is, well, weird. Sometimes it feels like they’re running out of film, and other times they just let a shot go on until it gets slightly uncomfortable. There's this one moment where a character just stares off into the distance for a solid five seconds too long. It felt like they forgot to yell 'cut'.

It’s not as polished as some of the bigger budget stuff from that era, like The Land of Long Shadows. It feels scrappy. It feels like someone just wanted to get these people on a horse and out to the ranch before the sun went down.

Maybe it’s not essential viewing, but it’s honest. It doesn’t try to be a sweeping epic or a meditation on the frontier. It just is. And sometimes, that’s all I’m looking for on a Tuesday night.

• The sheep look surprisingly unbothered by the gunfire.
• The wardrobe department definitely deserves a shoutout for all those dusty vests.
• I’m pretty sure I spotted the same rock formation in three different scenes.

Don't expect anything profound. Just enjoy the ride and the fact that they managed to get it all on screen without anything falling apart. 🤠