The Mine with the Iron Door: A Dusty, Forgettable Treasure Hunt

Is it worth the watch?

Look, if you are the kind of person who enjoys 1930s B-movies where the plot moves like a tired mule, you might get a kick out of The Mine with the Iron Door. If you need pacing, logic, or a script that doesn't feel like it was written on a napkin in a diner, skip it. Honestly, it’s a weird little artifact.

The whole thing kicks off with Bob Harvey buying a mining company for $500, which feels like a total scam even in 1936 money. He immediately sells half to a detective for $200 because... well, I guess he needed a buddy? It’s a shaky start, but then again, I’ve seen worse setups in stuff like The Nervous Reporter.

The Desert is the Real Star

The desert scenery is decent, I guess. There are moments where the camera just lingers on the horizon and you forget they’re supposed to be looking for a gold mine. It has that *baking sun* vibe that makes you thirsty just watching it. 🏜️

Then there is Buck the Dog. Honestly? Buck is the best actor in this entire mess. He does more with a single ear twitch than some of the human cast does with five pages of dialogue. Sometimes the movie stops dead just to let the dog walk around, and honestly, those are the only parts that feel real.

A Bit of a Tangent

There is this one scene near the middle where they are just sitting around a campfire talking about the legend of San Capello. It goes on for about three minutes too long. You can literally watch the light change in the background, like they were filming it as the sun was going down and just didn't care to match the shots later.

• The dialogue is stiff, like everyone is reading from a postcard.
• The "iron door" of the title is surprisingly underwhelming when it finally shows up.
• There is a distinct lack of actual mining going on for a movie about a mine.

It’s not as chaotic as Stone Age Stunts, but it’s definitely just as aimless. You get the feeling that everyone involved was just trying to finish the shoot so they could go home and have a cold drink. It lacks that spark, you know? It's just... *there*.

I wouldn't call it a disaster, but I wouldn't call it a classic either. It’s a movie that exists in the margins of film history, probably for a good reason. Watch it if you’re bored on a Sunday afternoon, but keep the remote handy. You’re gonna want to skip the talky bits.