The Film Daily (1918)

>All_Y Bandit Meller Doesn't Convince Though Star Does His Best William Russell in 'WHEN A MAN RIDES ALONE" American Prod.— Pathe Dist AS A WHOLE Wild meller with plenty of fast <j-rr*T?v aCUoiLtnat brings some unintentional laughs. aiUKY ... ..Texas rangers, desperados, and Mexican greazers in a gun-pulling rumpus. Old fashniPB.rTTS material that doesn't often convince. LUKJiCriON ......Depends mainly upon speed. Did ^T^r^^J1^* £other much with fine points. rfr0HTT0TS?tPHY n VarieS; S°od on «teriom. LIGHTINGS Contrasty and harsh on some interiors. CAMERA WORK ..... .Fine in getting good shots on long scenes. STAR -Deserves better material than this, but makes the most of what he has. SUPPORT . .Satisfactory. iiA i iLKiUKS^ ...... Likely to prove the strongest attraction of the production for those who like views of beautiful country. JNTERIORS Nothing out of the ordinary. i;Tr { V.\~ Doesn't figure much CHARACTER OF STORY Wcm't offend LENGTH OF PRODUCTION About 4800 ft Things do happen in this picture. They happen so tast and furiously that it's hard to keep track of who's shooting who and why. When the rangers, or the outlaws, or the Mexican greazers haven't any place else to shoot, they aim their guns at the blue sky and go to it. There's enough powder burned to smoke out a whole town-full of Mexicans, but it takes more than powder to make a picture. Speaking of powder burning and shooting aimlessly into the air. why do they keep on doing it? Ever since Broncho Billy made his early westerns it has been the custom to go after excitment by causing hard-riding cowboys to keep up their incessant shooting at nothing. o acTualCT/rtS W°Mdn,t ,P-6rmit much in the *»7 ot actuality. Its too wild and impossible, so there is little to do except go after excitement by keeping things moving at a fast clip. y Keep,n« Bill Russell is Captain Bonfire, chief of the Texa, [PAerS^h,?Se ^ain job is to outwit a band of outlaws ed by Willun Charles Stockdale. "The Vulture "The bandits waylay a mule-pack shipment o gold Ind hustle it off to the fortified ranch of a Mexican ranger who, with his spirited daughter, is ready to protect them from the Americanos. juicer When Hero Bill and his rangers arrive at the front gate, the gold is taken out the back way and off to a mountain cave. In the meanwhile the ranger chief is having all sorts of trouble with a Mexican girl, who at the first glance, concludes to hate him with an allconsuming hatred. Before long Bill is pretty thoroughly shot up and there is a merry little scene showing how the Mexican ranger, his daughter and one of the bandits compare ideas as to what would be the most horrible form of torture for the despised Americano. The girl plays nurse to the wounded ranger whose one other friend in the establishment is the mother of a young woman whose life he was instrumental in saving. As everything happens with startling suddenness in this film, it isn't surprising to find a complete reversal of feeling on the part of the amateur nurse who instead of torturing her patient to death schemes to save him from the plotting bandits. There is no need to follow the various details of the plot, which naturally brings Bill out victorious and starts him on his way to France with the understanding that the Mexican shero will await his return A really strong element of the production, in fact probably the strongest, is the beauty of the exteriors photographed in a mountainous country. LOUISE GLAUM PRODUCTIONS CORPORATION > Current Release 4 The Goddess of Lost Lake"