The Kansan (1943)

Graced with an awesome cast (the polecat Dix as a marshal due to his gun-play, a job he accepts because of the landlady, Jory as a gambler and the brother of a banker played by Dekker, Palette as the marshal's friend, Jane Wyatt as a landlady, but also W. Best playing a racial stereotype for which he must now be despised by the half-wits) and certainly the best saloon fight ever, 'The Kansan' is intriguing, neither romantic or historical, but the western equivalent of a political thriller with a good dramatic plot; it is Jory's movie, and a very good showcase for his dark glamor. The script wishes us to care more for the gambling gentleman, than for the righteous marshal.The cast has to be one of the choicest ever, because you never get the feeling that anyone is just giving a cameo; the saloon fight was made, fought, shot with a joy unsurpassed, with gusto and with the keenest sense of the slapstick, as a frenzied general fistfight.Jory plays a gambler who's also the marshal's friend, and perhaps wishes to get his brother's insurance, anyway a very well written character; he was a much better actor than Dix, and it shows. Now, perhaps Dekker was himself better than Dix, but here he got a character role, i.e. a walking cliché. As for the others, Palette was dependable (for me, he's the father in a screwball movie). Jane Wyatt seems less assured or convincing, in a role better handled by other actresses in, certainly, other movies.

Wild Pacing with a lot of Western Movie Ingredients Paraded out for WWII Movie Audiences. Explosives, Gun Battles with many Shooters On both sides, a Sprawling Saloon Brawl that is a Stuntman's Showcase, Cattle Stampede, and more Outlandish Outdoor Shenanigans.The Wartime Audiences sure got Their Money's Worth with this one. An Aging Richard Dix Shows Heroics, Honor, and Precise Marksmanship, although He is Nicked by incoming Bullets at least Five Times. Albert Dekker is a Dandy Villain and Victor Jory is on hand as an Ambiguous Mysterious Player in all the doings. It's Never Certain where He Stands and that Adds a bit of Intrigue.Jane Wyatt just Sparkles on screen and is Cute. Overall, a Rousing, Never Boring, Wide Open Western that is Entertaining. Willie Best will Certainly get Noticed as a Racial Stereotype and Comedy Relief, but is shown Respect by the "Good Guys". Note...There is a Propaganda insertion ("When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again") as WWII was raging on, to boost morale. A musical number that was popular during the Civil War it is here delivered by leggy George Cohan types.Note 2…The Print shown on TCM in 2015 was washed out and pretty shoddy. One assumes it is the best available. There is no contrast and it has a white-washed look. If it is the best out there, Film-Restorists-Archivists should be on the look out for better source material.

No need to recap the plot. Though conventional in most respects, this western does have some imaginative wrinkles. The Victor Jory character (Jeff) is a real novelty for the western format. Unlike most oaters, we can't tell where his loyalties lie. His intentions remain something of an enigma, which adds greatly to the plot since we can't be sure what he'll do next. With his unusual looks, Jory is perfectly cast. Then there's the super slick Albert Dekker who uses his extraordinary business guile instead of a six-gun to take over the town. All in all, it's a fine cast of colorful movie veterans, especially the froggish Eugene Palette.I get the feeling someone in production was aiming for an epic scale western. Consider features like the host of extras, the big shootouts, the massive barroom free-for-all, the cattle stampede that's not all stock shots, along with the well-mounted musical numbers. The trouble is they spent all their money on big events but filmed in the very un-epic LA area scrublands, which gives the visuals a flat, pedestrian appearance. The story may be grandly conceived but the canvas is ordinary, at best. All in all, it's an interesting, slightly offbeat western.

In Broken Lance, Kansas, John Bonniwell averts the Jesse James gang from holding up the town bank, but is severely wounded in the process. When he awakes in the hospital, he finds that he has been elected town marshall, with high recommendations from the bank owner and leading citizen, Steve Barat. Bonniwell accepts the job (especially after getting an eyeful of the hotel owner Eleanor Sager) even though he knows that he was only appointed to become a pawn in Barat's scheme to bleed Broken Lance, and the Kansas, dry. Bonniwell's position is put to the test when Barat sues Bonniwell's friend Waggoner for running his cattle without paying the $1 a head toll enforced by Barat. When he sees that Bonniwell isn't going to be controlled so easily, Barat has Bonniwell's enemies go after him followed by an attempt by Barat's gambling brother, Jeff (who seems to be playing both sides of the standoff, while in love with Eleanor). Bonniwell then starts to rid Broken Lance of Barat's influence without losing his life, or anyone else's, in the process. Very good western with an excellent script, direction, characterization, and performances by everyone. Dix is right at home as Bonniwell, even though he seems awkward at times. Jory gives one of his best performances as Jeff, and his characterization is very surprising and different from others in the genre. The movie also contains one of the biggest barroom free for alls in any western, with everyone getting into the fracas. Only flaw was the climax was not as action packed as other sequences in the movie, but still a winner all the way. Rating, based on B westerns (this may count as a B+ however), 9.