I was intrigued by this - a Western set in a cave, with location filming at some famous caves in Arizona. The cast was strong - MacDonald Carey, Alexis Smith, Hugh O'Brian, Victor Jory, Edgar Buchanan, Russ Tamblyn (as Carey as a boy). But it never quite hit home.
It starts well - Tamblyn being part of a gang that robbed a train, and hiding some gold in the cave. Tamblyn spends 15 years in prison and comes out as Carey, trying to find it. He's dogged by inspector Buchanan, everyone wants to lend him money because they assume he's going to be rich. Alexis Smith wants some of that money to set up a newspaper.
I loved all this. But the film goes off in different directions - maybe it was just different to how I thought it would go in my head, but it felt unsatisfactory. There's all this awesome story set up that isn't used - like Tamblyn's father who forced him to take part in the robbery and was killed (why not keep him alive? Why not use ma?), or the posse leader who beats up Tamblyn brutally at the start to find out where the gold is (why not see himagain?), or the fellow gang members (why not use one of them? or a relative of them?). Why spend so much time on Alexis Smith's missing husband - who cares about him? Why not have him as part of the gang (or the son of someone in the gang - or posse?) Why not have head villain Victory Jory tied up with the original robbery? Why have Edgar Buchanan be the one who shoots Jory and sidekick O'Brien, and not Carey?
I wish there had been more scenes in the caves and also that Smith had been more genuinely treacherous - the role is a bit of a nothing. Or had a second girl character who was treacherous to give it some variety. And the plan to get a bullet by doing a duel is dumb- very dangerous! Why not just take out the bullet.
Still the cave setting is different, the cast strong. And there's some bright dialogue and scenes where people try, like the duel.
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