JohnHowardReid Executive producer: Robert L. Lippert. Copyright by 24 December 1945 by Action Pictures, Inc. Released through Screen Guild Productions. No recorded New York opening. U.S. release: 30 November 1945. Not released in Australia. 66 minutes. COMMENT: Pleasingly photographed almost entirely in attractively real Canadian locations, this "B" western (or "northern") easily ranks as the finest achievement of director Derwin Abrahams. Admittedly, he was handed a first-rate cast and an interesting script filled with both action and offbeat characters, but he has nonetheless handled the assignment with commendable vigor, using running inserts effectively and drawing winning performances from all his players, particularly Joan Woodbury, Madge Bellamy, George Meeker and John Litel. It is Raymond Hatton, however, in a most unusual role, who walks off with the picture's acting honors. See if you can spot him! I'll give you a clue. For once, he doesn't play the comic relief sidekick. That role is enacted quite ably by Poodles Hanneford, who makes quite a nice change from the usual dumb-as-they-come pardner. As for hero, Bob Steele, he gives a maturely relaxed yet two-fisted portrayal that will delight his fans and even mollify his detractors. He and Joan Woodbury seem brightly and evenly matched and both noticeably do all their own stunt-work, including a great deal of extremely fast riding.

Tad Pole . . . have him watch NORTHWEST TRAIL. RCMP "Mountie" zero "Matt O'Brien" demonstrates at least ten law enforcement tactics sure to disturb the peace and get people killed. Some of O'Brien's more salient failings are a total lack of "shooting range" knowledge. He fires his revolver at targets hundreds of yards away (wasting all of his ammunition, of course). Fortunately, most of the crooks make the same mistake here, packing tiny pistols in situations clearly calling for military assault rifles (the earliest of which were available in the mid-1800s, a century BEFORE the time of NORTHWEST TRAIL). Even Mountie officers are so gullible and child-like that they're easy to kill and impersonate, NORTHWEST TRAIL shows. All the thugs have to do is to pick out a likely Mountie victim wearing a uniform close to their size, and instantly a random low-life becomes "Sgt. Means." One cannot watch a Mountie flick without noticing that joining the RCMP is the equivalent of an American signing on with a dating service. Naturally, Mounties appear to be as thick as bricks in figuring out obvious criminal plots, since dames and chicks possess the only facts and figures that can capture their short attention spans.

csteidler Northwest Trail features a lot of positives, actually: Bob Steele and Joan Woodbury, a decent plot, a fast pace...and, especially, some color photography that was probably quite gorgeous in 1945 when the print was fresh. Unfortunately, the colors have long-since faded, at least on the version I saw. But it had to be something of an investment for an independent B-movie company to produce anything in color at that time. And the "Canadian" scenery really did add to my enjoyment of an otherwise solid story.Fun to see John Litel as a Mountie whose actions must be described as "hm, suspicious." And the always-snarling Charles Middleton has a few good moments as a French-Canadian backwoods bad guy named "Pierre." (His name is how I know he's French.) Plenty of action here. And the interaction between Joan Woodbury and Bob Steele is satisfying--as one might expect, he's steady as a rock throughout the picture, while she's annoying as can be in their initial encounter but they gradually grow on each other....A lot to like in a mere hour.

bkoganbing Bob Steele who occasionally diverted himself from westerns with some great character roles in A pictures, still stayed in the B slot with this Northern which is what you would call a Canadian based film. Northwest Trail had the benefit of some outdoor location scenery which put it a cut above the usual B films.Bob's a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police who gets to do escort duty of a woman who doesn't bother to tell him she's carrying a $20,000.00 payroll for her father John Hamilton. Steele and Joan Woodbury do kind of grate on each other's nerves, but of course there are sparks underneath.If you think you've got the plot figured out than I can tell you you're wrong. There is skullduggery afoot here, but it's not anything you might initially suspect. Plus the fact the gang here commit a truly horrendous crime by RCMP standards. The real suspense in Northwest Trail is just figuring out who the good and bad guys are let alone what's afoot.I would rate Northwest Trail higher, but the writers copped out in the end in dealing with Woodbury's character. She should have gotten the Mary Astor treatment as in The Maltese Falcon.Silent star Madge Bellamy made her farewell appearance in a role as a battered wife. She's the one who eventually cooks the whole gang.Northwest Trail a nice independent production with much better values and story than one might expect.