corporalko First off, let me inform planktonrules, above, that the title, "Rim of the Canyon," DOES have something to do with the movie! It's the title song, which Gene sings early on; and there is mention made in dialogue of a particular place in the Western area where the film takes place, referred to locally as "the rim of the canyon." So there.Gene Autry's movies for Columbia, which were filmed starting in 1947, tended to include darker plots, less music, more action, and a more mature, better actor as the star. And "Rim of the Canyon" is one of the best.Autry is sabotaged out of winning a stagecoach race, and, with an injured leg, limps into a ghost town where he meets a rather plain, bespectacled young school teacher Ruth Lambert (Nan Leslie). She goes to the town to be alone and write when she has time, and as Gene discovers, she is friends with an older man who lives there secretly, and who faked his own death years before, Big Tim Hanlon (Thurston Hall).Meanwhile, three outlaws who were captured after a $30,000 robbery 20 years before have broken out of prison and are headed for the ghost town to reclaim the money one hid there before their capture. The connection? They were captured by Sheriff Steve Autry, Gene's father, also played by Gene in a flashback. While preparing to head for the ghost town, they steal Gene's horse Champ, who was waiting for his master to return from the stagecoach race. As a result, Champ plays a much larger part in this film than in most Autrys, including getting his own revenge on one of the three outlaws.Autry is informed by the elderly stranger in the ghost town that Ruth is in love with the cowboy. He also tells how he (Hanlon) has come to be known as the "ghost" in the "ghost town." Shortly after, the three crooks arrive, and the plot thickens and includes much more action than in the first half of the movie -- including two knock-down, drag-out fights between Gene and the towering Jack Mahoney, playing the youngest of the thugs. Some serious gun play and riding is also included before Gene finally wins out in the end -- and wins Ruth also. She has been transformed into a beautifully gowned, strikingly lovely young woman at a "magic moment" in the film.Gene Autry's riding, fighting and acting are outstanding in this movie. The others also turn in fine acting jobs, especially Thurston Hall as the "ghost." In fact, when he's walking away from the camera, chuckling, near the end, did it seem to anyone else that he just suddenly disappeared into the night? ...This is a very fine B-Western, one of Gene's best, never mind what some of the "nay-sayers" above think about it. I heartily recommend it.

dougdoepke Oddball Autry entry, from his limping into a ghost town, to a woman possessed by a ghost, to horse Champion doing everything but talking. Looks like Gene and Columbia were reaching for something different from the matinée formula. What they come up with is an uneven but interesting storyline that jumps around quite a bit. Nonetheless, prolific director English sneaks in some unusual camera shots adding to the movie's generally exotic flavor. And catch leading lady Leslie riding around in what looks like an overflowing prom gown, along with a wild horse herd numbering in the thousands. And note the general absence of the usual comedy relief. As a result, you can't be sure what will pop up next since Gene (the actor) also gets to play Gene's (the character) dad, Steve, and with a mustache, no less. Minimize a convoluted plot that plays around with three outlaws and a ghost trying to find a hidden thirty-thousand in gold. Nope, the real draw here is an exotically flavored programmer much less predictable than the usual matinée fare.

classicsoncall I guess I would consider this a ghost themed Western, even if the title didn't use the words 'ghost' or 'haunted' to describe the picture. I find this to be a neat little sub-genre of the Western movie experience, and find particular delight in these kinds of stories. The only thing is, this wasn't much of a ghost story, as the 'ghost' turned out to be a character who faked his own death some twenty years earlier. On the face of it, I'm not buying that premise but what the heck, it's a Gene Autry picture.You know, if you keep an eye on Gene in the early going, it looked like he really might have hurt himself when his stagecoach crashed during the Frontier Days Celebration race. He grabs his right thigh as if in pain, and actually grimaces as the scene transitions to the next part of the story. Gene uses a makeshift cane for the ensuing scenes, so I'm curious now whether the story was written that way, or around the fact that he might have been slightly injured.Nan Leslie appeared in quite a few B Westerns but I have to say, she never looked more glamorous than she did here once she shed the bookworm image used when Gene first found her at The Bonanza. The story goes on to reveal how she became aware of Gene back in Canyon Junction and fell in love with him from afar, knowing that he had a thing going with saloon gal Lily Shannon. I was curious about a phrase Lily used when she showed Gene her new dress - "Isn't it pash"? I had to look that up - a slang expression for passionate, which I take would be the way she felt about Gene, even while Alan Hale was making his move on her. Interestingly, she didn't show up in the story again.So what we have here is a story about a trio of outlaws out to recover some stolen loot after serving a twenty year hitch for a stagecoach robbery. Well, two of them anyway, the third outlaw was shot and replaced by Jock Mahoney, appearing as he did in these early B Westerns as O'Mahoney. It's too bad he didn't get to show off his riding skills here, he was one of the best in my book. But this was Gene's picture.Now I've got to say, I was at a loss for words at the finale when Champion got in on the action and stomped one of the baddies to death. It was done off screen, but it still resonated with this viewer. You could say that villain Jake Fargo (Walter Sande) had it coming to him, but gee, that was tough way to go. As far as movie horses go, I'd say he was one up on Trigger.

rsoonsa Shortly after Gene Autry returned to the world of Western film-making following his wartime service, he left Republic Pictures, moving with his production company to Columbia where he enjoyed the greater fiscal capabilities of the larger studio, as can plainly be observed in this well-made melodrama that is marked by strong contributions from all involved, and that offers a storyline having precedence over Autry's former bedrock singing scenes, of which there are but two examples in this piece. Gene plays a double role, incorporating flashbacks as his sheriff father Steve who, 20 years prior, had arrested a trio of stagecoach bandits that are now prison escapees and have returned to their former hunting grounds, in the area where Gene owns a spread, to regain their secreted loot, and before this briskly-paced film has come to its closing, we may enjoy a scenario featuring an exciting stage coach race, a ghost ( naturally residing in a ghost town), a rampaging herd of wild horses, excellent stunt work, a romance (for which a homely schoolteacher abruptly blossoms), along with gunplay and superb horsemanship. The original story penned by Joseph Chadwick and published in the long-running pulp magazine "Western Aces" is adapted to a script by John K. Butler that improves upon it, adding elements that match the skills of those involved, including director John English who further tightens the work, cinematographer William Bradford, notable cameraman of equine fare, editor Aaron Stell (TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD) who works closely with English, George Montgomery, whose designs are moodily effective for the ghost town interiors, Russell Malmgren with noteworthy sound mixing, in addition to the duo of Paul Malcolm (makeup) and Beth Langston (coiffeurs) who successfully bring about a metamorphosis of Ruth (Nan Leslie) from a plain, lovelorn spinster into an actual beauty; Leslie is impressive, as are future cinema Tarzan Jock Mahoney and rugged Walter Sande as hold-up men, and there are fine turns from old hands Thurston Hall, Alan Hale Jr., Clem Bevans, John McKee, Francis McDonald and Denver Pyle, while Champion Jr. must not be ignored, the Tennessee Walker's actions being fundamental to plot development.