Back in the 50s when the theaters didn't bother to post the title of the Saturday Matinée movie feature(s) It was always a crap shoot on what you were going to get. Those of us who went to see the feature (as opposed to the kids just out to raise heck in the audience, were usually pretty pleased when the name Randolph Scott appeared on the opening credits. We knew there was going to be plenty of action and simplistic characters spouting rudimentary dialog to move the plot from action to action. It was cowboy day, and just about any oater would do but a Scott flick was usually considerably better fare than most of the films made for the 50s kiddie market.I first saw Ten Wanted Men at the State Theater in downtown Schenectady New York. I don't remember if I got a soda or a Hershey bar on the way in, but those were my go-to matinée snacks at that time.Scott made some pretty impressive "B" westerns but Ten Wanted Men had absolutely nothing going for it, other than Scott. The quality of the dialog was amazingly poor and every scene seemed to land with a palpable thud. By the middle of the movie I wished I was one of the kids who chose running up and down the aisles instead of watching the movie.Naturally I would have chosen to avoid this film forever thereafter. But it popped up at least once again at a matinée. Time has not dulled my disdain for this remarkably poor excuse for a Randolph Scott western - but it has dulled my memory for titles. So, having no memory of the title - seen at least ten years before I started keeping notes on my watching habits, I ended up renting it recently from Netflix DVD. I realised my mistake during an early scene but it was too late. It was in my house, and I was left with no choice but to either watch the movie or send in back.My sense of thrift just about compels me to be a good lad and sit in my seat paying strict attention to a movie I really would have rather avoided forever.Unless you are an absolute completest for Scott westerns I suggest you do your best to avoid my horrible mistake.Pay no mind to the extensive list of reliable western bad men in the cast - even Richard Boone was a completely lackluster villain in this film. Leo Gordon almost saves the movie as Henchman Number One, at least his evil deeds do keep the plot moving briskly.

I like Randolph Scott Westerns, but I am the first to admit they all were not gems. While I give this one 4 of 10, this is mostly because I like Scott and his acting--no matter how clichéd and sloppy the movie was.First let's talk about sloppiness. This film had quite a few stunts that were lame compared to other Scott films. In one scene, Scott's brother is sitting in his wagon and shot three separate times when being cross-examined by the Baddie (Richard Boone). Yet, after Boone finally kills the man, then someone raises a pistol and fires it--at which point the horses THEN take off! Why didn't they run with the first three shots?! Then, when Scott chases down the runaway wagon, you can CLEARLY see the stuntman moving about--crouched down in the buckboard. But then, only a second later when Scott stops the wagon, the guy is splayed out--dead as a doornail!! Later, in the big obligatory confrontation scene between Scott and the Baddie, Scott doesn't even squeeze the trigger and no shot is fired (no flame shooting out the gun, no smoke, no kick--nothing) and then Boone falls dead!! There are also fight scenes where it's obvious that the people are NOT the actors--especially when a dark haired guy is standing in for silver haired Scott!! In addition to this sloppiness, scattered throughout town are obviously fake Saguaro cacti--they're the wrong color AND located in the most impossible places.Now, as for the clichés, they abound. Once again, there is a rich guy who wants to own the town and hired a buttload (a standard unit of measurement out West) of gunmen. I have personally seen this same plot element in 1123745598 films (give or take a few) and am frankly sick of it--let's see some originality. In addition, there is a tender love scene between Scott and his lady friend just as they seem about to die--complete with lame dialog. In addition, there are several gun fights where the gunmen challenge the good guys. In addition, there is,...well, never mind--it was ALL a giant cliché.A giant sloppy cliché with reliable old Randolph Scott in the lead. Without Scott, this one would barely merit a 3.

Exceptionally fine cast from top to bottom, from Boone and Gordon at the top to Pyle and Louis-Jean Heydt in support, and of course in the starring role, the great Randolph Scott. Then too, the color photography is unusually pleasing and picturesque. And the fact that Harry Joe Brown produced suggests that this is a 1955 warm-up for the classic Boetticher-Ranown Western cycle that was soon to follow.So, with these kinds of ingredients, why isn't the movie better than I think it is. For one thing, the direction appears pretty slack. The scenes simply follow one another without building into the kind of intensities expected from the rivalries involved. It's like Humberstone shot each scene without considering its dramatic significance to the narrative as a whole. So, for example, when gunsel Gordon takes over the town from Boone, there's no real sense of displacement, no real dramatic impact. Similarly, the dynamite sticks that act like grenades simply appear and also produce little dramatic impact. Yet both episodes are clever plot wrinkles, and with the right development could have helped lift the movie beyond the merely routine. Also, too many times-- especially in standing conversation-- the actors speak their lines with perfect enunciation, as if they're performing from center stage. I expect that's also Humberstone's doing, but it comes across as stagey and inappropriate for a Western. And, of course, there's poor Donna Martell who looks great but is rather painfully no actress. Still and all, it's an interesting, if somewhat convoluted, story and a treat for the eyes. And seeing all those familiar faces from other films almost looks like a reunion of sorts. I expect some good-hearted soul in production decided on a payday for a number of veteran performers. Also, it's a good chance to catch Skip Homeier in a rare sympathetic role, and Dennis Weaver shortly before his slow-talking, slow thinking deputy on the classic series Gunsmoke. Anyway, disappointing or not, no Western starring the granite-jawed Scott can afford to be overlooked.

Ten Wanted Men is one of the best of Scott's films. It is not in the same category as the ones he made with Budd Boetticher and it can not be compared with them. But it is great fun nonetheless. The beginning, when they play a bad taste joke on the two Stewarts sets the violent tone which will prevail throughout the film. There is no shortage of violence here, they kill without thinking twice and there are plenty of action scenes. There are great actors too. Skip Homeier is the fearless young guy and his first showdown is one of the best moments. Richard Boone is the bad guy which became obsessed with love for Maria (Donna Martell). Leo Gordon and Lee Van Cleef are the bad, bad guys and they are quite good at it. Dennis Weaver is the sheriff which cannot do much with so many gunfighters in town. Irving Ravetch, one of the story writers has to his credit two very important films: Hud and Hombre. If you enjoy a good action western, do not miss Ten Wanted Men.