William Holden and Glenn Ford were soon to become stars at Columbia. However, in 1941 they were still on their way towards stardom and as a result were begin given films that were okay but far from the better ones the studio was producing. So, this film is longer and with a slightly better cast than the huge crops of Bs the studio was churning out....but also not among their better films, that's for sure. The biggest problem is that the film doesn't seem to have much of a plot for almost half the film. Instead, it's played almost as a comedy or a buddy picture. It sure could have used a much tighter script and most of the first portion of the film removed or significantly trimmed. For example, there is a comic boxing sequence that went on and on and on but had absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the film! Following the unnecessary boxing scene and the first 25 minutes or so, the actual plot begins. Out of work Holden and Ford are friends headed to Texas after the end of the Civil War. They stumble upon a robbery of a stage coach and decide to then rob the crooks! But, the Sheriff and his posse incorrectly assume Ford and Holden committed the original robbery. Only due to the intervention of the Doc (Edgar Buchanan) did Holden avoid a hanging. Later, however, he would join up with the gang of robbers. As for Ford, after he made his getaway from the posse, he fell in with a female rancher (Claire Trevor) and her outfit--and becomes an upstanding citizen in the community. Now the two lifelong friends are on a collision course--as sooner or later they are bound to have a showdown. Unfortunately, this ultimate collision course is pretty much exactly as I'd anticipated. Overall, this is only an adequate western--even with the two future stars in the lead. Unless you are a HUGE fan of the genre, this one is easy to skip.

Two close friends find themselves on opposite sides of the law in this 1941 western, which follows the aftermath of the American Civil War into the lucrative business of cattle drives and cattle rustling.Dan Thomas (William Holden) and Tod Ramsey (Glenn Ford) have recently been dismissed from the Confederate army after the recent period of unpleasantness, and are heading for a new life and to make a new fortune in Texas, the state of opportunity in the old west.Tod is looking forward to making an honest living whilst Dan is just looking forward to making any kind of living, not really caring on which which side of the legal and moral fence this living may happen to found.After retrieving a sack full of stolen stagecoach money which Tod plans to return to its rightful owners and Dan plans to pocket for himself, they are captured and nearly lynched by the local sheriff which results in the inevitable chase.It is during this chase that the two friends split to take two different paths, two paths that will ultimately differ morally as well as geographically.Tod Ramsey ends up a trusted and respected law abiding cattle hand in the local town whilst Dan falls in with a crooked Dentist, (Edgar Buchanan) a corrupt rancher (Addison Richards) in charge of a cattle rustling gang, and an equally corrupt 'friend' of the people (George Bancroft) who all set about their merry work, ambushing and rustling the large cattle drives attempting to reach Abilene.With all the cattle drives failing and all the local Cattle barons facing bankruptcy, Tod Ramsey, unaware that his friend is responsible for all the rustling, decides that he will attempt to take a combined herd; the largest herd ever to come out of Texas and defend it all the way to market.For the rustling syndicate this means that Tod will have to be 'taken care off' and quick, but is the seemingly ruthless and ambitious Dan now evil enough to kill his own best friend? Will his loyalty to Tod allow the herd to get through to Abiline, or does he now have an extra plan up his sleeve? Claire Trevor is the love interest for both men, just to give them something else to fight about, although her character I feel is rather dis likable as she seems to flit her affections between the two with each passing breath obviously content to be with whoever is left standing at the end....and the fool takes her. Doh!This was an early Western for both male leads and both were destined for great things. Although Bill Holden's likable but disreputable character is the main focus is this film, it is Glenn Ford who is the treat for me here.He was without doubt one of my favourite actors and certainly my favourite cowboy. No offence to The Duke and Clint, but neither was a patch on Glenn Ford when he put on a gun belt and tightened up his spurs, and its great to see him here just starting out.

George Marshall knew how to blend humor with drama, Destry Rides Again is a proof of that. In Texas which was made two years later he did it again. In this entertaining western which did not age you can see a fantastic comic fight between Holden and Dutch Henry that will make anyone laugh. There is a great performance of Edgar Buchanan as Doc Thorpe, a dentist who is comic and seems harmless, and comes out incredibly well in a musical number "Buffalo Girls". It is a pleasure to see a young Claire Trevor an actress which I was more familiar when she was older. Also a young Glenn Ford already showing the qualities that would make him a great star. But the main character is really Holden with a magnificent performance as a man who has trouble in making the right moral choices. A must for those who enjoy westerns.

It's a bit surprising that no one's commented on this movie till now. After all, it isn't some obscure B-western but rather an almost "A" production with two rising young stars, (William Holden and Glenn Ford, plus Claire Trevor), and a respected director, George Marshall. Perhaps the fact that it's in b&w has unjustly relegated it to near-obscurity.Those who seek it out, however, will be rewarded by an engaging plot which has some interesting twists and turns, by some snappy dialog -- particularly in the first meeting between Holden and Trevor -- and by a host of good supporting players, such as Edgar Buchanan who plays a devious dentist.For fans of "beefcake," there's an early prizefight sequence in which a shirtless Holden battles the local champ in a bare-knuckle marathon. Only about 22 or 23 years old at the time, Holden's physique hadn't yet reached the maturity displayed in his later films, (most notably "Picnic"), but his bare chest, (shaved of the hair displayed earlier in "Golden Boy"),is still quite pleasing to the eye. If only the scene could be re-written so that Holden would have been matched against a stripped-to-the-waist Glenn Ford. Now, that would have been a beefcake bonanza!