This B Western opens with protagonist Bill Doolin being released from prison on parole; he intends to go straight but things soon go wrong when the train he is travelling on is robbed by the Dalton Gang. While he never rode with them he knew them as friends so when one of them recognises and speaks to him the other passengers assume he is involved with the gang. He jumps off the train and gets away but rather than running he returns to town to answer questions. The sheriff doesn't want to hear any excuses though and tries to arrest Bill; he gets away once again and ends up hiding out with the Dalton Gang. This time he ends up riding with them although there first robbery goes disastrously wrong leaving many of the gang dead or wounded. It isn't ling before Bill, know known as 'The Cimarron Kid' is leading the gang as they rob banks and steal from trains across Oklahoma Territory. Eventually the law begins to catch up with them; but with one last job planned Bill reckons he can earn enough to buy a ranch in Argentina and live there with his sweetheart... of course things don't go according to plan.The plot for this western might not be that deep but there is plenty of solid action and a decent cast of characters. Audie Murphy puts in a decent performance playing against type as Doolin. Beverly Tyler is good enough as love interest Carrie Roberts but Yvette Duguay is the most memorable of the female cast; she plays Rose whose job it is to get information about targets for their robberies... it is great to see a female character doing more than occasionally act as a nurse or only get involved in the action when it is absolutely necessary; Rose is very much one of the gang. There is plenty of varied action including people jumping from a train onto horses; a burning hay wagon being pulled through a town and an impressive shoot out in a railway yard. The film was made in some stunning scenery although, as was often the case, it is Californian scenery not Oklahoman. This might not be an all time great but it is a pretty good western and fans of the genre should check it out if they get a chance.

The Cimarron Kid is directed by Budd Boetticher and written by Louis Stevens and Kay Lenard. It stars Audie Murphy, Beverly Tyler, James Best, Yvette Dugay, John Hudson, Leif Erickson, Noah Beery Junior and Hugh O'Brian. Music is by Joseph Gershenson and cinematography by Charles P. Boyle.Murphy stars as Bill Doolin, AKA: The Cimarron Kid, who leaves prison intending to go straight. However, when the Dalton Gang rob the train he is a passenger on, one of them recognises him and vocally brings it to the attention of the rest of the passengers. Incorrectly earmarked as one of the gang, Doolin finds himself on the run from the law and forced to hide out with the Dalton's. Bitter and angry at the false way he has been perceived, Doolin becomes an active part of the gang, but there is love in the air with Carrie Roberts (Tyler) offering hope of a new, on the right side of the law, life.Boetticher is a name dear to the hearts of Western fans, he would go forward from here to make the Ranown Westerns with Randolph Scott, thus leaving a considerable mark in the psychological Western pantheon. Invariably his other forays into the genre struggle to hold a torch to those later efforts, but although they lack the insightfulness and quality of narrative of those pictures made with Scott, the likes of this and The Man from the Alamo are minor gems well worth discovering.The story on premise terms doesn't offer anything new, where the core beat of the picture is about a man who has been dealt some bad life cards and can't escape his criminal past. Yet the story is unfolded in such away that hope is dangled in front of The Kid and we are never sure how it will pan out for him? In fact the finale has a couple of kickers that ensure it's well worth the viewing experience. There's the usual roll call of gang character's, including the loose cannon (O'Brian), but that familiarity of genre convention is off set by the addition of Yvette Dugay's Rose of Cimarron. She's a crafty and athletic part of the set up, a well written part and Dugay performs it well whilst joining Tyler in the gorgeous Technicolor darlings stakes.This is also a picture high on action and filled with lovely outdoor photography. Locations used are the historical parks at Columbia State and Railtown 1897, both are photographed expertly by Boyle, with Boetticher deftly utilising them to aid the story. Best of the action comes with a shoot out and escape after the Coffeyville bank raids (resplendent with burning hay wagon), while the quite excellent and extended shoot out centred around Railtown's turntable is one of the finest action constructions on Boetticher's CV. Cast are strong, led superbly by a thoughtful Murphy performance of substance, and prolific Western scorer Gershenson adds the required bombast and tenderness when required.Its B movie worth sometimes shows, such as handcuffs that mysteriously disappear from the escaping Doolin, but taken as a whole this is a little cracker of an Oater and highly recommended to Western fans. 8/10

"The Cimarron Kid" was another of Universal's great little 80 minute westerns based on legendary outlaws of the old west. This one benefits from crisp direction from soon to be legendary Diector Budd Boetticher, a great supporting cast and good story. It stars Audie Murphy in one his early and best roles.Bill Doolin aka "The Cimarron Kid" (Murphy) is paroled from prison and intends to go straight. Unfortunately, the train on which he is riding is held up by the notorious Dalton Gang (I always thought that there were four Daltons but this story has six). One of the gang, Red Buck (Hugh O'Brian complete with red hair and beard) recognizes the Kid. The passengers think that the Kid is a part of the gang and try to restrain him. The Kid escapes and goes to the Dalton's camp.The Daltons led by Bob Dalton (Noah Beery Jr.) welcome him into the gang. The overly ambitious Red Buck doesn't trust the Kid and a conflict develops. The gang has a two bank heist planned for Coffeyville, Kansas. Seasonedw western fans will know what happens there. With the gang decimated, the Kid takes over as leader and they flee to the ranch of Pat Roberts (Roy Roberts) to hide out with Marshal John Sutton (Leif Ericson) and Railroad detective Tilden (Eugene Baxter) hot on their trail. Naturally Roberts has a comely young daughter, Carrie (Beverly Tyler) who is attracted to the Kid and likewise.The gang in spite of several setbacks, continues to operate. Dynamite Dick Dalton (John Hudson), who was believed to be lost, returns to the hideout with a proposal. With the help of his brother-in-law Geaorge Webster (John Hubbard), he proposes the robbery of a train carrying gold bullion and replacing it with lead. As the plan unfolds, the Kid discovers a double cross and.........................................As with most of Universal's westerns, the supporting cast consists of several of their up and coming contract players, sprinkled with a few recognizable veterans. In addition to those mentioned above we have James Best, Gregg Palmer (aka Palmer Lee), Rand Brooks and William Reynolds as the other Daltons, as well as, Yvette Duguay as Best's girlfriend Rose, John Bromfield, Richard Garland and Frank Silvera as Dalton Gang members and Tristram Coffin as a womanizer/gambler.The boyish looking Murphy was developing into a competent actor by this time and would enjoy a long career at Universal making these excellent little westerns.

I never saw an Audie Murphy film I didn't like & this one is no exception. It is a real action packed shoot-em-up, but it also has a better than average plot to hold your attention between the action sequences that were Audie's trademarks. I knew Audie quite well, we used to shoot together at the various "fast draw" contests in CA that were popular back in the '60's. I can tell you this, anything you saw Audie do on film, he could do for real. He was one of the fastest guns in the movies, & he could do it with real bullets, not just blanks or wax bullets! He became a fine horseman, even riding some of his own horses in his films. Watch for Flying John, his horse that he rode in "Night Passage". Audie was a much better actor than he was ever given credit for, or allowed to be in Universal's films.