Director: ROBERT NORTH BRADBURY. Screenplay: Robert North Bradbury. Story: Lloyd Nosler. Photography: Archie Stout. Film editor: Carl Pierson. Art director: E.R. Hickson. Sound recording: D.S. Stoner. Producer: Paul Malvern. A Lone Star Western.Not copyright by Monogram Pictures Corp. U.S. release through Republic: 20 June 1935. U.K. release through Pathé: 23 December 1935. 56 minutes;COMMENT: Plenty of action in this one. Wayne does his own riding and fighting, whilst Canutt contributes some exciting stunt-work. At the same time, the script develops its characters most interestingly, allowing Reed Howes some golden opportunities to paint a fascinating portrait of the star-crossed Ben. The villain is played most agreeably by Dennis Moore — of all people — making a nice contrast with the pleasant heroine limned by the lovely Marion Burns. It's unfortunate that action highlights are — as usual in the Monogram Lone Stars — handicapped both by the obvious absence of background music and the deployment of hollow sound effects. These defects give the picture a museum air, for which Bradbury's lively direction — complete with running inserts — manages to compensate (at least to some extent).

not a bad western from the famous Lone Star stable of productions. John Wayne plays a man who rides into town to catch up with his father, but before he get's to do that, he sees his old friend, and they share a few drinks.. they wind up getting into a fight, but it's spilt milk really,, so he goes and sees his father and his father get's shot in town. the son played by the Duke,, get's hurt and seeks medical attention from his friend's girlfriend, unbeknownst to him,, they fall in love,, and his friend one night while he is drunk decides to remove the bullets from his gun,, because he knows that the man that killed his father and his friend are set to have it out in the street High Noon style.. interesting little western from Lone Star a fairly decent watch,, also with Yakima Cannut.

Catch Nelson McDowell as the lanky black-clad undertaker at movie's start. He's got the only face I've seen that appears to be assembled in sections. The eyes go in one direction, the nose in another, while the mouth bounces around like a Kleenex in a windstorm. He's fascinating. I wish we would see more of him.Other reviewers are right. This is an average Wayne entry in the Lone Star series. Buddies Mason (Wayne) and Ben (Howes) do play off one another well and I like the way they bond after their fist-fight. It's now a friendship based on mutual respect. And when they fall out over the same girl (Burns), we feel the loss. There's also Wayne doing his patented "gunman's walk" before he duels it out with Canutt and Moore.However, there's not much stunt work or hard riding. But the biggest problem is Dennis Moore as the chief baddie. Catch that scene that pairs up Wayne in a 2-foot hat with Moore in a 6-foot hat. Too bad Moore just doesn't measure up. Then too, the locations don't get outside greater LA, so we don't get the usual great Southern Sierra scenery. But never mind, an ex-Front Row Kid like this old geezer still gets a thrill when that great Lone Star logo pops up on the screen. Yes indeed, the Duke rides again!

Not being an expert on this genre I can't give The Dawn Rider an unqualified whoop or a hesitant snort either. I cut my eye-teeth on this type of B Western when a kid in the 60's - I've only seen a few hundred films like it since and it seems pretty much average.Wayne looked a very smooth and supple 28 year old, swinging into saddles for countless horse races, sorry, chases, but he was a much better character to watch as the craggy icon he later became. He, and all the characters (and the story) in TDR are necessarily flat and undeveloped - the kids in the cinema at the time weren't interested in multi-layered portrayals of Tolstoy magnitude, and Lone Star weren't going to give 'em it either!The DVD had new musical additions - I prayed for silence! But all in all a pleasant hour was spent by the TV at my ole homestead.