This is the 2nd in the Silver Star/Paul Malvern Productions series starring John Wayne. Its an oft used plot - Wayne was unjustly convicted of murder, escapes prison to head west and clear himself by finding the real murderer. In a nice twist, he and Lane Chandler the man he is looking for become friends and Chandler gets him an entree into a gang of thieves. Wayne figures that's as good a way as any to find the murderer. Yakima Canutt is the gang boss, aided by regular henchman actors Art Mix and uncredtited Slim Whitaker and others. Wayne's cute love interest squeajky-voiced Nancy Shubert is not much of an actress, but does what she can. According to IMDb this here only credit in the 3 films available. Ploys oft used in this series: Wayne falling into a river to escape someone, jumping onto runaway stagecoaches and getting a serious kiss at the end. An average outing in this series.

"I just came here to help you carry back those eggs" that's classic!

One of the more common plot lines in these old films is where someone gets accused of something on insubstantial or circumstantial evidence, and isn't cleared until the bad guy confesses, frequently with his dying breath. This film is unusual in the Malvern/Wayne series because they take that farther, to where Wayne's character has been convicted, sent to prison, and escaped. Unusual, too, because it is the only one in the series I've seen so far where he takes a bullet. But of course he has to be cleared, because part of the formula they followed for this series is that he always gets the girl at the end.

Though highly predictable, it was easy to relax and watch how the story unfolded. Part of the formula in this series is that Wayne's characters are clever people and capable trick riders who know many a dodge. We get to see lots of that with him on the run after his prison break, and in how he handles the various situations that come up while he is hiding out with the outlaw gang. He really does act in these early films; he communicates at least as much to the audience through his body language and facial expressions as through the dialogue. Though there is not much dramatic tension in the stories, watching him outwit the bad guys while remaining entirely human is entertainment enough.