The good cast is one of the main pluses in this entertaining B-feature. It features a good role for Richard Arlen as the main character, and he is given good support by the likes of Elisha Cook, Jr., Buster Crabbe, and William Frawley. The story is rather formulaic, but the oilfield setting is used for some action and suspense sequences that work pretty well.
Arlen plays an ambitious would-be oilman who hopes to use a combination of leadership, hard work, and financial trickery to come out ahead in his rivalry with another driller played by Crabbe. Cook is quite good (and well cast) as Arlen's jittery but loyal partner, while Frawley and Arline Judge play a couple of confidence operators who get tangled up in the oil rivalry, making the plot a little more interesting.
The finale is an extended firefighting scene that works all right considering the low production values. Along the way, Arthur Hunnicutt and Ralph Sanford provide some comic relief that includes an occasional thoughtful moment. It's a solid combination, and while there's nothing that special about it, it provides some solid entertainment for a little over an hour or so.
Arlen plays an ambitious would-be oilman who hopes to use a combination of leadership, hard work, and financial trickery to come out ahead in his rivalry with another driller played by Crabbe. Cook is quite good (and well cast) as Arlen's jittery but loyal partner, while Frawley and Arline Judge play a couple of confidence operators who get tangled up in the oil rivalry, making the plot a little more interesting.
The finale is an extended firefighting scene that works all right considering the low production values. Along the way, Arthur Hunnicutt and Ralph Sanford provide some comic relief that includes an occasional thoughtful moment. It's a solid combination, and while there's nothing that special about it, it provides some solid entertainment for a little over an hour or so.