This picture combines elements from the real life exploits of the Dalton Gang and outlaw Bill Doolin, but if you do an internet search on The Cimarron Kid, all you get are references to this movie. I was surprised to see how quickly the Daltons faded from the story, but the events of their raid on Coffeyville, Oklahoma were portrayed fairly accurately. The historical Bill Doolin rode with the Daltons for a while, but whether he was with them on the Coffeyville run remains a matter of conjecture.
Be that as it may, this Western is about par for the course for Audie Murphy's movie output. He played both heroes and villains in his pictures, trading on the personal popularity he gained as a real war hero during the Second World War. I don't think you'll find many reviewers who would call him a great actor but he managed to entertain well enough, and that's about the most one can expect from films like these.
The puzzler for me in this film was why Murphy's character turned to a life of crime after being exonerated and recommended for parole over his associations with outlaws like the Daltons. His character was one that could have swayed either way, so when he goes the bad guy route I felt the film makers missed an opportunity. A scene I thought was pretty clever was the one in which Carrie Roberts (Beverly Tyler) wrangled an engagement ring out of the Kid when she wasn't even trying. Seems like Dad Roberts (Roy Roberts) was pretty much OK with it too.
Now I've seen Hugh O'Brian in outlaw roles before but giving him red hair and a red beard was a bit much, wasn't it? I guess it had to do with his character's name, Red Buck. On hand as a foil to Bill Doolin's position in the gang as nominal leader after most of the Daltons get wiped out, Red doesn't make it out of Rigby during the shootout there. Speaking of which, the inclusion of that railroad turntable was a neat distraction since it had nothing to do with the outcome.
Well, the real life Emmett Dalton survived the Coffeyville Raid and after serving prison time, wound up going to Hollywood to consult on films like "When the Daltons Rode". He was given short shrift in this story because the only Dalton survivor in this one was Dynamite Dick (John Hudson) who wound up double crossing Bill Doolin. Sometimes you just can't trust a fellow outlaw.
Be that as it may, this Western is about par for the course for Audie Murphy's movie output. He played both heroes and villains in his pictures, trading on the personal popularity he gained as a real war hero during the Second World War. I don't think you'll find many reviewers who would call him a great actor but he managed to entertain well enough, and that's about the most one can expect from films like these.
The puzzler for me in this film was why Murphy's character turned to a life of crime after being exonerated and recommended for parole over his associations with outlaws like the Daltons. His character was one that could have swayed either way, so when he goes the bad guy route I felt the film makers missed an opportunity. A scene I thought was pretty clever was the one in which Carrie Roberts (Beverly Tyler) wrangled an engagement ring out of the Kid when she wasn't even trying. Seems like Dad Roberts (Roy Roberts) was pretty much OK with it too.
Now I've seen Hugh O'Brian in outlaw roles before but giving him red hair and a red beard was a bit much, wasn't it? I guess it had to do with his character's name, Red Buck. On hand as a foil to Bill Doolin's position in the gang as nominal leader after most of the Daltons get wiped out, Red doesn't make it out of Rigby during the shootout there. Speaking of which, the inclusion of that railroad turntable was a neat distraction since it had nothing to do with the outcome.
Well, the real life Emmett Dalton survived the Coffeyville Raid and after serving prison time, wound up going to Hollywood to consult on films like "When the Daltons Rode". He was given short shrift in this story because the only Dalton survivor in this one was Dynamite Dick (John Hudson) who wound up double crossing Bill Doolin. Sometimes you just can't trust a fellow outlaw.