John Vivyan is a prospector named Hayden, who has struck it rich along with his two partners.
But no sooner has the gold been divided than Barney Senn (Bruce Gordon) guns down one partner, saying it’s easier to divide by two than by three.
Hayden wonders if he really wants to divide at all. The two men begin to make their way back to the town of Lost River, but the going is rough as the Apaches close in.
First, the men ditch their horses. Then most of their equipment. Finally, they bury the gold, hoping to make it out with their lives.
And sure enough, as soon as he has a chance, Senn shoots Hayden, leaving him to die in the desert.
Just to make sure, he then goes to town and puts a bounty hunter named Jake Fry on Hayden’s trail by telling him Hayden was responsible for their partner’s death.
Meanwhile, Hayden finds his way to a railroad worker’s camp, where he’s nursed back to health by a young Chinese prostitute named Ming Kwai (Lisa Lu). From that point on, it’s a race for the gold.
Ming wants Hayden to get it so he can take her to San Francisco, where she figures she can make lots of money. Senn’s determined to get all the gold for himself, if only he can find his way back to the spot where it’s buried. And Fry has his eyes on the gold as well.
As for Hayden, he’s more interested in getting even with Senn and quite unsure of the young Chinese girl who’s attached herself to him.
Review:
Different enough to be mildly interesting. But a below poverty row budget — just check out the size of that cast — and a ridiculous ending spoil most of that. To the point where the theme song becomes the best thing about the film.
There’s a fair amount of references to racism against folks of Oriental descent, and for the early 1960s, Ming’s character is surprisingly frank about her sexuality and her ability to use it to her advantage.
As for that cast, this marked the only film role of any significance for John Vivyan, who did most of his work in TV shows. A year earlier, Lisa Lu had starred as James Stewart’s love interest in “Mountain Road,” a World War II film set in China. She was still acting into the 2000s.
Directed by:
Herbert L. Stock
Cast:
John Vivyan … Hayden
Bruce Gordon … Barney Senn
Kevin Hogan … Jack Fry
Lisa Lu … Ming Kwai
Charles Lampkin … Taylor
Runtime: 72 min.
Title Tune: “Rider on a Dead Horse”
Sung by: Millard Woods
Memorable lines:
Hayden: “Hurt bad. Help me.”
Ming Kwait: “What do you give me?”
Hayden: “I got money. Lots of money.”
Ming: “On you.” She checks his pockets. “You liar.”
Hayden: “I got it hid. Lots of money.”
Ming: “I take chance on you, maybe.”
Ming. of the Indians: “They here?”
Hayden: “Yeah. They’d like you Ming. They’d make you a wife right away. All of them. Then they’d lead you on a rope back to their village.”
Ming: “Red man, yellow man, white man. All same to me. I know how to take care of myself.”
Ming: “You promise much.”
Jack Fry: “There ain’t much I wouldn’t do, for something pretty and soft like you.”
){kind=link}