The Pinkertons have been investigating the theft of $100,000 in a train holdup near Dodge. Four of the seven bandits involved are dead; the trail on the remaining three has turned cold.
So they turn to bounty hunter Jim Kipp (Randolph Scott) with hopes that he can wrap up the case.
Kipp’s search leads him to the small town of Twin Forks, a near ghost before someone struck copper.
He registers in the hotel under the name Jim Collins, begins questioning Dr. George Williams and begins suspecting hotel clerk Bill Rachin (Ernest Borgnine).
That’s because one of the three bandits who escaped might have been wounded in the leg during the getaway, and Rachin walks with a limp.
Then a young man recognizes Kipp and tries to ambush him, thinking he’s the man who’s being sought. In the process, he reveals Kipp’s true identity to several other residents.
No problem for Kipp. He’ll use that to his advantage, letting everyone in town know he’s looking for one man.
Then he’ll wait and watch to see who gets nervous and reckless as a result of that news.
Randolph Scott as Jim Kipp, a bounty hunter closing in on thee three men he’s seeking in The Bounty Hunter (1954)
Dolores Dorn as Julie Spencer, worried about her father when he starts drinking again in The Bounty Hunter (1954)
Review:
A lesser known and well done Randolph Scott Western, benefitting from a couple of truly unexpected twists near the end. Let’s just say you might be surprised at the true identity of the three bandits for whom Kipp is searching.
Dolores Dorn, who appeared in just a handful of films, provides the love interest. She’s the daughter of a doctor with a drinking problem. He’s finally been able to settle down to a stable practice in Twin Forks. Now the fact that he treated one of the bandits on their first night in town threatens to disrupt that.
Marie Windsor is Alice Williams, a saloon girl and wife of a gambler with a secret in his past that causes him to fear Kipp. And his concern over Kipp’s presence in town makes him a suspect in the bounty hunter’s mind.
Make sure you watch to the end. You’ll also catch a glimpse of Fess Parker as a rowdy cowboy who rides into town with two friends, ready for a good time, then leaves just as quickly upon learning Kipp is the new sheriff. The same year, he had a bigger role in “Them,” a film about giant ants that also starred James Arness.
Marie Windsor as Alice Williams, introducing herself to the handsome stranger who’s arrived in town in The Bounty Hunter (1954)
Robert Keys as George Williams, owner of the saloon and Alice’s demanding husband in The Bounty Hunter (1954)
Directed by:
Andre de Toth
Cast:
Randolph Scott … Jim Kipp
Dolores Dorn … Julie Spencer
Marie Windsor … Alice Williams
Robert Keys … George Williams
Howard Petrie … Sheriff Brand
Harry Antrim … Dr. R.L. Spencer
Ernest Borgnine … Bill Rachin
Dub Taylor … Eli Danvers
Tyler MacDuff … Vance Edwards
Paul Picerni … Jud
Phil Chambers … Ed
Archie Twitchell … Harrison
Mary Lou Holloway … Mrs. Harrison
Runtime: 79 min.
Howard Petrie as Sheriff Brand, a lawman who resents Jim Kipp’s presence in his town in The Bounty Hunter (1954)
Ernest Borgnine as Bill Rachin, the hotel worker who arouses Jim Kipp’s suspicion in The Bounty Hunter (1954)
Memorable lines:
Sheriff: “I never heard of you bringing one in on the hoof. Do you ever give them a chance to get away?”
Jim Kipp: “If you find a bullet hole in his back, let me know. Meanwhile, I’ll trouble you for $500.”
Pinkerton man: “You know what they say about you? You’d turn your grandmother in on her birthday if there was a reward out for her.”
Jim Kipp: “At least I’d know what she looks like.”
Alice Williams, toasting Jim Kipp at the bar: “Welcome, stranger.”
Kipp: “How’d you know I’m new in town. “
Alice: “I’d have remembered you if I’d seen you before.”
Kipp: “You know everybody here?”
Alice: “All the men. The ladies haven’t invited me to join their sewing circles yet.”
Harry Antrim as Dr. R.L. Spencer, explaining to his daughter why he’s keeping a secret in The Bounty Hunter (1954)
Dolores Dorn as Julie Spencer with Randolph Scott as Jim Kipp after her father has been wounded in The Bounty Hunter (1954)
Julie Spencer: “You’re awfully nosy, aren’t you?”
Jim Kipp: “Just professionally. Kind of like a doctor in that respect.”
Julie, glancing at his six-gun: “I wouldn’t quite call that a stethoscope, Mr. Collins.”
Kipp: “No, but properly use, it can be very good for the human race.”
Kipp, when approached by town leaders and offered $1,000 to leave town: “You mean you’d pay me to let a criminal go right along living among you.”
Harrison: “This is an old town, Mr. Kipp. Just bare bones til copper resurrected it. Then a lot of people came here from a lot of different place. And we don’t ask questions about their past. All we’re interested in is how they behave here.”
Tyler MacDuff, a young cowboy convinced Jim Kipp is after him in The Bounty Hunter (1954)
Dub Taylor as Eli Danvers, the man who runs the local postal station in the town of Twin Forks in The Bounty Hunter (1954)
Fess Parker (right) as a rowdy cowboy scared out of Twin Forks when he learns of JIm Kipp’s presence in The Bounty Hunter (1954)
Randolph Scott as Jim Kipp, realizing Alice Williams was married to the man lying dead in an alley in The Bounty Man (1954)
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