Joseph Paul is Mance Dixon, a famous gunfighter who travels with a black sidekick named Clabe Sutton (Todd Risby).
Mance has been invited to give a shooting exhibition during the 50th anniversary of the town of Flat Oak.
On his way there, he winds up killing a saloon owner named Link in a gunfight and rescues a young woman (Mary Faith Tomlinson) who’s been tarred and feathered.
The latter was the work of The Tramplers, vigilantes working the Flat Oak area under the command of cattle king Big Al Bryant.
Virginia was caught cheating on her husband with a young boy named Ollie. Her husband Herbert Crosswhite shoots Ollie dead. Virginia’s punishment: the tar, the feathers and banishment.
Meanwhile, a small-time shyster named Tubal Rogers (James Allen Brewer) and his nephew Joe (Dominic Olivo) are making their way to Flat Rock too.
Robbed along the way, Tubal decides to pass himself off as the fictitious gunfighter Rogue O’Connor. After all, a town that would welcome one shootist will surely enjoy the presence of two.
Both wind up in an all-out war with the Tramplers after the ornery Mance pretends he’s the late Ollie’s uncle and challenges banker Crosswhite to a showdown.
Tubal’s motivation for joining forces with Mance: He figures that’s the less deadly of his two options.
Joseph Paul as Mance Dixon, a famous gunman who likes brandy and has an ornery streak in The Rouges of Flat Oak (2018)
Todd Risby as Clabe Sutton, the man who follows Mance on his adventures in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
Review:
In an early scene, Mance and Clabe stop by to visit an old gunfighter friend, only to discover he’s been lynched and is hanging from a tree on the outskirts of town.
Mance cuts him down, quite awkwardly, then promises the widow they’ll fulfill the dead man’s wishes by burying him in Texas soil.
But, folks, this is a far cray from a remake of Lonesome Dove.
Mance decides the ol’ friend is too heavy to drag all the way to Texas. So he cuts off his gunhand and plucks out his liver — those were the body parts the dead friend used the most — and figures he’ll bury those in Texas.
Well, Mance never makes it to Texas. But he fulfills his promise.
Those are among the unique scenes that make this low-budget Western worth watching. Don’t think too much about the plot. Don’t ponder too long about character motivation. Just sit back and enjoy a weirder than normal take on the wild West.
It helps that the cast is more talented than the average 21st Century Western.
James Allen Brewer as Tubal Rogers, peddling fake cures in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
Dominic Olivo as Joe, the nephew who tags along with Tubal Rogers in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
Directed by:
Michael Fredianelli
Cast:
Joseph Paul … Mance Dixon
Todd Risby … Clabe Sutton
James Allen Brewer … Tubal Rogers
Mary Faith Tomlinson … Virginia
Dominic Olivo … Joe
Edward Keyani … Barnett Holhousen
David Cordoni … Big Al Bryant
Jeanne Young … Bernice
Scott Van de Mark … Rom Evans
Steve Tanabe … Hackamore Jack
Boynton Paek … Seong
Brooke Milos … Magdelene
Mario Gianni Herrera … Simp
Joseph Camilleri … Marshal Hutchkins
John Bramhall … Herbert Crosswhite
Also with: Mike Dinsmore, Trent Avvenire, Bryan Wilks, Derek Crowe, Michael Fredianelli, Heather Ann Hall, Lucas Stoiber, Emily Chau, George Hope, Rich Gonzales, Jim Woodbury, Alan Zeichner, Ernest Vestito, Carl Collanus, Chad Ellis, Wilcox Ekenta, Sami Yousif, Ryan Duncan, Kenny Beers, Stan Szeto, Brian Marquez, Sandy Koerner, Michael J. Gwynn, Kathy Gracheck, Olga Molina, Gianna Gwynn, Christina Myers, Elizabeth Lanham, Tonia MacLean, Nicholas Dolan, Cathy Gregory, Viv Farmer, Jan Butler, Tom Badillo, David Lambert, Kyle Lambert, Peter Lyons
Runtime: 94 min.
Mary Faith Tomlinson as Virginia, the young woman who finds refuge with Mance and Clabe in The Rogues of Flat Oak (1981)
Jeanne Young as Bernice and Brooke Milos as Magdelne, the mother and daughter who take to Tubal and Joe in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
Memorable lines:
Joe, after suffering a pecker injury trying anal sex with Magdelene: “You think this is like a sign. That I should stop sinning. That I should make a covenant with God.”
Tubal Rogers: “I think you should make a covenant with saliva. You ever hear of spittin’ on it.”
Mance Dixon, after demonstrating his shooting skills at the Flat Oak celebration: “Anybody else got anything they’d like me to shoot.”
Mance Dixon: “Mistakin’ sounds like a fancy word for liar.”
Mance Dixon: “Now someone drag Herbert Crosswhite into the middle of three street and hog-tie a pistol to his god-damned hand if you have to.”
Tubal Rogers: “Gunmen are a queer breed.”
A Ttrampler, after tracking down Clabe during the gunfight: “How ’bout it, n—er? Let’s do this face up. Or is that too white for you?”
Clabe Sutton: “On your count, asshole!”
David Cordoni as Big Al Bryant, cattle king and leader of the Tramplers in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
John Bramhall as Hector Crosswhite, the banker and Virginia’s husband in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
Scott Van de Mark as Rom Evans, one of the Flat Oak town leaders in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
Steve Tanabe as Hackamore Jack, eager to get even with the man who killed brother Link in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
Edward Keyani as Mayor Barnett Holhousen and Joseph Camilleri as Marshal Hutchkins in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
Mary Faith Tomlinson as Virginia, in a sticky situation after being caught cheating in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
Todd Risby as Clabe Sutton, getting ready for a showdown with the Tramplers in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
Joseph Paul as Mance Dixon, issuing a challenge to a coward in The Rogues of Flat Oak (2018)
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