Vigilante Terror (1953) - Once Upon a Time in a Western

Bill Elliott is Tack Hamlin, who heads to Pinetop, Calif., hoping to strike it rich like so many others during the gold rush.

But he quickly learns that the brother he hoped to reunite with is now a wanted man, allegedly part of the Brewer Gang.

And in Pinetop, he finds a town ruled by vigilantes, and they’re every bit as feared as the outlaws they formed to combat.

In fact, a gold shipment has just been stolen by men wearing calico masks.

And because matching calico is found in the store of Matt Taylor, the vigilantes accuse him of the crime and haul him off for lynching.

Only the timely intervention of Tack saves the storekeeper’s life. But in the process, Tack’s brother Jed is killed.

Now Tack Hamlin has a personal reason want to see the Pinetop vigilantes themselves unmasked and brought to justice.

They’re equally determined to get Hamlin out of their way. In fact, they just might frame him for a crime to do it.

Bill Elliott as Tack Hamlin, who puts his prospecting plans on hold after his brother is killed in Vigilante Terror (1953)

Myron Healey as Brett, leading the vigilantes for all the wrong reasons in Vigilante Terror (1953)

Review:

There’s a scene in which our hero, his deputy and the storekeeper are hauled off to a tree for a triple hanging.

Could this be a surprise twist in an Elliott B Western? Might the hero meet his maker before the credits roll?

Don’t be silly. This is an Elliott B Western.

Pretty Lucy Taylor, played by pretty Mary Ellen Kay, the storekeeper’s daughter, intervenes with her rifle, whisking our hero and his colleagues off to safety.

Otherwise, expect a plot filled with implausibilities, but also filled with enough action and a couple of unexpected twists so that you might not mind the implausibilities so much.

Mary Ellen Kay as Lucy Taylor, the storekeeper’s daughter, spotting trouble in Vigilante Terror (1953)

I. Stanford Jolley as Matt Taylor, in danger of being lynched in Vigilante Terror (1953)

Directed by:
Lewis Collins

Cast:
Bill Elliott … Tack Hamlin
Mary Ellen Kay … Lucy Taylor
Robert Bray … Gene Smith
I. Stanford Jolley … Matt Taylor
Henry Rowland… Mayor Winch
Myron Healey … Brett
George Wallace … Brewer
Fuzzy Knight … Strummer Jones
Zon Murray … Bill
Richard Avonde … Artie
Michael Colgan … Jamison
Denver Pyle … Sperry
Lee Roberts … Wilson
John James … Jed

Runtime: 70 min.

George Wallace as Brewer, leader of the outlaw gang in Vigilante Terror (1953)

Robert Bray as Gene Smith and Henry Roland as Mayor Winch (middle), hoping to avoid a hanging in Vigilante Terror (1953)

Memorable lines:

Lucy Taylor: “If I were a man, I wouldn’t go around gunning for every sneaky little man who wore a mask. I’d make it impossible for them to do their dirty work.”
Tack Hamlin: “Yes, Miss Taylor, what would you do? Preach to them?”
Lucy: “I’d make it impossible for any decent citizen to even think of joining them. First of all, I’d bring law and order here. I’d show them up for the nasty, frightened cowards they are.”

Tack Hamlin: “Two hours, Mr. Brett.”
Brett: “What makes you think you’re gonna last that long?”
Hamlin: “As far as I can tell, this town is full of bad shots and bluster.”
Brett: “You’ll learn different.”
Hamlin: “Who’s gonna teach me? Scared little men who wear big masks? Or you?”