Cave of Outlaws ** (1951, Macdonald Carey, Alexis Smith, Edgar Buchanan, Victor Jory, Hugh O’Brian) – Classic Movie Review 11,941

Director William Castle’s 1951 Universal Pictures Technicolor Western film Cave of Outlaws stars Macdonald Carey, Alexis Smith, Edgar Buchanan, Victor Jory and Hugh O’Brian. It is based on original story by Elizabeth Wilson, of Arizona, who also wrote the screenplay.

Freed Arizona outlaw Pete Carver (Macdonald Carey) returns to New Mexico’s Carlsbad Caverns to try to beat super-baddie Ben Cross (Victor Jory) in finding his stolen gold from a train robbery 15 years back when he was a teenager (and played by Russ Tamblyn). But Carver is being followed by Wells Fargo detective Dobbs (Edgar Buchanan), out to retrieve the gold. Meanwhile locals are offering goods on credit to Carver, hoping to share the loot. Local lovely Elizabeth Trent (Alexis Smith), whose husband disappeared in the caves while searching for the gold, has her eyes on the prize.

The goodish cast (especially Smith as the widow Liz Trent, Buchanan as Wells Fargo man Dobbs, and O’Brian as westerner Garth) helps quite a bit, even if they are largely squandered in this routine Western.

However, Castle’s robust, fast-moving handling, the eye-catching, unusual locations and Irving Glassberg’s Technicolor cinematography are further notable assets.

The cast are Macdonald Carey as Pete Carver, Alexis Smith as Elizabeth Trent, Edgar Buchanan as Dobbs, Victor Jory as Ben Cross, Hugh O’Brian as Garth, Houseley Stevenson as Cooley, Hugh Sanders as Sheriff, Raymond Bond as Doc, Robert Osterloh as Blackjack, Paul Newlan as McNulty, Russ Tamblyn as teenage Pete Carver, Charles Horvath, Jimmy Van Horn, Tim Graham, Clem Fuller, and Jack Ingram.

The cave scenes were shot at night at the Carlsbad Caverns National Park in New Mexico in April 1951 while the caves stayed open to the public in daytime.

Castle recalled: ‘We lived underground like moles and there was little excitement about the whole project.’

Original star Howard Duff injured his leg and was replaced by Macdonald Carey, so filming was delayed from February 1951 to 26 March 1951.

© Derek Winnert 2022 Classic Movie Review 11,941

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