No, I don't mean Flynn, I'm speaking of John Litel, perhaps best known as Bonita Granville's father in the Nancy Drew films. Usually called on to do a businessman or a town elder, he does a lovely turn here as the dangerous and savvy Texas pioneer Charlie Bell -- and his enjoyment in the part is palpable. There's some nice art direction, especially in the look of the towns of Cotula and San Antonio. Finally, the costume design is wonderful -- a total hodge-podge of styles collected from all corners of the US and Mexico, met on the New Frontier, totally unlike the ubiquitous look that would soon show up in films about the West. One question -- isn't that little Boby Blake as the telegraph messenger boy? The role is uncredited, even here, but he'd be about the right age, and it sure looks like him.
Review of San Antonio
