Man's Country (DVD)

Sinister cattle rancher Lex Crane is suspected of heading a gang of thugs responsible for a reign of terror in the territory. After Crane's son Ted is arrested for murder, Ranger Jack Hale and his pal Snappy go undercover to gain the cattleman's confidence while secretly conducting an investigation. Before long, they discover the motive behind the crime wave - a secret zealously guarded by the gang's leader.

In his second year as a leading man in Monogram "B" Westerns, Jack Randall (whose brother Bob Livingston was a top cowboy star over at Republic) was reportedly getting up to a thousand fan letters per week. Man's Country upholds the high standard of his 1938 vehicles, which sport solid plots and exhibit fine production values. It also has a plum role for venerable heavy Walter Long, whose screen treachery dated all the way back to 1915's Birth of a Nation. Director Bob Hill staged exterior scenes in his favorite location, the picturesque Alabama Hills near Lone Pine, California, at the base of Mount Whitney.

• western