Ride Him, Cowboy

Early in Ride Him, Cowboy, a town tries a horse for attempted murder. It gets sillier from there.

John Wayne plays a wandering cowboy out to apprehend a mysterious outlaw known as The Hawk, only to end up framed for the outlaw’s crimes.

The opening sequence reveals The Hawk’s identity, so there’s no mystery. It also telegraphs the finale by providing someone who can identify The Hawk. Granted, said person lies comatose, but, as the doctor says, “He’ll be fine.”

This absurdity continues to the aforementioned horse trial, through Wayne’s introduction, and the frame-up, which consists of The Hawk dropping Wayne’s monogrammed harmonica after raiding a homestead. That’s all the town needs to lynch Wayne. As they say, “We’ve got incontrovertible proof.”

And yet, despite the inanity, or perhaps because of it, the script surprises. When the female lead finds herself surrounded by The Hawk’s gang, she isn’t captured. Instead, she displays surprising cunning and rescues Wayne. It’s only later that she’s captured.

This was part of a six-picture contract John Wayne signed in 1932 to remake some silent Ken Maynard westerns while recycling Maynard’s impressive stunt footage. See my review of The Big Stampede for details. This one remakes The Unknown Cavalier.

As in The Big Stampede, Wayne’s still learning. He’s stiff and lacks any chemistry with the female lead. None of these six Maynard remakes are “good,” but Ride Him, Cowboy at least proffers some silly fun. Even so, it’s only recommended for those fans interested in seeing John Wayne before he was John Wayne.