Tonight's Movie: Sunset in the West (1950) - A Kino Lorber Blu-ray Review

Roy Rogers stars in the Republic Pictures Western SUNSET IN THE WEST (1950), just released on Blu-ray and DVD by Kino Lorber.

I'll state right at the outset that the picture quality of this Blu-ray is fantastic. I don't think I've ever seen a Roy Rogers film look better, and fans should make haste to snatch it up. What a visual treat!

The plot doesn't matter overly much, as cattleman Roy helps a sheriff (Will Wright) he used to work with catch a bunch of train-hijacking gunrunners in 67 quick minutes.

The cast is rounded out by Penny Edwards as the sheriff's pretty niece and colorful Estelita Rodriguez as cantina gal Carmelita, who helps supply the good guys with info she's overheard. Supporting players in the film include Pierre Watkin, Paul E. Burns, Charles La Torre, and William J. Tannen.

Best of all, Roy's cowboy pals are Foy Willing and Riders of the Purple Sage. When Roy and the cowboys hop onto a train and launch into "Rollin' Wheels," I have to say I had goosebumps. It's a wonderfully staged moment. I would have liked even more music in the film, but what's here is excellent.

The film was energetically directed by William Witney, who does a nice job with the action sequences. I wish he'd reined in Gordon Jones as the comic relief, but otherwise Witney got the most possible out of the material. A scene as simple as one of the opening shots of the sheriff riding the train is done with great visual style.

The film was shot in Trucolor by Jack Marta, with attractive mountain and coastal location shooting. Some scenes such as the opening title song have obvious studio footage intercut with long shots from the location work, but the studio stuff, as seen on this Blu-ray, is so pretty that it really doesn't matter.

For those who might be new to Roy Rogers, the film's setting is what I refer to as "Roy Rogers Land," a whimsical mishmash of eras found only in Westerns such as this one. For instance, in this film there are no cars or telephones, but alongside the trains, horses, guns, and telegraphs, the women are dressed in "modern" dresses. In some other Rogers films, such as the same year's TRAIL OF ROBIN HOOD (1950), you might find a car, even if the town looks like something out of the 1800s and people are as likely to use a horse or wagon.

The disc includes a Westerns trailer gallery and an informative audio commentary by Toby Roan; now I know how to tell Trigger from his doubles! Full disclosure: As longtime readers know, Toby is a good friend of this blog -- and they also know that Toby has an encyclopedic knowledge of Westerns. It's terrific that he's had the opportunity to contribute commentary tracks to several recent releases, including this one.

Thanks to Kino Lorber for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray.