Watch Santa Fe Stampede For Free

The Worst Film Ever

Simply Perfect

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

Santa Fe Stampede (1938)*** (out of 4) In 1935 Republic Pictures started their low-budget western series featuring The Three Mesquiteers with Powdersmoke Range and would end it with 1943's Riders of the Rio Grande. Various actors graced the screen as the trio but the best known films are those with John Wayne whose first appearance was in 1938's Pals of the Saddle. Wayne would make a total of eight Mesquiteers films with Santa Fe Stampede being the third.The Three Mesquiteers--Stony (John Wayne), Tucson (Ray Corrigan) and Lullaby (Max Terhune)—are asked by a friend (William Farnum) to help keep some bad guys off his property. These bad guys are being controlled by the town's greedy Mayor who knows that a gold mine is on the property. When the local Judge offers no help it's up to the Mesquiteers to help but after the friend is murdered the Mayor makes it appear that Stony killed him in order to take over the mine. Now the boys must try and solve the case before the town folks kill Stony and let the guilty go free.You certainly shouldn't go into this film expecting anything like The Searchers or Once Upon a Time in the West because films like this were made cheaply, at a fast rate and their purpose was to entertain for an hour and nothing more. If you have a fondness for the "B" pictures of yesterday then you'll know what to expect here and the film pretty much delivers on all grounds. There's certainly nothing original or new here story wise but that's fine since the entertainment level is high and the running time short.Typical of a "B" Western, the title has absolutely nothing to do with the actual film so if you're expecting any sort of stampede then you'll be in for a big letdown. I'm sure that word was just added for an added boost to get people in the theater but either way you do get the typical "B" Western action. This ranges from various fist fights that break out at any moment including one hilarious scene where the heroes battle the bad guys right inside a court room, which lands them in contempt of court. We also get various shoot outs, which contain some mild excitement even though they are as fake as possible. The biggest highlight to a film like this is a dramatic ending, which usually contains the biggest stunts and here we get Wayne stuck inside a burning building trying to make an escape.Another key to these films are the main cast members, which always adds a few chuckles and gives the viewer a reason to watch them. There were thousands of these types of films made during the decade yet the one's with Wayne are certainly the most memorable and while the debate of Wayne as an actor will always continue there's no denying his visual impact on any film. You can tell Wayne is having a lot of fun here including a wonderful scene where his friends young daughter shares her thoughts about marrying him. Wayne has all the vibrant energy to carry the film but his two co-stars also add a lot as well. Silent screen star William Farnum is a bit too wooden and over the top but this actually ads more charm to the film.Santa Fe Stampede also contains a rather shocking and violent scene where the friend is actually killed. The final death sequence was trimmed back when the film was released due to it being too graphic for viewers back then but it's restored here and it's easy to see why so many would have objected to the scene back in its day. The film itself is nothing groundbreaking but fans of the "B" Western or John Wayne should get a kick out of the movie nonetheless.

Nice movie to watch when you wake up too early on a weekend morning.There IS a stampede! Contrary to what the earlier commenter implied, there is a stampede, it just involves humans acting as animals instead of sane, rational beings. Humans running out of control causing damage is as much a stampede as any by cattle. :-)I like these short Wayne and pals flicks. Thanks to cable TV we have so many choices and I am glad these oldies get shown. This was a typical good guys fight the bad guys and should be watched carefully with children. As the movie notes mention there is a "movie first" in it so be aware and discuss the movie with your children.

Kids in Westerns were fairly common as far back as the 1930's, but it's always surprising to me when a youngster is killed or allowed to die like you find here in "Santa Fe Stampede". Young Julie Carson (Genee Hall) and her father Dave (William Farnum) are snuffed by henchmen of Santa Fe Junction's mayor, Gilbert Byron (Le Roy Mason). Though you only see their buckboard crash over a small cliff, this viewer was left wondering if there was some way to have the young lady saved from the wreckage, but that wasn't to be. Considering that a lot of these programmers were meant for Saturday afternoon matinée crowds catering to youngsters, I tried to imagine how kids of the same age might have reacted to the scene.For his trouble, Stony Brooke (John Wayne) is framed for the murders, and it's up to his partners Tucson Smith (Ray Corrigan) and Lullaby Joslin (Max Terhune) to come to the rescue. Together, the trio is The Three Mesquiteers, summoned by Dave Carson for their help in securing his gold claim before things go horribly bad. With virtually every authority figure in town in the pocket of crooked Mayor Byron, it won't be easy for the boys to pull off their heroics. But don't worry, the Mesquiteers will wrap this up in under an hour like they always do.For John Wayne, this was his third appearance for Republic Pictures as a Mesquiteer, replacing Robert Livingston in the series who was promoted to feature films. Wayne appeared in six films with Corrigan and Terhune; in the final two Terhune was replaced by Ray Hatton. The Mesquiteers series was somewhat of a merry-go-round for the principal players, who found themselves trading off partners over the course of fifty one pictures. Other 'B' Western greats who appeared in the series included Duncan Renaldo, Bob Steele, Rufe Davis, and Tom Tyler, along with a handful of others who appeared in a limited number of stories. Of those I've seen, the pictures with Wayne seem to be the ones where the boys have the most fun in between corralling desperate outlaws.Here's something that caught my eye while watching this flick - this is the ONLY 'B' Western I've seen to date in which a cowboy, in this case a villain, uses a rifle with a scope! I don't know when they were invented and first used, but it seemed unusual here, I guess that's why I noticed it.Thinking back on some of the other Mesquiteers movies I've seen, I can't remember if the female lead ever became a serious romantic interest for the members of the trio. Wayne and Corrigan seemed to be jockeying for position to romance June Martel's character in this one, but nothing comes of it. Contrast that with virtually all of Wayne's pictures for Lone Star in the early 1930's; in those he closed out each story in a clinch with a pretty lady.

This was a definite look back at the past when John Wayne was very young and starting out on a great career in films. There really is no stampede, except the bad guys trying to blame Stony Brooke, (John Wayne) for a crime he did not commit. However, the local town people want justice and are convinced that Stony is responsible for this crime and must pay for it. Stony is put in jail and his lady friend, Nanvy Carson visits him while the jail is set on fire and they are both destined to die in the blaze. Tucson Smith,(Ray Corrigan) and Lullaby Joslin, (Max Terhune) try to come to his rescue. Lullaby Joslin is also a ventriloquist and there are some funny scenes with his dummy talking and making jokes. If you look real close, you will see the famous villain of all Western Films, Charlie King. Great John Wayne Classic film, enjoy.