When the Daltons are killed at Coffeeville, gang member Bill Doolin arriving late escapes but kills a man. Now wanted for murder, he becomes the leader of the Doolin gang. He eventually leaves the gang and tries to start a new life under a new name. But the old gang members appear and his true identity becomes known. So once again he becomes an outlaw trying to escape from the law.
This is a first time and the only time where Randolph Scott plays an outlaw and, as expected, he does a fantastic job. He's not a bad guy in a sense that he's cruel, but just a person guided by his circumstances. In the course of the film he tries to get out, even gets married, but his selfish gang member - Red Buck who is the heel of the gang. He's played by Frank Fenton - gets him back on the trail by giving Doolin's wife a wanted poster of her husband. Scott shows enough leadership yet human qualities of regret - he's like an animal trapped in the cage of circumstances. There's good close-up shots of his stoic features. For once, the great George Macready plays a good guy, a marshal dogging the Doolin gang and he just as smart as Scott. The rest of the cast is stellar, from John Ireland as Bittercreek to Noah Beery Jr. As Little Bill. Dona Drake makes a pretty lively Cattle Annie.
The Doolins of Oklahoma is a top drawer western from Columbia Pictures, which has a strong and fast-moving and gripping plot with enough fast-riding and shootouts to keep western aficionados happy. There's a particularly rousing and fairly edgy fight between Scott and his fellow outlaw Red. You can feel the punches. The rugged scenery enhances the excitement- and it ends a little tragically, which is expected when one goes down the outlaw trail.
This is a first time and the only time where Randolph Scott plays an outlaw and, as expected, he does a fantastic job. He's not a bad guy in a sense that he's cruel, but just a person guided by his circumstances. In the course of the film he tries to get out, even gets married, but his selfish gang member - Red Buck who is the heel of the gang. He's played by Frank Fenton - gets him back on the trail by giving Doolin's wife a wanted poster of her husband. Scott shows enough leadership yet human qualities of regret - he's like an animal trapped in the cage of circumstances. There's good close-up shots of his stoic features. For once, the great George Macready plays a good guy, a marshal dogging the Doolin gang and he just as smart as Scott. The rest of the cast is stellar, from John Ireland as Bittercreek to Noah Beery Jr. As Little Bill. Dona Drake makes a pretty lively Cattle Annie.
The Doolins of Oklahoma is a top drawer western from Columbia Pictures, which has a strong and fast-moving and gripping plot with enough fast-riding and shootouts to keep western aficionados happy. There's a particularly rousing and fairly edgy fight between Scott and his fellow outlaw Red. You can feel the punches. The rugged scenery enhances the excitement- and it ends a little tragically, which is expected when one goes down the outlaw trail.