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The Lawless Nineties

Play trailer Poster for The Lawless Nineties Released Feb 15, 1936 58m Western Play Trailer Watchlist
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A government agent (John Wayne) and a newsman's daughter (Ann Rutherford) make voting safe in the Wyoming territory.

Critics Reviews

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Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews Better than average B Western that salutes democracy. Rated: B- Aug 27, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Audience Member wayne+ gabby hayes=one damn good western Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member One of the dozen of quickie oaters the Duke did on his way up. This one has the bonus of Ann Rutherford also on her way up before being signed by MGM as well as Hattie McDaniel's sister Etta in a small role but the whole thing is strictly routine. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Audience Member "what preventin' you from gettin' married yourself?" Synopsis: Federal agent John Tipton goes to the Wyoming territory to clean out the bandits who are harassing settlers and preventing a vote for statehood. Before John Ford's classic Stagecoach, westerns were the equivalent of the sci-fi films of the 50's and sixties. Instead of the obligatory monster, there was in it's place the obligatory gunfight or physical confrontation. The characters were poorly developed and the actors chosen were often of limited talent. Productions were small and economic and the writing was considered inferior to other contemporary genre's. Or, so i've read. The Lawless Nineties is my very first pre-Stagecoach B-movie western. And everything i've read about such a film is completely represented in this John Wayne picture. The film is very blunt, simple, and uninspired but the actual story is a rather interesting one involving voting polls and a motion for statehood. This early western is also greatly helped by some fine action sequences, and when the film takes to horseback, it's surprisingly entertaining. Inevitably though, when the picture returns to the studio to capture interior scenes the film loses it's momentum. Otherwise there really isn't much to say about The Lawless Nineties, it's obviously shares many similarities with the later sci-fi films of the sixties, meaning it's quite campy in it's own way, but it's a nice curiosity for fans of westerns, and probably one of the better to hail from a time before john Ford redefined the genre. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/14/23 Full Review Audience Member Outstanding movie John Wayne is my family favorite actor Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/03/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Lawless Nineties

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis A government agent (John Wayne) and a newsman's daughter (Ann Rutherford) make voting safe in the Wyoming territory.
Director
Joseph Kane
Producer
Paul Malvern
Screenwriter
Joseph F. Poland, Scott Pembroke
Distributor
Republic Pictures
Genre
Western
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Feb 15, 1936, Original
Release Date (DVD)
Oct 1, 2015
Runtime
58m