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The Return of Frank James

Play trailer Poster for The Return of Frank James Released Aug 16, 1940 1h 32m Western Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
71% Tomatometer 7 Reviews 47% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
When Jesse James's murderers are set free, his brother Frank vows revenge and, accompanied by his gang, sets out to track them down. To fund his manhunt, he robs an express office and is subsequently wrongly accused of the clerk's murder, but a newspaper reporter is determined to find out the truth.
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The Return of Frank James

Critics Reviews

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Joshua Polanski Midwest Film Journal I did not enjoy watching The Return of Frank James and I suspect you won’t either. The colors look good, Fonda’s not bad and the courtroom stuff is a great change of pace, but the filmmaking is only competent. Sep 6, 2024 Full Review Tim Brayton Antagony & Ecstasy As a snapshot of what mindless popcorn cinema looked like in 1940, it's a flattering example, still watchable and breezy even if it's not remotely challenging on any level. Rated: 7/10 Jun 4, 2014 Full Review Fernando F. Croce CinePassion The abstruse stylization of Rancho Notorious is still a decade away, though the frontier is already a severe plain enlivened by intimations of hellfire Sep 25, 2009 Full Review Steve Crum Video-Reviewmaster.com Fine Fritz Lang telling of Frank James (Fonda) in sequel to Jesse James. Rated: 5/5 Jun 21, 2008 Full Review Michael W. Phillips, Jr. Goatdog's Movies Rated: 2/5 Feb 29, 2008 Full Review Jeffrey M. Anderson Combustible Celluloid Gets by with its remarkable photography (an early attempt at color for Lang), crisp action sequences and breezy storytelling. Mar 22, 2007 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Steve D Clunky moralistic script sinks it. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 03/17/24 Full Review Audience Member Good movie here. Yes I recommend it James Welch, Henderson, Arkansas May 25, 2023 Rated 3 out of 5 stars 05/26/23 Full Review Audience Member Hunting "that dirty little coward who killed Mr. Howard"--A Satisfying tale of Revenge served hot!! Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member 131124: Henry Hull & Henry Fonda make this movie. Any time I see Fonda, it takes me back to "My Name is Nobody". That's a good thing. Enjoyable film from a simpler time. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review s r Great western, great cast and a fun court trial. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Solid western, picking up right where the Tyrone Powers "Jesse James" left off. There's not a lot in this film that would indicate that brilliant German director Fritz Lange was behind the camera, but it's a got the great Henry Fonda reprising his role as Frank James and it also has a 22 year-old Gene Tierney in her film debut. "The Return of Frank James" is certainly no "My Darling Clementine" or "The Tin Star", but for some reason I've always liked this wester quite a lot. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Return of Frank James

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The Return of Frank James

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Movie Info

Synopsis When Jesse James's murderers are set free, his brother Frank vows revenge and, accompanied by his gang, sets out to track them down. To fund his manhunt, he robs an express office and is subsequently wrongly accused of the clerk's murder, but a newspaper reporter is determined to find out the truth.
Director
Fritz Lang
Producer
Darryl F Zanuck
Screenwriter
Sam Hellman
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Production Co
Twentieth Century Fox
Genre
Western, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Aug 16, 1940, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 1, 2012
Runtime
1h 32m
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