Tonight I watched "Springfield Rifle" for the third time in my life--but it's the first time in over 25 years. The reason I wanted to see it again was to see if the movie was as enjoyable as I remembered.

The film is set during the US Civil War and takes place out West in Colorado. Soon after the movie's start, an officer (Gary Cooper) makes a questionable decision in the face of the enemy and orders his men to run and abandon their horses. As a result, there is a court martial and he's thrown out of the Cavalry for cowardice. Afterwords, Cooper shows a lot of anger and contempt for his old unit and he gets himself arrested. However, he and two Confederate sympathizers escape jail and make towards a band of thugs who work for the South--stealing horses as well as raiding Union supplies and attacking the men.

Now it's VERY obvious to anyone who's seen lots of westerns that Cooper is actually working under cover to infiltrate this band of irregulars (i.e., non-military men who fight). This is western movie plot #3--and it's been repeated many, many times--by the likes of Tim McCoy, Randolph Scott, Roy Rogers and many others. Can the film use an old and familiar plot and make it interesting? Well, yes. Cooper was quite good and the rest were fine, as it had a nice ensemble cast of excellent supporting actors (such as David Brian, Lon Chaney, Jr., Guinn Williams and Paul Kelly). However, the big star was the GORGEOUS color cinematography which really made a B-movie plot look into a solid A-picture.

So is it a great film? Nah...but it certainly is enjoyable and fun--plus there are a few unexpected angles that manage to punch up an otherwise ordinary plot. Sometimes you don't need an earth-shattering plot--just a well-made film that manages to entertain--and this one sure does.

Springfield Rifle is the film Gary Cooper made after his much acclaimed performance in High Noon. Not that it's a bad film, but a fairly routine western which even kind of gives away who the inside man is way too early in the film. It would have been better had their been more suspense.

Gary Cooper goes undercover to find a ring of rustlers who are working in cahoots with the Confederacy during the Civil War, stealing horses meant for the Union cavalry.

To do this he gets himself courtmartialed and drummed out of the army. And he gets the full Chuck Connors treatment, that Connors received on his series Branded. This enables Cooper to join the renegades led by David Brian and Lon Chaney, Jr.

Things do get complicated when Coop's wife, Phyllis Thaxter, shows up to tell him about their son who has run away. Her concern nearly derails the mission and her husband.

Some good western action is in Springfield Rifle, a couple of pitched battles with the renegades and Cooper finally uncovering the inside man in the rustling ring.

Three good performances besides the players mentioned are Guinn Williams as the sergeant who saves Cooper from a hangman, Paul Kelly as the post commander, and Philip Carey as a rival officer to Cooper on the post.

Springfield Rifle is good action entertainment for those who like their westerns action filled.

André De Toth found his niche in Westerns... He directed "Man in the Saddle," "Last of the Comanches," "The Stranger Wore a Gun," and "The Indian Fighter" with his cautious, distinguished way, and intelligent skill..

With a nice musical score by Max Steiner, his "Springfield Rifle" projects imagination and suspense...

Major 'Lex' Kearney (Gary Cooper),a Union officer, masterminds a counter-espionage scheme to undercover a gang of renegades who continually have top-secret informations regarding shipments of horses to the Confederacy... Cooper joins the confederates as a spy to unmask the traitor...

Phyllis Thaxter was effective in her small role as the wondering astonished wife (Erin) suffering with her son (Michael Chapin) who can't accept or understand the fact that his father was cashiered from the army for cowardice...

Lon Chaney, Jr. as a villain, and Philip Carey, as the valiant officer, contribute to the tense and violent atmosphere of the motion picture...

Filmed in Technicolor, "Sprinfield Rifle" follows Fred Zinnemann's great Western "High Noon," and is basically a pretty entertaining routine Civil War Western...