I like films like THE SPOILERS because they have absolutely no pretense about them. They are simple B-movie-type films with relatively simple plots and familiar actors but pack a lot of predictable but fun entertainment into them. Sure, since it's a John Wayne flick you KNOW that he will win in the end and you KNOW what to expect. And, for me, that's not a bad thing. I like a good old fashioned John Wayne flick like most of the ones he did in the 40s--good, solid, and entertaining. The only odd thing is that the Duke is billed 3rd when it is clearly his film. Top billing went to Marlena Dietrich--who at the time was the bigger star. However, her part is pretty flat and she clearly acts in support of Wayne. And, second billing went to Randolph Scott. But, once again he was clearly not the leading character but the villain. Now if all this doesn't make sense, you need to understand that although Wayne had made many films by 1942, most were B-movies and he still was only just becoming the break-out star he would so clearly be in just a few short years.

In addition to being a good old John Wayne flick (among his better ones of the 40s),the direction and plot are pretty good as well. A very good movie--nearly deserving a score of 8.

This is the fourth of five filmed versions of Rex Beach's redoubtable northern classic and since it's the only one out on video, it's the one best known to movie audiences. The stalwart trio of Marlene Dietrich, Randolph Scott, and John Wayne head the cast in this story about gold miners losing their claims to con men and doing something about it.

Dietrich's Cherry Malotte is another version of the role she copyrighted in Destry Rides Again. And like in Pittsburgh, Randolph Scott and John Wayne have their hormones in overdrive.

Randolph Scott is the gold commissioner/conman Alex McNamara and it's the only time he ever played a thoroughgoing villain on the screen and he carries it off, but I prefer my Randolph Scott to be tough and heroic.

You need someone like Scott around because even though John Wayne's the good guy, he's just a little too sure of himself where Dietrich is concerned. Even though her heart's with the Duke, Marlene probably liked having Scott around.

Lots of slam bang action here, topped off by what some consider the most brutal movie fight in screen history. Its close rival in Pittsburgh also featured Wayne and Scott and this one is longer, but not as brutal as in Pittsburgh.

Nice cast of good supporting character actors and pay particular attention to Scott's companions in thievery, Samuel S. Hinds and Charles Halton.

With Randy Scott and the Duke and la Dietrich, how can you go wrong.

One of the racier post code movies is filled with insinuations, innuendos, sly winks at the audience and a bit of racist humor thanks to the presence of a seemingly wise servant who has the wit of a Gracie Allen character. It's set way up in Nome Alaska where fights over rights to gold mines are an every day occurrence. When the law tries to step in, they are greeted with gun violence and total opposition. Marlene Dietrich once again is a bar hostess as Cherry, more dressed up with high hair and fashions. John Wayne and Randolph Scott are the two men vying for her attention, and it's clear that she knows more than meets the mine.

The Rex Beach adventure novel already had an earlier version, and there would be even one more made just over a decade later. But because of the cast, this is probably the most well known version, adequately entertaining if a bit over the top. The emphasis in the script is based on sardonic humor, with much of it provided by Mariette Canty as Dietrich's dingbat black maid. Harry Carey, George Cleveland and Richard Barthelmess stand out in the supporting cast, with Margaret Lindsay a stark contrast to Dietrich. Great photography and atmosphere make this stand out. Dietrich and Wayne have decent chemistry while Scott makes an outstanding villain.

There's some issue with the character played by Canty, sassy but basically stupid, and a plot twist where Wayne disguises himself with blackface and enters Dietrich's bedroom, much to Canty's delight. Earlier she had made a comment about tired of pretending that the darker Eskimos were from the south, and here, she reacts to blackface as is if were an every day occurrence. It's ironic that over a decade later, she would play a much more dignified character that brought her some attention, the role of the loving housekeeper in "Rebel Without a Cause" that was the only source of love Sal Mineo's character had known. Here, she's told by Dietrich to sit on eggs and reacts as if she believed Dietrich was serious. The laughs are there, but come out uncomfortably. A great fight sequence ends the film, that is after you get a chance to see Wayne hiding inside one of Dietrich's feathery costumes.