Richard Dix was an actor known for his rugged portrayals of action adventure heroes. He had been around since the silents, rising to big stardom as a leading man in talkies for RKO during the 1920s and 30s. At the time of The Arizonian, however, his star was slipping. The movie's success brought a much needed boost to Dix's career and to RKO. In addition, Louis Calhern is appropriately slimy as the crooked Sheriff Mannen, and the beautiful Margot Grahame is spunky as Dix's love interest.
The script by the distinguished and prolific Dudley Nichols (who was also a longtime collaborator with John Ford) makes The Arizonian distinctive from the typical genre programmer. In an unusual twist, the film focuses not on cowboys and Indians, but rather on the shady dealings of internal politics and the difficult problems of trying to oust someone in power. The story was so compelling that RKO remade it again just four years later as a vehicle for George O'Brien called The Marshal of Mesa City (1939).
Producer: Cliff Reid
Director: Charles Vidor
Screenplay: Dudley Nichols
Cinematography: Harold Wenstrom
Film Editing: Jack Hively
Art Direction: Van Nest Polglase
Music: Roy Webb
Cast: Richard Dix (Clay Tallant), Margot Grahame (Kitty Rivers), Preston Foster (Tex Randolph), Louis Calhern (Sheriff Jake Mannen), James Bush (Orin Tallant), J. Farrell MacDonald (Marshal Andy Jordan).
BW-76m.
by Andrea Passafiume
