Way back in the 50’s, America had a huge obsession with Westerns. It was one of the most popular genres in Hollywood so naturally, as is the case with anything, if it’s popular, it’s done to death. Capitalising on the popularity of the genre, smaller studios tried to cash in, creating low budget pictures in an effort to make a bit of money. Throughout the 50’s, hundreds of B-Movie Westerns were made but one of my favourites was a little known picture by the name of The Toughest Gun In Tombstone. Here’s why…

Released in May of 1958, The Toughest Gun In Tombstone follows Captain Matt Sloane (played by the excellent George Montgomery) who tries to clean up the lawless town of Tombstone while trying to track down the man who murdered his wife. Sloane faces many more challenges however as he meets a women (played by Beverly Tyler) while passing through the town while also trying to do the right thing for his son who is rebelling against him over the murder of his mother.

The problem with B-Westerns is that sometimes, the story is a bit shallow. Not much is done to progress the tale and they normally have little to no character development. This is one of the reasons why I like this film so much as it actually has both of those things. I found myself to be quite invested in the Captain Sloane character and occasionally became interested in what was happening with his son Terry, played by Scotty Morrow although that was difficult at times as the kid came across as whiney and that made the character quite annoying and offputting. The rest of the cast were acceptable in their roles and a special mention to Beverly Tyler for putting on such a well done performance. Bravo Beverly… Bravo.

As I mentioned earlier, the plot was an interesting one. It kept me entertained throughout and didn’t wander off from the main story or have long periods where nothing much happened like many other B-Westerns of that era. I also liked that it was in black and white. I felt that it have the film a bit more charm and wouldn’t have the same feeling about it if it was in colour. Maybe I’m wrong and others may disagree, maybe it’s because I’m a huge fan of black and white movies or maybe I’m spot on with my theory. I’m not quite sure…

Normally, this is the point in the review where I list the negatives of the film that I just watched but sitting here writing this now, nothing’s actually coming to me. Sure, the acting could’ve been a little better from some of the players and the script could’ve been tweaked in places to make the film flow a little better but to be honest, these were both very minor things as it didn’t really take away from the film in any way.

All in all though, I really enjoyed The Toughest Gun In Tombstone. Was it one of the best Westerns of the 50’s? Not by a long shot but where cheap, low budget B-Westerns are concerned, it was very good. If you ever get the chance to watch it, I’d say do it. Two thumbs up from me!

Rating: 7/10