Damn shame this film is only an hour and twenty minutes! A unit of Confederate soldiers out on a special mission attack a Union troop that is carrying a cargo of gold. The idea being that the gold will be used to better the Confederate cause, but upon finding a barely living Union survivor, they learn that General Lee has surrendered and the war finished a month prior. The men, now guilty of murder outside of war regulations, are hunted by suspect deputies, taking a stagecoach hostage and holing up at a stage line way station, inner conflicts and murderous thieves are the order of the night. Incredible to think that this fine Western was the only effort to have been directed by Roy Huggins; because it's exactly that, damn fine. He would go on to direct notable work in TV such as The Virginian, The Rockford Files, Maverick and The Fugitive, but it seems that he wanted to put down a marker that he could in fact direct a feature length film, and although it only runs at a respectable 80 minutes, he must have been real satisfied with the finished product. Huggins is backed up by genre legend Randolph Scott in the lead role of Major Matt Stewart, with Scott providing the sort of performance that reminds us of his excellent work for Budd Boetticher in Ride Lonesome, The Tall T and Comanche Station etc. Donna Reed (lovely as ever), Lee Marvin (another fine loose cannon job), Richard…

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