Dark Command (1940)

Set in Kansas just before and during the Civil War, a young woman (Claire Trevor) finds herself torn between the newly elected Marshal (John Wayne) and a schoolteacher (Walter Pidgeon) turned guerrilla leading a band of outlaws posing as Confederates. Based on the novel by W.R Burnett (THE ASPHALT JUNGLE) and directed by Raoul Walsh (HIGH SIERRA). Pidgeon's character is a thin disguise of the notorious raider William Quantrill (his character is called Cantrell) but historical accuracy isn't part of the film's narrative. It's a well done programmer done without any particular flair or style. It's interesting to see three actors in atypical performances. The third billed Pidgeon would soon become one of MGM's most popular stars playing pleasant stalwart types but here, he gets a chance to show that his career could have gone the other way playing baddies. As his mother, Marjorie Main gives a strong dramatic performance instead of the usual comic foils she played and Roy Rogers gets to play a flawed conflicted character instead of the clean cut Western heroes that would make him famous. Enjoyable but not essential. With Porter Hall and Gabby Hayes.