Dakota

John Wayne and Vera Hruba Ralston star as John and Sandy Devlin, young marrieds struggling to survive in Dakota territory. A footloose gambler, Devlin gets involved with a bitter railroad dispute, finding himself in the middle between a group of homesteaders and a gang of land-grabbing crooks. The film is chock full of fast action sequences (a wheatfield fire is a standout!), which nearly compensate for the performance of Vera Hruba Ralston, who is duller than usual here. Adding zest to the proceedings is the presence of frequent Wayne cohorts Ward Bond and Walter Brennan-not to mention Mike Mazurki, bizarrely cast as a fancy-dan saloon hall proprietor. Eagle-eyed viewers will spot future Baretta star Robert (Bobby) Blake as a dewy-eyed kid., John Wayne comes to the aid of wheat farmers being swindled by crooked land-grabbers. Vera Hruba Ralston, Walter Brennan, Ward Bond. Bigtree: Mike Mazurki. Jersey: Ona Munson. Marko: Hugo Haas. Carp: Paul Fix. The action scenes help.