A surprisingly subtle Mickey Rooney has one of his better lead roles post stardom in this B Republic comic western that is formula fluff, but this is a formula that cures the blues. Like a glorious spiritual by a heavenly church choir, it's inspiring and good natured, and even non-Rooney fans will find him likeable here. He utilizes some deeply felt spirituality in himself to get into this part as a newly ordained minister who heads to the small mining town where his father prepared to start a church but was killed before it opened.
Even at 35, Rooney maintains his boyish looking image, but there's no elements of those high energy quick starters from his A list MGM days. The biggest obstacle he faces is from saloon owner Hugh O'Brien who doesn't want the old time religion stealing his old time profession. He plots to make miners in the area disrupt the building of the church, something that historic attraction and girlfriend Coleen Gray objects to.
This is the type of film that came and went, probably as part of a double bill (and on the bottom), so it doesn't have the reputation of being a hit or a miss. But there were a lot of films of similar themes, and I could even compare this to the Ginger Rogers comedy western "The First Traveling Saleslady" where an outsider (and worst of all, a big city slicker from New York) butts in on a big man's territory. That one was far too goofy to be believable, while this one does have some elements of reality and believability. Rooney is sincere, tough when necessary, and funny in a way that avoids his usual show-off mentality. Lots of familiar character actor favorites pop up here, with Clem Bevans, Dick Elliott and even a young Mike Conners present.
Even at 35, Rooney maintains his boyish looking image, but there's no elements of those high energy quick starters from his A list MGM days. The biggest obstacle he faces is from saloon owner Hugh O'Brien who doesn't want the old time religion stealing his old time profession. He plots to make miners in the area disrupt the building of the church, something that historic attraction and girlfriend Coleen Gray objects to.
This is the type of film that came and went, probably as part of a double bill (and on the bottom), so it doesn't have the reputation of being a hit or a miss. But there were a lot of films of similar themes, and I could even compare this to the Ginger Rogers comedy western "The First Traveling Saleslady" where an outsider (and worst of all, a big city slicker from New York) butts in on a big man's territory. That one was far too goofy to be believable, while this one does have some elements of reality and believability. Rooney is sincere, tough when necessary, and funny in a way that avoids his usual show-off mentality. Lots of familiar character actor favorites pop up here, with Clem Bevans, Dick Elliott and even a young Mike Conners present.