Lights of Old Santa Fe (1944)

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Instant Favorite.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

What a pleasant surprise it is to see a Roy Rogers movie in its original length, and such a beautiful copy it is too – at least in the "20 Wild Western Movies" collection. Actually, that's a rather odd collection in which to find this entry as it is a musical western from the 1940s and has very little in common with the other nine movies on this particular disc. I'm not complaining, but the people who thrill to "Red Blood, Yellow Gold" and "There's a Noose Waiting For You, Trinity" are going to wonder what "Lights of Old Santa Fe" possibly holds in common with its companions, especially as it is a contemporary 1944 western and has nothing much to do with Santa Fe, young or old, even if that city is "the seat of old world charm in the Wild West." Yes, this movie has charm too, and that adjective certainly does not apply to the other nine movies on this particular disc. And yes, I enjoyed the movie despite the fact that I'm not a fan of George Hayes in his "Gabby" mode and that the emphasis is on song, comedy and romance in that descending order. In fact, "Trigger" provides more action here than Roy or the not- really-so-villainous "bad" guy. But Dale Evans is at her best, and Roy is tolerable. The direction by Frank McDonald rates a reasonably competent score, even though the movie was obviously shot in haste, but it's beautifully photographed all the same by Reggie Lanning. Best performance comes from Lloyd Corrigan as an inept radio broadcaster.

Dale Evans and Gabby Hayes own a traveling rodeo show. However, they are almost broke--no one wants to book the show. Gabby is too stubborn to try to update the show and thanks to Roy arriving on the scene, the show starts to do better. At the same time a 'nice guy' is wooing Dale and has offered to merge his show with hers. And, to make sure she needs him, he makes sure her show fails repeatedly with his dirty tricks.Dougdoepke wrote in their review that this film was a personality film. In other words, the idea of it being a western or even having a traditional story was completely abandoned by the time "Lights of Old Santa Fe" debuted--it was simply Roy Rogers playing Roy Rogers. And, I must point out, there wasn't a whole lot of attempt to give this film much of a story. Instead, he mostly plays himself and he and Dale Evans as well as the Sons of the Pioneers just sing and sing and sing and sing--and the plot seems completely incidental. However, unlike Dougdoepke and the other reviewers, I felt there really wasn't anything left to watch--it really wasn't much of a movie. And, as a result, it must rank among the very worst of Rogers' films. It's basically a parody of itself and make no effort at all. A lazy and easy to skip little 'western'(???). If you adore the music, watch it--otherwise, you should try some of Roy's earlier films when he and the studio actually cared.By the way, Dale and Gabby must have felt a bit irked. That's because Trigger actually got higher billing in the film than they did!!

In Lights of Old Santa Fe, Roy and the Sons of the Pioneers are busy trying to save a wild west show that is owned by Dale Evans and run by Gabby Hayes.Dale's an eastern girl who inherited the show from her father and of late it's gone to seed. She's gotten two good offers from Tom Keene, one to buy the show, the other a proposal of marriage. Keene's a rival owner and he's determined to get the show one way or another.Of course all that doesn't sit well with Roy who smells a rat and in these films, Roy's nose is unerring.The highlight of the film is when Keene challenges Rogers to a chariot race. Not as silly as it sounds because the chariots are part of the show. The two of them go at each other worthy of Stephen Boyd and Charlton Heston. Of course Heston and Boyd were working in a film with a slightly bigger budget.Roy and Dale do make some pretty music together and even Gabby gets to warble a verse from the title song. That alone might make a fan curious.

"Lights of Old Santa Fe" presents Roy Rogers and Dale Evans in a modern Western setting with a host of musical numbers and rodeo intrigue in the forefront. Dale's character Marjorie Brooks owns the Brooks International Rodeo, although with only one major booking, the business is on the brink of financial ruin. As unscrupulous rival Frank Madden attempts to take over the rodeo and marry Marjorie to seal the deal, it's up to Roy and Gabby Whittaker (Gabby Hayes) to uncover the scheme and give the Brooks name credibility once again.Roy and Dale make a wonderful couple on screen and their charm and charisma are evident in the songs they do together, including the title song. Then there's a double dose of an uncharacteristic tune for a Western named "The Cowpoke Polka". But don't ask Gabby to take in a ballet as he's invited to do in the early part of the film - "I'd just as soon slide down a razor blade"!Trigger gets top billing in the film as "The Smartest Horse in the Movies", but he doesn't have much to do here, although he does warn Roy and the Pioneers of trouble in camp when he breaks away from a Madden henchman named Ferguson (Roy Barcroft). The rawhide lariat that Trigger snaps proves to be the undoing of the whole rodeo scheme when Roy traces it's ownership back to Ferguson and his employer.Roy and Dale first appeared in a film together in "The Cowboy and the Senorita" in 1944, followed soon after by this one. In all, they performed together in easily two dozen films, along with their hit TV series in the early 1950's. For anyone interested in a film representative of their engaging warmth and charm, "Lights of Old Santa Fe" is a good start.