Its not a Rough Riders film, but it maintains the RR structure - 3 men who seemingly don't know each other are secretly working together to identify and capture the bad guys. Tim McCoy was replaced by Rex Bell, even down to the log black coat and black hat - Bell does an adequate job, but he was no McCoy. Raymond Hatton, the usual third wheel rounds out the trio here. The movie gains from having a rather "almost adults only" story line. A wagon train of settlers and railroad supplies id heading west - Harry Woods (Jim Corkle) and his gang Roy Barcroft, Jm Clark and unidentified members Art Mix, I. Stanford Jolley,, Ben Corbett and others, doesn't want the RR to go through and has been stopping RR supplies from going through, using white men dressed as Indians. On this wagon train we find a pregnant woman who dies shortly after her child is born, a married couple, Tris Coffin (Matt Rand) and Mona Barrie (Sadie Rand) who intend to set up a gambling den somewhere, a tough middle-aged lady, Maude Eburne (Sarah Harkins) and her daughter the wonderful and lovely Christine McIntyre (Mary Harkins), and a phony judge, brother to McCorkle, and his mean-spirited wife - not your everyday B western crew. The Rands have already accepted responsibility for the orphaned child when Coffin is killed during a raid. And, it later becomes obvious that Jones and Barrie have a thing for each other. - Definitely a bit more more true to life and adult than your usual B western, It ends as one might expect, with a good gunfight. While Jones is his usual self, the realistic script and presence pf so many fine actors elevates this to 4 star level. Oh, and as a bonus we get "Rock of Ages" sung by Barrie and "Beautiful Dreamer" sung by McIntyre and Robert Lowery.

buck jones last movie was forbidden trails nebasm

I agree with one of the other reviewers that this one falls somewhere in the middle on the enjoyability scale. The acting is fine and the story is okay...not a barn burner or a thriller...but is just okay. Well worth an hour and nine minutes of your time to see Buck Jones' last movie, since he would soon die, only a few weeks after it's release, in Boston's infamous Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire.

"Everybody can tell a white man from an Injun" is one of the first sentences of the film. But as we see, it's a false statement.
The Rough Riders provide passage through Indian country. The "savages" plan to attack but are actually renegade whites. Colonel Tim McCoy, was away in World War II, replaced Rex Bell. Buck Jones was killed in the Coconut Grove fire shortly before the film was released.

Buck Jones' last film, more or less a "Rough Riders" entry is not the best film he ever made nor is it the worst. It falls somewhere in the middle. The story taken from a James Oliver Curwood adventure novel leaves a lot to be desired, but the lusty people in the book had to be watered down for Jones' youthful followers and the "Hays" production code in particular. There is a lot of rousing action and the showdown between Buck and Roy Barcroft is about as good as it gets, considering the suspenseful build-up. Rex Bell was no substitute for Tim McCoy, but I can't think of anybody else available at the time who could fill in. (So let's not start an arguement.) The supporting cast is well placed. Dennis Moore stands out against type in an unsympathic role. Yes, the film has flaws, and some chopped up prints are worse than others, but it's worth a look.