The Ride Back! (1957) is set in the timeless Old West of the movies: without a date specified, and overlapping no important historical events, the story fits readily into the almost-mythical time when gunfighters strolled the streets, and lawmen were ready to saddle up their horses in pursuit of outlaws. Here we meet Hamish (William Conrad), heading out rather reluctantly to pursue a man named Kallen (Anthony Quinn) who is accused of murder. His route takes him across the border to Mexico, where Kallen has gone to hide. (Interestingly, in the film Kallen is said to have a Mexican mother and an American father, and in real life Anthony Quinn had a Mexican mother and an Irish father.)

The plot itself is fairly straightforward: Hamish, the "law man," wants to bring back the fugitive, and Kallen has no intention of cooperating. Finding Kallen is relatively easy; what's more challenging is, as the title tells us, the ride back.

What's most compelling about the situation is the fact that, in the midst of the rough and sometimes hostile territory that they must travel through, the two men are thrown into a kind of association that's not quite that of prisoner and guard. As the story develops, we see that Keller is more than the murderous bandit that we expected, and also that Hamish isn't quite the stereotypical tough, competent sheriff. There are tensions here that have nothing to do with the ordinary challenge of bringing back a fugitive, and the most interesting aspect of The Ride Back! is seeing how the two men deal with each other.

But it seems that the filmmakers didn't trust enough to the merits of the story's simplicity; the plot takes on a picaresque feel, a string of events happening along the way. Some of these events develop the relationship between Hamish and Kallen, such as when Hamish is forced to rely on Kallen as an interpreter when speaking to the Mexican border guard, but other events simply serve to shift the story into a more ordinary action-adventure rather than the interesting psychological tale that it has the potential for.  In the latter category, we get the persistent appearance of Kallen's girlfriend, in several scenes that really don't add anything to the story, and the pair's discovery of a survivor of an Indian attack.

One aspect of the film that struck me as quite odd is that the use of a song to present the opening plot setup, and again midway through the film and at the end to summarize the story as it has unfolded so far. On the other hand, the rest of the film is completely naturalistic, so I'll just chalk this up to a stylistic quirk.

The Ride Back! falls into an interesting category, in the end. In its favor, it's not the typical "shoot 'em up" Western, and it offers decent performances from Anthony Quinn and William Conrad. Still, it doesn't quite capitalize on its strengths, as if the filmmakers weren't quite sure what they were dealing with. In this respect, it will probably especially appeal to fans of Westerns who will appreciate the film's place in the development of the genre.

The DVD

Video

The black-and-white print is in good condition, with very little wear or flaws apparent in the image. Some noise and moderate edge enhancement appear as well. On the whole, the picture is satisfactory, with the contrast (especially important in black-and-white films) looking good and providing a solid level of detail throughout the film.

The Ride Back is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.33:1.

Audio

The Dolby 2.0 mono soundtrack for The Ride Back! is reasonably clear, with the actors' dialogue always being crisp and understandable; a touch of harshness intrudes once or twice into the louder moments of the film, but for the most part it sounds entirely natural. The main drawback of the soundtrack is the uneven volume levels. The quiet moments are too quiet, and the louder moments are too loud.

English, French, and Spanish subtitles are included as an option.

Extras

A trailer is the only special feature provided on the DVD.

Final thoughts

The Ride Back! ends up being a reasonably diverting evening's entertainment; at only 80 minutes, it's short enough to overlook its relatively uncoordinated plot, and just enjoy the story for its slightly different take on the traditional Western. Fans of the genre may want to purchase the DVD, which has an adequate transfer, but on the whole it's probably better classified as a solid rental choice.