OUTLAW WOMEN

Richard Avonde and Marie Windsor

OUTLAW WOMEN (1952). Directors: Sam Newfield; Ron Ormond. In Cinecolor.

"Six-gun sirens that shoot to thrill!"

Dr. Bob (Allan Nixon) is shanghaied to the town of Las Mujeres, which is run by women, particularly the tough and feisty "Iron" Mae McLeod (Marie Windsor), owner of the Paradise saloon and casino. The bartender has succumbed to pneumonia before he can arrive, but Bob sticks around on account of pretty Beth Larabee (Carla Balenda), although her prettier sister Ellen (Jacqueline Fontaine) also makes a play for him. Others in Las Mujeres include crook Frank Slater (Richard Avonde) and the mysterious Woody (Richard Rober), who is almost always in the company of Peyote Bill (Jackie Coogan). Mae finds herself beset on all sides by men who want to "deal" with her: Woody wants to take over the Paradise and make her a mere employee and Frank wants to rob the bank -- where most of Mae's money is. But she may have a plan to outwit them all ...

"cat-fight!"

Outlaw Women is a fun, morally-ambiguous western with some colorful action -- including a nifty "cat fight" -- and performances. Despite the fact that she isn't exactly on the side of the angels, you may find yourself rooting for Mae, who had to take over because the chauvinistic men in her life wouldn't exactly play fair. Windsor is as snappy as ever, and the other women, especially Fontaine (introduced in this picture although she'd appeared previously in The Daltons' Women and others) are fine. Most of the male actors were generally limited to "B"s or TV shows, no harm in that. Lyle Talbot, Billy House [Naked Gun], and Tom Tyler are also in the cast and the Four Dandies sing a peppy version of "San Francisco Bay." From Lippert Pictures. 

Verdict: Scrappy Windsor is always fun to watch. ***.

CAT-WOMEN OF THE MOON

Susan Morrow, Suzanne Alexander, Carol Brewster

CAT-WOMEN OF THE MOON (1953). Director: Arthur Hilton. Colorized. 

A rocket ship heads for the first ever moon landing. Aboard are the commander, Laird (Sonny Tufts of Serpent Island), second-in-command Kip (Victor Jory of The Shadow), radio operator Doug (William Phipps), Walter (Douglas Fowley of Freddie Steps Out) and biologist Helen (Marie Windsor). Helen seems to not only know that they should land on the dark side of the moon, but exactly where they should go once they disembark. Helen leads the men to an air-filled cavern complete with giant spiders and a bevy of beautiful, black-clad "cat-women." These women are not only able to maintain mind control over Helen, but plan to murder the men and take over the Earth! 

Victor Jory and Marie Windsor

Originally released in 3D, Cat-Women is a middle of the road "babes in space" movie, better than Queen of Outer Space but not nearly as much fun as Missile to the Moon (which is basically a remake). The colorization process is done well in this version, and increases the limited enjoyment level. Some parts of the screenplay were never filmed, and the climax almost occurs off-screen! A decided asset is the score by Elmer Bernstein, who would go on to far superior pictures. The acting in this is possibly better than the movie deserves, with everyone giving it their all no matter how ridiculous the situations. Carol Brewster plays Alpha, the leader of the cat-women; Suzanne Alexander is Beta; and Susan Morrow plays the sympathetic Lambda, who falls in love with handsome Doug and vice versa. Arthur Hilton also directed The Big Chase.

Verdict: Dig that giant spider! **1/2.