Terror in a Texas Town

The film opens to George Fried’s bizarre score as Swede George Hansen walks down a dirt road in the middle of Prairie City, Texas. George is mad as hell; he means business and he’s carrying a big whaling harpoon over his shoulder to prove it. George is followed by bloodthirsty, local farmers who are mad as hell too.

They meet up with the object of their anger; southpaw gunslinger Johnny Crale (Ned Young, uncannily resembling Bogart and dressed from head to toe in black). Johnny is ready to face George and kill. Johnny taunts George, You’re a little too far away. Come a little bit closer. You wouldn’t want to disappoint your friends. They all came here to see blood. Come a little bit closer so they can see. I want to give you a fighting chance. Five steps. One step, Hansen. George hangs his head in shame. It seems this is something he cannot go through with.

Titles roll through Lewis’ typical shot of wagon wheel spokes. The farming townspeople are being bullied and driven out by local oil baron Ed McNeil. McNeil likes the finer things in life and that includes women, food, champagne and land, but the local farmers are uncooperative when it comes to their land, which McNeil wants to mine. McNeil utilizes the talents of gunslinger Johnny to get the dirty deeds done. Pa Hansen is one of those farmers, and he is murdered by Johnny. Pa’s employee, Jose witnesses the murder, but his wife wants him to remain silent. At this point, Terror in a Texas Town may seem like a formulaic plot, but underneath the surface this is a bleak film, dripping in cynical parody and that becomes apparent when Pa’s son, George, arrives in Prairie City after being at sea for 19 years. George is returning to help his Pa, until he learns the awful truth that his Daddy has been shot and killed. With no help from the townspeople, George intends to find out who killed his Pa and why. —Rbmoviereviews.com