Hellfire *** (1949, Bill Elliott, Marie Windsor, Forrest Tucker, Jim Davis) – Classic Movie Review 13,870

‘Some men live by making rules… some women live by breaking ’em!’ Republic Pictures’ 1949 Trucolor Western film Hellfire stars Wild Bill Elliott, Marie Windsor, Forrest Tucker and Jim Davis.

‘Some men live by making rules… some women live by breaking ’em!’

Director R G Springsteen’s 1949 Republic Pictures American Trucolor Western film Hellfire stars Wild Bill Elliott, Marie Windsor, Forrest Tucker and Jim Davis.

Hellfire is a strong, rather unusual American second feature Trucolor Western, with an imaginative screenplay (by Dorrell McGowan and Stuart E McGowan), expert direction, attractive cinematography (by Jack A Marta) in that odd Trucolor, and three capable turns from the personable star actors (Bill Elliott, Forrest Tucker, Jim Davis) and an exciting bad girl appearance by Marie Windsor.

Bill Elliott [William Elliott] stars as thieving gambler drifter Zeb Smith, who promises the dying itinerant preacher who saved his life by taking a bullet meant for him that he will fulfil the preacher’s lifelong mission of building a church. Unable to raise the money, Zeb tries to capture pretty fugitive outlaw Doll Brown, aka Mary Carson (Marie Windsor), for the $5,000 reward. Doll Brown murdered her husband Lew Stoner, whose brothers Gyp (Jim Davis), Red (Louis R Faust) and Dusty (Paul Fix) are after her as well. But so is Zeb’s old friend Marshal Bucky McLean (Forrest Tucker), who turns up gunning for Doll. Both Zeb and Bucky fall for Doll, but Zeb thinks he can redeem everybody by faith.

Release date: May 29, 1949 (US).

Running time: 90 minutes.

Wild Bill Elliott (born Gordon Nance, October 16, 1904 – November 26, 1965) played rugged heroes of B-Westerns, particularly in the series of 16 Red Ryder films films (1944-46), and starred in three serials: The Great Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok (1938), Overland with Kit Carson (1939) and The Valley of Vanishing Men (1942). Gordon Nance renamed himself Gordon Elliott, and then Bill Elliott or Wild Bill Elliott after making the hit The Great Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok that literally made his name. He signed with Republic Pictures In 1943 for a series of B-Westerns and remained a top Western star for the next 15 years.

Marie Windsor (born Emily Marie Bertelsen; December 11, 1919 – December 10, 2000) was also known for her femme fatale characters, particularly in Force of Evil, The Narrow Margin and The Killing. Unusually tall (5’9″) for a star of her generation, Windsor recalled acting with her 6’5” Forrest Tucker co-star made her happy with finally getting a male lead her ‘own size’.

© Derek Winnert 2026 – Classic Movie Review 13,870

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com