There is a lot of value in a film that recognizes its limitations, and very few directors knew this better than Budd Boetticher, whose name is almost synonymous with low-budget, but highly-popular, westerns that grew to amass quite a fanbase in the 1950s. Known mostly for a series of films lovingly-dubbed the “Ranown Cycle” (taken from the name of the production company giving Boetticher the chance to make these films), the director’s work has stood the test of time and been tenderly explored by those who are captivated by his vision. Undeniably, these films aren’t particularly noteworthy, simply by virtue of not doing all that much in terms of revolutionary storytelling, and often being by-the-numbers entries into a genre that was already incredibly saturated by the time Boetticher was at his peak. However, one of his films was Ride Lonesome, the antepenultimate entry into the cycle that was yet another reunion with actor Randolph Scott and screenwriter Burt Kennedy, forming a trio of collaborators who brought out the best in each other. In no uncertain terms, I’m incredibly hesitant to call Ride Lonesome a great film – it lacks the fundamental spark needed to separate this from the endless glut of similarly-themed westerns. However, I’m far more lenient on it than expected, which comes down to the fact that Boetticher delivered exactly what was promised, and while this is mostly something that will be appreciated by existing devotees to the genre, Ride Lonesome is a perfectly decent addition, and through its unremarkable but solid story, some great performances and a general heartfulness, it achieves a pleasant regularity that doesn’t make it stand out, but rather allows it to be a worthwhile bit of entertainment for the curious viewer.

There isn’t much storyline to Ride Lonesome – in many ways, what would traditionally be seen as a shortcoming actually works very well for a film like this, with Boetticher putting in enough effort to keep the plot as simple as possible, it doesn’t feel compelled to have any unnecessary content that would distract from the simple story at the core. Clocking in at a lean 69 minutes, Ride Lonesome is certainly a far cry from many other meandering westerns produced at this time, where length equated to quality, which is a misconception that Boetticher and his colleagues were vehemently against, openly taking on this belief through straightforward, rapidly-paced westerns that may not add much to the genre, but rather prove that it is capable of great simplicity when it is executed well. The embodiment of “less is more”, Ride Lonesome is a perfectly entertain sojourn into a traditional western plot, and through refusing to add weight to it with unneeded subplots, Boetticher keeps it all relatively free of complications. There’s an admirable quality about any film that can give the viewer a solid hour of entertainment, taking us on a thrilling journey that may feel rushed at times (and indeed occasionally miss out on the chance to add nuance to what is essentially a bare story extracted from any array of genre tropes), but also never overstays its welcome, ending long before it could become convoluted. It may make discussing the film somewhat more challenging, since so much of what Boetticher is doing with Ride Lonesome seems directly inspired by previous westerns (and it’s always wonderful to see genre films in dialogue with each other – and we weren’t quite at the moment where the western genre entered into its phase of cannibalising itself, resulting in the rise of the spaghetti western movement half a decade later), but if we’re taking this purely on the value of what we see reflected on screen, rather than the underlying messages infused into it, it’s difficult to argue that Ride Lonesome is a decent effort.

There is a great deal of subtext that some may read into this film – whatever meaning one can glean from this straightforward plot is perfectly relevant and should be noted – but ultimately what makes Ride Lonesome so effective is that it doesn’t feel the need to be anything more than it appears on a very basic surface-level reading. Finding meaning in a film like this can either be a glorious adventure for those attuned to this kind of storytelling – and it’d be wrong to deny that Boetticher did have some interesting intentions – or a fool’s errand for those who venture into it with the expectation (or rather, the hope) that it would be a pleasant experience, and not much else. This applies wonderfully to Ride Lonesome, which has its moments of inspired brilliance, but for the most part functions as a solid western that follows a familiar pattern, hitting all the necessary beats and finding space for some unforgettable moments that may not make this the definitive entry into the genre, but rather one of the stronger efforts that is constantly hinting at something deeper and more interesting than we’d get from just looking at the film directly. Taken solely at face-value, Ride Lonesome is barely anything special, but as it unfolds, it presents the viewer with a soulfulness that allows us to look beneath the traditional, genre-based aspects, and more on its own individual merits, which may be more difficult to discern at first, but gradually flourish and become notable as the story progresses, and we understand that there is something more to this film. Boetticher infuses Ride Lonesome with an underlying melancholy that may take some viewers by surprise – while it may outright avoid the tropes of the “ageing virtuous cowboy” or anything related to it, it does have a sense of lingering sadness that makes it quite impactful. Perhaps it’s not enough to situate this film at the top of the genre, but it is sufficient in making it seem a lot more interesting than the casual viewer would expect.

We tend to adjudicate it less on the value of what it’s saying (which is likely to be different for every viewer, with the director smartly keeping the underlying message vague), and more from the success it achieves through more conventional elements. The most com it’s characters aren’t all that special, but they meet the standards established by the genre, and exceed it only slightly, where it becomes very much indebted to a key set of ideas that were borrowed consistently, but are here repurposed in some very interesting ways – there are archetypes more than they’re fully-formed characters, and the middling but solid performances by the actors ultimately reflect this. Randolph Scott was an exceptionally charming actor, and even when we stood on the precipice of the twilight of his career, he demonstrated a rugged charm that may not have made him the most memorable leading man (to the point where he’s often overshadowed by his colleagues in the cast), but gave him a solidity that made many of his performances exciting. The cast of Ride Lonesome isn’t its strongest aspect, but no one is actively doing bad work here, but rather taking on roles that may be thinly-written, but function as effective parts of a large project that isn’t built on the quality of the performances being given, but rather whether or not its actors did what they were tasked with doing. The sole exception is Lee van Cleef, who is quite excellent, playing a character that belonged in a much more complex film – so it stands to reason that he has only two scenes, both of which he commands, but ultimately falls victim to the rapid nature of a film that always appears to be desperate to get to the next scene.

Unconventionally short (by genre standards, rather than by what we’ve come to expect from Boetticher, who was famously one to rarely hit the 90-minute mark), but not without its moments of charm, Ride Lonesome puts a lot of effort into a more meagre storyline that may not hit too many peaks, but when it does, it manages to infuse the screen with emotion and pathos to rival some of the better ones. It’s certainly not a film likely to deviate from expectations – it essentially comes pre-packaged with a set of concepts that are disseminated into the film consistently, gradually following all the beats we’d expect. However, just because something is familiar doesn’t mean that it is without merits – and while Ride Lonesome may not do much else in terms of pushing the boundaries of the form, it never feels like it is actively trying to. Instead, Boetticher crafts a solid western that carries with it a lot of heart, has some impressive sequences and some decent performances that all converge into a reliable, but perfectly predictable, entry into a genre that often struggled to balance originality with tradition, especially prior to the major waves of revival that would come in subsequent decades. It doesn’t offer anything new, but rather provides a sense of comforting nostalgia for those who yearn for this straightforward, direct method of telling these stories without much subtext – and should the viewer have even a passing interest in this kind of approach, Ride Lonesome is a worthwhile endeavour.