Hell's Crossroads

Frank Adreon has taken more than a little care to inject some character into the folks in this exciting little B-western. "Vic" (Stephen McNally) is on fine form as the prisoner offered parole on the condition that he captures - alive - the infamous train robber Jesse James (Henry Brandon) with whom he used to ride. Historians of the James gang and their activities may well dislike this now, as it begins to deviate rather from fact. "Vic" reunites with an old flame "Paula" (Peggy Castle), she is the sister of the Ford members of the gang - Bob (Robert Vaughn) and Clay (Harry Shannon) and whilst there are some elements true to the facts, including the slaying of James, the rest of the film is just an hybrid of stories used to created a "loosely based on" kind of adventure - and it is perfectly acceptable at that. It's got plenty of shoot-outs, fast-paced riding - even an attempted lynching, and Vaughn, Pinkerton man "O'Connell" (Barton MacLane) and Shannon work well with some decent photography to keep the pot boiling along nicely.