Beystiman It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Ogosmith Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Billie Morin This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

Sanjeev Waters A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

kindtxgal Very unique "western" film based on two men on opposite sides of the Civil War. The movie movies through several locations beginning with a Confederate prison camp where Kerry (Errol Flynn) and his usual film sidekicks (Alan Hale and Guinn Williams) are attempting to escape the prison where Lance (Scott) oversees. After an escape, Kerry & his friends are sent to intercept a plot led by Vance (Scott) in Viriginia to smuggle millions of gold. Bitter Southern woman (Miriam Hopkins) is aiding Vance although Kerry is initially duped to think otherwise.Lance wiles the gold away with Kerry & cavalry hot on his heels. Another character tossed into the mix is (in a very strange role almost laughable role with Humphry Bogart as Mexican bandit Murrel. What seals this movie into four stars is a one-liner delivered by Flynn in response to Scott's observations of his gun skills: Funny because of our current relationship with a certain country in the Middle East today. Flynn replies, "In Afghanistan the kids do it (shoot well)." This made the film for me. Too ironic for description.Scott & Flynn are great in their roles as is Alan Hale, but Miriam Hopkins (as usual) falls flat as Southern belle / saloon girl spy and love interest to both Flynn & Scott's characters. I just never have believed Hopkins is any special talent or beauty. Someone must have paid her way into Hollywood.Overall, however, the film is unique in its delivery, storyline, and fast paced locale/event changes. Solid stuff from Flynn & Scott. Hale the usual bumbling, faithful pal. Hopkins.. well, she's just sorta annoying there throughout the film.

zardoz-13 No, Michael Curtiz's "Virginia City" is not as memorable as "Dodge City." Curtiz helmed "Dodge City"(1939) about the taming of that historic frontier railroad & cattle town with Errol Flynn triumphing over the elements of chaos. He refuses to pin on a lawman's badge until the villains kill a helpless little boy. Warner Brothers lensed "Dodge City" in Technicolor , whereas the Burbank studio filmed "Virginia City" in black & white. The characters in "Dodge City" possess greater charisma, including Bruce Cabot's villainous Jeff Surrett. Robert Buckner, who penned the screenplay for "Dodge City," also wrote "Virginia City." Furthermore, lenser Sol Polito photographed both epics, and his cinematography is outstanding, except that the gorgeous desert locations in "Virginia City" lanquish by comparison in black & white. Although Warner Brothers wanted to capitalize on the success of "Dodge City," the studio cut many corners on this quasi-sequel. Whereas "Dodge City" was a rip-snorting, larger-than-life western, "Virginia City" differs because the good guys and the bad guys behave differently in the last quarter-hour. The last 30-minutes are pretty contrived and the hero makes a moral decision that conflicts with his command imperatives as a Union officer. The resolution seems rather far-fetched and an effort to wrap up everything with a happily-ever after ending. Humphrey Bogart makes an uncharacteristic appearance as a mustached Mexican bandit who preys on our heroes. The first time that he encounters Kerry Bradford (Errol Flynn) on a stagecoach, he tries to rob him, but Bradford outsmarts him. Actually, Bogart is the only genuine villain in this Civil War era oater that takes place in Nevada. Flynn plays a resourceful U.S. Army officer Bradford who tangles with Randolph Scott's Confederate Army officer Vance Irby. They are sworn enemies from the outset with Flynn and his cohorts Alan Hale and Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams holed up in the notorious Libby Prison with Irby as a Confederate officer in charge who catches them trying to dig their way out. Later, they blow-up a powder magazine while tunneling to freedom when Irby is off elsewhere. Meantime, Captain Vance Irby (Randolph Scott of "She") and Julia Hayne (Miriam Hopkins of "Barbary Coast") devise an audacious scheme to transport $5-million in gold ingots from Virginia City to the South. President Jefferson Davis (Charles Middleton of "Flash Gordon") approves of the plan. Bradford and company set out to thwart Irby and Hayne. Although it is in black & white, Curtiz and Polito provide a good-looking picture and Flynn makes a first-class hero. Scott qualifies as a quasi-villain because Flynn and he wind up on the same side when Bogart's Hispanic outlaw attacks the wagon train led by Scott. The Confederates have cleverly concealed the gold in wagons with false bottoms. Naturally, Flynn falls in love with Hopkins. The action scenes are terrifi, especially when Murrell and his army surround the Southern wagon train in the desert! No, Michael Curtiz's "Virginia City" is not as memorable as "Dodge City." Curtiz helmed "Dodge City"(1939) about the taming of that historic frontier railroad & cattle town with Errol Flynn triumphing over the elements of chaos. "Virginia City" was lensed in black & white, whereas "Dodge City" was filmed in color and the characters in "Dodge City" have greater charisma, including Bruce Cabot's villainous Jerr Surrett. Robert Buckner, who penned the screenplay for "Dodge City," also wrote "Virginia City." Furthermore, Sol Polito shot both films and the cinematography is outstanding on each, except that the gorgeous desert locations lanquish in black & white. Humphrey Bogart makes an uncharacteristic appearance as a mustached Mexican bandit who preys on our heroes. Actually, Bogart is the only genuine villain. Flynn plays a U.S. Army officer who tangles with Randolph Scott's Confederate Army officer. They are sworn enemies from the outset with Flynn and his cohorts Alan Hale and Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams are hard-riding and hard-drinking. The three of them blow-up a powder magazine while tunneling to freedom and escape. Meantime, Scott and Miriam Hopkins make arrangements to transport $5-million in gold ingots from Virginia City to the South, while Flynn and company try to stop them. Although it is in black & white, Curtiz and Polito provide a good-looking picture and Flynn makes a first-class hero. Scott qualifies as a quasi-villain because Flynn and he wind up on the same side when Bogart's Hispanic outlaw attacks the wagon train led by Scott. The Confederates have cleverly concealed the gold in wagons with false bottoms. Naturally, Flynn falls in love with Hopkins. THe action scenes are terrific!

jpdoherty VIRGINIA CITY (1940) is not only a classic Warner western but is a classic Errol Flynn western as well! Flynn had great success with his playing in westerns which baffled and intrigued the actor no end and prompted him, on occasion, to refer to himself as "the rich man's Roy Rogers".From a fine screenplay by Robert Buckner VIRGINIA CITY was solidly directed by Michael Curtiz and beautiful photographed by Sol Polito. The picture boasted a top notch cast! Besides Flynn it had stone-faced Randolph Scott (on loan from Fox) as Flynn's confederate adversary and, sporting a dubious Mexican accent, a pre-stardom Humphrey Bogart turns up as an unlikely Mexican bandit leader. The female lead is, unfortunately, taken by the awful Miriam Hopkins (where, oh where was Olivia?), who plays a saloon singer come southern spy.The story has Flynn - fresh from the quarter deck of The Albatross in "The Sea Hawk" - playing a Union Intelligence officer in the closing days of the Civil War trying to prevent a shipment of gold bullion reaching the south so that the struggle of the confederacy could be prolonged. Not only do the opposing sides battle it out with each other over the gold but they must also contend with Murrell (Bogart) and his bandits who are trying to get their hands on the rich booty for themselves. And it all adds up to a very exciting movie especially when finally union and confederate join forces to thwart the onslaught of the Mexican outlaws.The excitement is heightened by the terrific score written for the picture by the legendary Max Steiner. Alongside "They Died With Their Boots On" (1942) and "The Searchers" (1956) "Virginia City" is arguably Steiner's best score for a western! The rich and evocative main theme first heard over the titles is a powerful statement for full orchestra. This theme used later in the film, as the gold laden wagons inch their way across the plains heading south, is Steiner at his most emphatic. Then there's a rollicking theme for the Stagecoach and a menacing motif - scored for horns - for the bandits. One of the composer's most arresting love themes is used in the film's more tender moments and the score and the movie comes to a close with a spine tingling version of 'Battle Hymn Of The Republic'.So VIRGINIA CITY is quite an enjoyable movie all round and is available in a Flynn western box set which also contains "San Antonio", "Montana" and the wonderful "Rocky Mountain". But it is curious that on its original release in 1940 "Virginia City" was shown in Sepiatone. How come Warner Home Video didn't follow suit with the DVD? Would've been nice to see what it was like in that colour!

jrbenneth It has been said, "a city on hill cannot hide itself" and Virginia City, Nevada, perched on the side of Mt. Davidson at 6200 ft. west of Tahoe, is a prime example, or in the context of the movie, should be. Virginia City exploded in the American dream as a shower of gold and silver, suspiciously the same year the Civil War began. It was the birthplace of the dean of American letters; it was where a young reporter named Samuel Clemens began using the name "Mark Twain" and went on to become America's most famous writer. It was also the birthplace of the great Hearst fortune, and the launching pad of John Mackay, who became the wealthiest man in America, the third wealthiest man in the world. Hey, they should have made the movie about him! In the 1860's Virginia CIty was THE boomtown of all boomtowns, the home of the big bonanza, at one time the largest "metropolitan" area west of St. Louis and East of San Francisco. But Virginia City (the movie) misses all that and is more about a hogwash North/South duello between the characters played by Errol Flynn and Randolph Scott. Flynn is Capt. Kerry Bradford, a Union officer who is a POW in a concentration camp run by a mean Confederate commander named Capt. Vance Irby, played by Scott. These two are always getting in each other's way. Bradford escapes and then tries to stop a shipment of gold bullion being "snuck" out of VC by who else other than . . . Irby! "Hey, what's he doing here!?" Horrible. Bogart plays a laughable Mexican bandit who can't decide who's side he's on. Miriam Hopkins plays a murky character named "Julia Hayne", obviously a historical lunge at the town's first lady, Julia Bulette, who in real life a celebrated prostitute. She goes to Washington and talks Honest Abe about saving BRADFORD (not Irby) from hanging and blah blah blah. Go figure. They shoulda hung the writer. In "real life" Twain reports that on the last day of the War, the setting sun caused the American flag atop Mt. Davidson to appear to the puzzled residents to be weirdly on fire, kind of like the movie. Three days later they discovered that on that day the South capitulated. One interesting quirk in the film is how sidekicks Alan Hale and Guin Williams flick their pistols forward when they shoot, like they're fishing, or trying to make the bullets go faster. Not a bad idea for the movie. The same kind of goofiness is lathered over sap and corn throughout the movie. Gosh, how could they miss the gold madness, profligate wealth, gun battles in the silver mines, Mark Twain getting run out of town and beat up after a showdown, the crooked railroad, the Opera House fire, Artemis Ward, Bulette's huge funeral, the Chinese tongs, the black saloons, the Auction . . ? All this high on a mountain surrounded by desert? The truth was unreal. Did its fabulous wealth actually spark the great American holocaust? Well, if you count this movie, it wouldn't be the first debacle to come out of Virginia City. It's a disappointment for Virginia City fans because it misses what made the town a "city of illusions," where it is said evil seeps out of the ground . . . Okay, other than that it's a fun movie. Flynn and the gang are always great no matter what history they're destroying. If Flynn would just play his rotten self I'd double my rating.