This thriller likely isn’t the first production you think ofwhen you hear the name John Wayne.
It’s got nothing onTrue GritorThe Searchers, which look much more impressive by comparison.
ButThe Hurricane Expresswas foundational in the Duke’s Hollywood career, and would predate his most important theatrical efforts.
Custom Image by Federico Napoli
What Is ‘The Hurricane Express’ About?
If you go intoThe Hurricane Expressexpecting a traditional Western, then you will be quickly disappointed.
Despite centering around trains and robbery, this John Wayne film serial is set entirely in contemporary times.
The Hurricane Express is a classic action-packed film following Larry Baker, a young pilot seeking to clear his father’s name after he is falsely accused of wrecking the “Hurricane Express” train. Larry uncovers a sinister plot involving a masked saboteur and battles various adversaries to reveal the true culprit and save his father.
Well, they were contemporary when it was first released in 1932.
Unlike most Duke pictures,The Hurricane Expressisn’t just a single film but rather a filmserial.
The Western king needed some cash.
Maybe that’swhy they call them B moviesin the first place.
They would go on to both appear again inThe Life of Jimmy Dolanthe following year.
It’s not always that serials cut into easily digestible feature films work better.
Some stories are more suited to the serialized format, like modern television.
After all, there’s no riding off into the sunset this time around…
The Hurricane Express(the 80-minute version) is available for streaming on Prime Video.
