Tom Dale and his friend, Olaf Hanson, witness a stagecoach robbery by a lone gunman, who escapes, but leaves the loot behind. When Sheriff Mac and his posse arrive, Tom and Olaf are arrested for the holdup. Tom pretends to strangle Olaf to divert Sheriff Mac and the two men escape. They encounter the original robber, Starett, who joins them without revealing his identity. The trio arrives at the Dale ranch, which Tom has inherited from his uncle. Shortly, Tom sees a cowboy drive a herd of horses through his stockyard, and is about to thrash the culprit when he realizes the cowboy is a woman, Lou Preston, who claims that she owns all the land. Later, when Lou is thrown from her horse, Tom assumes she is injured and leans over her. Seeing this, Joe, Lou’s suitor, assumes that the two are lovers. Joe learns that Tom is mortgaging his land to borrow money from the bank to buy cattle, and has his henchman sell Tom cattle stolen from the Preston herd. The next day, Joe tells Lou he is after rustlers, hinting that he suspects Tom. Lou gives Tom twenty-four hours to leave before she calls the sheriff. That night, Tom breaks into Joe’s office and obtains evidence to show the sheriff that Joe has been cheating Lou of her cattle. Sheriff Mac arrives in Prestonville with a wanted poster for Tom and Olaf, and a vengeful Joe gathers a posse. Lou overhears their plan and after warning Tom, she gets the sheriff. During a gunfight between the posse and Tom and his allies, Starett is shot, but not before he kills Joe. The sheriff rides up, carrying a passenger from the stage that was robbed, who vindicates Tom. The dying Starett confesses, and Lou apologizes and hugs Tom. More on Wikipedia
Watch Branded (1931)
