Bad Men of the Border (1945): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1945, Bad Men of the Border is a western film directed by Wallace Fox, running about 55 minutes. “Bordertown Thrills!” — that tagline sets the tone.

What it’s about. Set on the Mexican border in 1850, Bad Men of the Border was the first of seven Universal Westerns starring handsome Kirby Grant, a former singer from Montana who had earlier acted under the name Robert Stanton. The series, Universal's last attempt at competing with Republic Pictures' many streamlined B-Westerns, also featured the bucolic Fuzzy Knight as Grant's sidekick. Grant and Knight are undercover U.S. marshals tracking down a gang of counterfeiters. To their surprise, they are soon assisted by a beautiful Mexican dancehall performer, Dolores Mendoza (Armida), who proves to be an undercover agent as well, in her case for the Mexican rurales headed by Captain Garcia (Francis McDonald).

Who’s in it. Bad Men of the Border stars Kirby Grant as Ted Cameron, Fuzzy Knight as Mortimer P. Rockabye Jones, Armida as Dolores Mendoza and John Eldredge as Bart Breslow, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 5.0/10, Bad Men of the Border has proved divisive with audiences.

Where to watch. Streaming options change often. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Bad Men of the Border page.

If you liked it. Fans of Bad Men of the Border tend to enjoy The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Django Unchained, Once Upon a Time in the West and For a Few Dollars More.