The Return of Frank James

The Return of Frank James (1940)

  • 80% of critics liked it
    (5 reviews)

  • 50% of users liked it
    (405 ratings)

This Technicolor sequel to 1939's Jesse James does without the services of the earlier film's star Tyrone Power, who after all was shot dead by that "dirty little coward" Bob Ford (John Carradine). Repeating his portrayal of western outlaw Frank James, Henry Fonda is promoted to top billing here. As… More

Unrated, 1 hr. 32 min.
Directed By
Fritz Lang
Written By
Sam Hellman
Genres
Western, Drama, Action & Adventure, Classics
In Theaters
Jan 1, 1940 Wide
On DVD
Mar 6, 2007
20th Century Fox Film Corporat

Critic Reviews

  • Fernando F. Croce, CinePassion

    The abstruse stylization of Rancho Notorious is still a decade away, though the frontier is already a severe plain enlivened by intimations of hellfire

  • Steve Crum, Video-Reviewmaster.com

    Fine Fritz Lang telling of Frank James (Fonda) in sequel to Jesse James.

  • Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

    Gets by with its remarkable photography (an early attempt at color for Lang), crisp action sequences and breezy storytelling.

  • Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

    The film is short on action but long on courtroom melodrama, not a good balance for a routine Western.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • jay n


    Average western, sequel to "Jesse James" with none of Lang's more familiar mood touches. Still not bad with Fonda strong in the lead. Gene Tierney is very green, lovely but a bit stiff and missing the sense of concealed hysteria under the placid exterior that the years… More

  • xGary X


    This sequel to the 1939 Jesse James sees his brother Frank hunting down those responsible for his death. And I must say I've never seen such a bloodless warpath. We are are used to the way films can romanticise outlaws, but this one really takes the cake; Henry Fonda's Frank… More

  • Walter M


    [font=Century Gothic]"The Return of Frank James" starts in 1882 with the murder of outlaw Jesse James by the brothers Ford(John Carradine and Charles Tannen). Jesse's brother, Frank(Henry Fonda), is hiding out in the Ozarks with his ward, Clem(Jackie Cooper), but he… More

  • Anthony V


    A Fritz Lang Western sounds mighty strange, but it is good.

Cast

See full cast

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