Virginia City is a delightfully entertaining film that is equal parts Western and adventure film. It is structured around a simple premise: a group of Confederates need to transport a shipment of gold from Virginia City, Nevada to Richmond in order to help the Southern war effort. However, they are pursued by a Union officer who has recently escaped from a Confederate prison. The film becomes a game of cat-and-mouse as the Union tries to catch up with the Confederates and prevent them from making their delivery. The film shamelessly rips off several scenes and stunts from John Ford's Stagecoach, released a year before. The even recreate the scene where a soldier is knocked off the front of a carriage and dragged under it. But in a way, Virginia City seems to improve on Stagecoach from a technical standpoint. The cameras are more mobile and flexible. The editing is sharper and faster. In the place of John Wayne, Virginia City boasts three major stars: Randolph Scott as the leader of the Confederates, Errol Flynn as the escaped Union officer, and none other than Humphrey Bogart as a the leader of a group of bandits who want the Confederate gold for their own purposes. It's a shame that this film has been lost in the shuffle of time, because it holds up remarkably well by today's standards.
8/10
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