Nevada (1927)

Synopsis
Young Paramount stars Gary Cooper and Thelma Todd, the latter a recent graduate of the studio's acting school, starred in this otherwise average Zane Grey Western directed by studio hack John Waters. It was Waters who, having spotted young Cooper in a screen test, recommended the lanky newcomer for Arizona Bound (1927). That film was successful enough for Paramount to conjure up Nevada, in which a once notorious gunfighter takes a respectable job on a ranch. Cooper's "Nevada" is charged with protecting the ranch owner's pretty daughter (Todd), arousing the enmity of ranch foreman William Powell, who is in love with the girl. The villainous foreman leaks a rumor of his rival's dark past to the sheriff, and the former outlaw is soon on the run again. But along the way, he catches a gang of cattle rustlers led by -- surprise -- William Powell. Thus rehabilitated, Nevada is free to marry lovely Thelma. Despite the strong cast -- in retrospect, at least -- Nevada was considered a rather weak entry in Paramount's long Zane Grey series and actually did little to further Cooper's career prospects. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide