The Cowboys: Difference between revisions
Monkeyzpop (talk | contribs) →Plot: clean-up |
Monkeyzpop (talk | contribs) moving info re reception of film out of Plot section, deleting trivia insufficient to support its own section |
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After the boys complete the drive to Belle Fourche and sell the cattle, they use some of the proceeds to pay a stonemason to carve a marker with Andersen's name and the legend "Husband and Father," in clear reference to the position that Andersen had earned in their lives. They place the marker in the approximate location of Andersen's grave and head for home. |
After the boys complete the drive to Belle Fourche and sell the cattle, they use some of the proceeds to pay a stonemason to carve a marker with Andersen's name and the legend "Husband and Father," in clear reference to the position that Andersen had earned in their lives. They place the marker in the approximate location of Andersen's grave and head for home. |
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==Reception== |
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The film is known for depicting Wayne's cold-blooded killing by being shot in the back by Dern's character. This resulted in co-star Dern becoming typecast as a villain, which made it difficult for him to get worthwhile subsequent roles. During filming of this scene, Wayne warned Dern, "America will hate you for this." Dern wryly replied, "Yeah, but they'll love me in Berkeley."<ref>Kirkwood, R. Cort. - [http://socialissues.wiseto.com/Articles/164255792/?print "John Wayne: Mr. America"]. - ''The New American''. - American Opinion Publishing. - May 28 2007</ref> |
The film is known for depicting Wayne's cold-blooded killing by being shot in the back by Dern's character. This resulted in co-star Dern becoming typecast as a villain, which made it difficult for him to get worthwhile subsequent roles. During filming of this scene, Wayne warned Dern, "America will hate you for this." Dern wryly replied, "Yeah, but they'll love me in Berkeley."<ref>Kirkwood, R. Cort. - [http://socialissues.wiseto.com/Articles/164255792/?print "John Wayne: Mr. America"]. - ''The New American''. - American Opinion Publishing. - May 28 2007</ref> |
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At the time of the film's release, its most controversial aspect was the implication that boys become men or confirm their manhood through acts of violence and vengeance. Jay Cocks of ''Time Magazine'' and Pauline Kael of ''The New York Times'' were especially critical of these aspects of the film.<ref>http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=19186&category=Notes</ref> |
At the time of the film's release, its most controversial aspect was the implication that boys become men or confirm their manhood through acts of violence and vengeance. Jay Cocks of ''Time Magazine'' and Pauline Kael of ''The New York Times'' were especially critical of these aspects of the film.<ref>http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=19186&category=Notes</ref> |
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==Historical distortions== |
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During the scene when "Long Hair" Asa Watts (Dern) shows up asking for work he says that he worked for "every big outfit in North Montana", including Dillard Fant at the Santa Rosa. Wil Andersen (Wayne) says that he was a pall bearer at Fant's funeral five years before, about 1870. Dillard Rucker Fant, owner of the {{convert|225000|acre|km2|sing=on}} Santa Rosa Ranch in [[Hidalgo County, Texas]], died in 1908.<ref>[http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/FF/ffa3_print.html Dillard Rucker Fant]. - [[Handbook of Texas Online]]. - Texas State Historical Association. - Retrieved 2008-07-24</ref> |
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==Television adaptation== |
==Television adaptation== |
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Revision as of 18:22, 15 August 2010
| The Cowboys | |
|---|---|
 1972 movie poster | |
| Directed by | Mark Rydell |
| Written by | Irving Ravetch Harriet Frank, Jr. based on the novel by William Dale Jennings |
| Produced by | Mark Rydell |
| Starring | John Wayne Roscoe Lee Browne Bruce Dern Colleen Dewhurst Slim Pickens |
| Cinematography | Robert Surtees |
| Edited by | Robert Swink Neil Travis |
| Music by | John Williams |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
Release date | January 13, 1972 |
Running time | 131 min |
| Country | U.S. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $4,800,000 (estimated) |
The Cowboys is a 1972 western motion picture starring John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, Slim Pickens, A Martinez and Bruce Dern. Robert Carradine makes his film debut with fellow child actor Stephen R. Hudis. It was filmed at various locations in New Mexico, Colorado and at Warner Brothers Studio in Burbank, California. Based on the novel by William Dale Jennings, the screenplay was written by Irving Ravetch, Harriet Frank, Jr., and Jennings, and directed by Mark Rydell.
Plot
When his ranch hands abandon him to join a gold rush, rancher Wil Andersen (John Wayne) is forced to find replacement drovers for his yearly 400-mile (640 km) long cattle drive. He rides into deserted Bozeman, Montana. There, Anse Peterson (Slim Pickens) suggests using local schoolboys. Andersen visits the school but departs unconvinced. The next morning, a group of the boys show up at Andersen's ranch to volunteer for the drive. Andersen tests the boys' ability to stay on a bucking horse. As the boys successfully take turns, Cimarron (A Martinez), another young man slightly older than the others, rides up. After successfully subduing and riding the test horse, Cimarron gets into a fight with the oldest of the boys. Andersen, though impressed by Cimarron's abilities, has misgivings because of his angry nature and sends him away. Andersen reluctantly decides to hire the boys.
While Andersen and the boys prepare for the cattle drive, a group of mysterious men led by "Long Hair" Asa Watts (Bruce Dern) show up asking for work. Andersen catches Watts in a lie about his past, and refuses to hire them. Jebediah "Jeb" Nightlinger (Roscoe Lee Browne), a Black camp cook arrives with a chuck wagon, making Anderson's trail crew complete.
Under Andersen's continued tutelage, the boys learn to rope, brand and herd the cattle and horses. Much to Andersen's concern, Cimarron follows the drive from afar. When he redeems himself by rescuing Slim from drowning, Andersen allows him to join the crew. Slowly, the boys learn about work and responsibility while Andersen, set in his ways, begins to soften his nature to accommodate his youthful cowboys. But nobody is aware that a gang of cattle rustlers led by Watts are shadowing them on the trail. One of the boys dies along the way in an accident.
Eventually the rustlers surprise Andersen and the cowboys in night camp, mortally wounding Andersen and stealing the herd, the horses, and in Watts' words "everything but the fire." The following day, Nightlinger catches up to the group to find the boys tending to the dying Andersen. Following Andersen's burial and on a prearranged signal, the boys overpower and bind Nightlinger, seizing the weapons stored in his chuck wagon and vowing to re-take the herd and finish the trail drive. When the group catches up to the herd and the rustlers, Nightlinger offers to help the boys make a plan to overcome the outlaws. Using ruses, trickery, and ambush, the boys kill the rustlers to a man, including Watts.
After the boys complete the drive to Belle Fourche and sell the cattle, they use some of the proceeds to pay a stonemason to carve a marker with Andersen's name and the legend "Husband and Father," in clear reference to the position that Andersen had earned in their lives. They place the marker in the approximate location of Andersen's grave and head for home.
Reception
The film is known for depicting Wayne's cold-blooded killing by being shot in the back by Dern's character. This resulted in co-star Dern becoming typecast as a villain, which made it difficult for him to get worthwhile subsequent roles. During filming of this scene, Wayne warned Dern, "America will hate you for this." Dern wryly replied, "Yeah, but they'll love me in Berkeley."[1]
At the time of the film's release, its most controversial aspect was the implication that boys become men or confirm their manhood through acts of violence and vengeance. Jay Cocks of Time Magazine and Pauline Kael of The New York Times were especially critical of these aspects of the film.[2]
Television adaptation
In 1974, Warner Bros. developed a television series for ABC starring Jim Davis, Diana Douglas, and Moses Gunn. David Dortort (best known for Bonanza and The High Chaparral), produced the series. Only A Martinez, Robert Carradine, Sean Kelly and Clay O'Brien were in both the movie and the television series. At the last moment, ABC decided to reduce the show's format from one to one-half hour, a change which made it difficult to tell stories effectively considering the show's large cast.
Cast
- John Wayne as Wil Andersen
- Roscoe Lee Browne as Jebediah Nightlinger
- Bruce Dern as Long Hair
- Colleen Dewhurst as Kate
- Alfred Barker Jr. as Fats - Cowboy
- Nicolas Beauvy as Dan - Cowboy
- Steve Benedict as Steve - Cowboy
- Robert Carradine as Slim Honeycutt - Cowboy
- Norman Howell as Weedy - Cowboy (as Norman Howell Jr.)
- Stephen R. Hudis as Charlie Schwartz - Cowboy (as Stephen Hudis)
- Sean Kelly as Stuttering Bob - Cowboy
- A Martinez as Cimarron - Cowboy
- Clay O'Brien as Hardy Fimps - Cowboy
- Sam O'Brien as Jimmy Phillips - Cowboy
- Mike Pyeatt as Homer Weems - Cowboy
- Slim Pickens as Anse
- Lonny Chapman as Homer's Father
- Sarah Cunningham as Annie Andersen
- Allyn Ann McLerie as Ellen Price
See also
References
- ^ Kirkwood, R. Cort. - "John Wayne: Mr. America". - The New American. - American Opinion Publishing. - May 28 2007
- ^ http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=19186&category=Notes
External links
- The Cowboys at IMDb
- The Cowboys at AllMovie
- The Cowboys at the TCM Movie Database
