Ride the High Country (1962)

Director:

Sam Peckinpah

Writer:

N.B. Stone Jr. (written by)

Release Date:

28 July 1962 (Japan)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Romance | Western

Plot:

An ex-lawman is hired to transport gold from a mining community through dangerous territory. But what he doesn't realize is that his partner and old friend is plotting to double-cross him.

Plot Keywords:

Gold | Partner | Gold Shipment | Bank | Friend

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win

Cast

Randolph Scott	...	Gil Westrum
Joel McCrea	...	Steve Judd
Mariette Hartley	...	Elsa Knudsen
Ron Starr	...	Heck Longtree
Edgar Buchanan	...	Judge Tolliver
R.G. Armstrong	...	Joshua Knudsen
Jenie Jackson	...	Kate
James Drury	...	Billy Hammond
L.Q. Jones	...	Sylvus Hammond
John Anderson	...	Elder Hammond
John Davis Chandler	...	Jimmy Hammond
Warren Oates	...	Henry Hammond

Also Known As:

Guns in the Afternoon (UK)

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

UK:PG | West Germany:16 | Australia:PG | UK:A (1962) (cut) | Canada:PG (video rating) | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:T | Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (certificate #20105)

Filming Locations:

Bronson Canyon, Griffith Park - 4730 Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

This film was selected to the National Film Registry, Library of Congress, in 1992.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: The "snow" shown on the ground in a number of scenes in the mining camp is obviosuly foam. This is clear from, for example, the scene when Billy Hammond (James Drury) throws his brother Jimmy (John Davis Chandler) out of the "honeymoon" tent onto his back. The "snow" splatters like foam, not snow. In the next scene, Jimmy has clumps of white material clinging to the back and arm of his shirt, which foam would have done but snow would not.

Quotes:

Gil Westrum: Don't worry about? about anything. I'll take care of it, just like you would have.
Steve Judd: Hell, I know that. I always did... You just forgot it for a while, that's all.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1963)

Peckinpah's First Triumph!

For some reason, when "Ride the High Country" was released in 1962, MGM didn't seem to know what to do with it. It received scant distribution and was generally relegated to the bottom half of double bills or the drive-in circuit. But in spite of that the fans came to discover the genius of director Sam Peckinpah in what became his first film of note.

It doesn't have the graphic violence of his later films, but it does have Peckinpah's emerging talent for character driven stories and the breathtaking color photography of the legendary Lucien Ballard. It also has two veteran stars in the leads and several of what would become the "Sam Peckinpah Stock Company" in the supporting roles.

Randolph Scott and Joel McCrea had similar careers. Both started out as leading men in the 1930s and had moved on to medium budget westerns in the late 40s. Both had essentially retired in 1960 but were lured back with an opportunity to work together for the first time. In this film they basically play older versions of the characters they had played through the 40s and 50s.

Former lawman Steve Judd (McCrea) rides into town amid a celebration which he mistakenly thinks is for him. It turns out that the townsfolk are watching a camel race against horses and he is told to "Get out of the way old man". Judd has come to take a job with the local bank to transport gold from the mine in the high country to the bank.

Judd happens upon an old ex-lawman acquaintance Gil Westrum (Scott) running a side show sharpshooting show. Folling his meeting with the bankers, (Percy Helton and Byron Foulger in a delightful bit), he convinces Westrum and his young partner Heck Longtree (Ron Starr) to hire on and accompany him. Westrum and Longtree plan to take the gold with or without Judd's cooperation for themselves.

Along the way they stop overnight at the farm of a bible quoting farmer named Joshua Knudsen (R.G. Armstrong) who just happens to have a comely young daughter Elsa (Mariette Hartley). Elsa and Heck are attracted to each other but Elsa tells him that she is engaged to a miner in the camp the party is headed for. When her father beats her for consorting with Heck, Elsa follows the party and joins up with them for the trip to the mining camp.

At the camp Heck takes Elsa to the Hammond Brothers claim where she is united with her fiancé Billy Hammond (James Drury). Billy also has four drooling brothers: Elder (John Anderson), Henry (Warren Oates), Sylvus (L.Q. Jones) and Jimmy (John Davis Chandler). In a hilarious sequence, the brothers grab Henry and throw him into a water trough because he refuses to bathe.

In spite of her nervousness, Elsa agrees to proceed with the marriage, so she and the Hammonds ride into the camp to be married. It turns out the marriage is to be held in a brothel run by Kate (Jenie Jackson) and performed by a drunken sot of a judge, Judge Tolliver (Edgar Buchannan).

After the ceremony Billy's brothers try to sample their brother's new bride's charms, but she is rescued by Judd and taken away to be returned to her father. The Hammonds pursue them and ambush the party on the trail. After a fight where two of the brothers die, the rest flee. Along the way Westrum tries to overpower Judd and take the gold but is foiled. He later manages to escape and return to the scene of the conflict and get himself the horse and gun of one of the slain Hammonds.

Later Judd, Heck and Elsa arrive at the farm and are met by the three surviving Hammond Brothers and...............

For Scott, this was his final film. McCrea essentially retired too but did appear in a few independent film involving his son Jody. For Peckinpah, he was just getting started.

After a slow start, this film has grown to become a classic western, one that appears on many top 10 all time lists.