The Cowboys (1972)

When his cattle drivers abandon him for the gold fields, rancher Wil Andersen is forced to take on a collection of young boys as his drivers in order to get his herd to market in time to ... See full summary »

Director:

Mark Rydell

Writers:

William Dale Jennings (novel), Irving Ravetch (screenplay),

Stars:

John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, Bruce Dern

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Wayne	...	Wil Andersen
Roscoe Lee Browne	...	Jebediah Nightlinger
Bruce Dern	...	Long Hair
Colleen Dewhurst	...	Kate
Alfred Barker Jr.	...	Fats - Cowboy
Nicolas Beauvy	...	Dan - Cowboy
Steve Benedict	...	Steve - Cowboy
Robert Carradine	...	Slim Honeycutt - Cowboy
Norman Howell	...	Weedy - Cowboy (as Norman Howell Jr.)
Stephen R. Hudis	...	Charlie Schwartz - Cowboy (as Stephen Hudis)
Sean Kelly	...	Stuttering Bob - Cowboy
A Martinez	...	Cimarron - Cowboy
Clay O'Brien	...	Hardy Fimps - Cowboy
Sam O'Brien	...	Jimmy Phillips - Cowboy
Mike Pyeatt	...	Homer Weems - Cowboy

Storyline

When his cattle drivers abandon him for the gold fields, rancher Wil Andersen is forced to take on a collection of young boys as his drivers in order to get his herd to market in time to avoid financial disaster. The boys learn to do a man's job under Andersen's tutelage, however, neither Andersen nor the boys know that a gang of cattle thieves is stalking them.

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Plot Keywords:

cattle | cowboy | rancher | tragic hero | ends with funeral | 

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Taglines:

All they wanted was their chance to be men...and he gave it to them.

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Western

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

13 January 1972 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cowboys

Filming Locations:

Durango, Colorado, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$6,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$7,500,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Sanford Productions (III)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

131 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (35 mm prints) 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) 4-Track Stereo (some 35 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Film debut of Robert Carradine.

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Goofs

In the beginning of the movie, the children in school are singing "The Star Spangled Banner". This is unlikely as that song was not adopted as the National Anthem until March 3rd 1931.

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Quotes

Wil Andersen: Slap some bacon on a biscuit and let's go! We're burnin' daylight!

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Connections

Spoofed in Running Scared (2006)

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Soundtracks

Star Spangled Banner
(uncredited)
Written by John Stafford Smith
Performed by School Children

User Reviews

Brilliant

This is that is by far one of the finest Westerns ever made. The script is superb, with lines like Wayne's toward Bruce Dern, "I've broke my back once and my hip twice and on my worst day I could beat the hell out of you," classic Wayne. His performance is one of the most honest of his career. As his relationship with the boys grows it is both tender and tough. You get everything with this film. From the boys proving they belong on the drive to Rosco Lee Brown's magnificent counterpoint to Wayne. The cinematography is great and the music score outstanding. It embraces every aspect of the Western. Each time I watch it I find another reason to move it up the ladder in my list of favorites. It is truly the last of the great Westerns before the advent of such movies as "The Outlaw Josey Wales" and others forever changed the way Westerns were written and produced. It's an old school movie, but school was never any better than this.