Baker's Hawk (1976)

User Rating:

5.3/10   

Director:

Lyman Dayton

Writers:

Jack M. Bickham (novel)
Dan Greer (screenplay)

Release Date:

December 1976 (USA)

Genre:

Western

Tagline:

He Dreamed Adventure...And Lived the Most Fantastic One of All!

Plot Keywords:

Based On Novel | Independent Film

Cast

Clint Walker	...	Dan Baker
Burl Ives	...	Mr. McGraw
Diane Baker	...	Jenny Baker
Lee Montgomery	...	Billy Baker (as Lee H. Montgomery)
Alan Young	...	Mr. Carson
Taylor Lacher	...	Sweeney
Bruce M. Fischer	...	Blacksmith
Cam Clarke	...	Morrie
Phil Hoover	...	Sled
Danny Bonaduce	...	Robertson
Brian Williams	...	Jeremy
Burt Mustin	...	General
Martin Eric	...	Wattle
Dick Haynes	...	2nd Man (as Richard {Dick} Haynes)
Harold Lee Thompson	...	Layden

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:G

Filming Locations:

South Fork, Provo Canyon, Utah, USA

Company:

Baker's Hawk Ltd.

Quotes:

Paul Carson: There's a bad element that's been drifting into town ever since the mines opened. They ain't like us. They ain't decent. They're just tramps, Dan. And we owe it to the community to do something about it.
Dan Baker: Go to the Sheriff and volunteer as deputies without pay.
Paul Carson: That ain't the same and you know it... you know. There's just some things the regular law can't handle. If every able-bodied man was an enforcer of the law, why this rowdy element - they'd leave town.

Worth a look only for Burl Ives.

This poorly made production features Clint Walker as Dan Baker, a homesteader in 1876 Utah who refuses to join a local vigilante organization, led by the town dry goods grocer (Alan Young), and the resultant effects his independent actions have upon his son Billy (Lee H. Montgomery). Ancillary plots involve Billy's nurturing of a wounded fledgling hawk, abandoned from the nest, and the boy's friendship with Mr. McGraw (Burl Ives), a recluse whose vocation is the preparation of damaged wildlife for their return to freedom. It is not possible to include a kind word about the direction, screenplay and editing, as all are at levels which might, at best, approach that of student-made cinema. The acting is wooden, due largely to the rambling script and weak direction, with Montgomery embarrassingly inept, and only Ives rises above his shrunken material, giving some meaning to his scenes. Although there is precious little to like about this film, the scenery is remarkably beautiful, as the production was located within two of Utah's National Forest regions.