Tom Horn (1980)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

William Wiard

Writers:

Thomas McGuane (screenplay) and
Bud Shrake (screenplay)

Release Date:

28 March 1980 (USA)

Genre:

Romance | Western

Tagline:

See him before he sees you

Plot:

A renowned former army scout is hired by ranchers to hunt down rustlers but finds himself on trial for...

Plot Keywords:

Rancher | Trial | Rustler | Vigilantism | Horse Killed

Cast

Steve McQueen	...	Tom Horn
Linda Evans	...	Glendolene Kimmel
Richard Farnsworth	...	John C. Coble
Billy Green Bush	...	U.S. Marshal Joe Belle
Slim Pickens	...	Sheriff Sam Creedmore
Peter Canon	...	Assistant Prosecutor
Elisha Cook Jr.	...	Stablehand (as Elisha Cook)
Roy Jenson	...	Lee Mendenhour
James Kline	...	Arlo Chance
Geoffrey Lewis	...	Walter Stoll
Harry Northup	...	Thomas Burke
Steve Oliver	...	'Gentleman' Jim Corbett
Bill Thurman	...	Ora Haley
Bert Williams	...	Judge
Bobby Bass	...	Corbett's Bodyguard

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | Spain:13 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | UK:15 (video rating) (cut) | UK:AA (original rating) (cut) | Singapore:PG | Iceland:12 | West Germany:12 (f) | Germany:12 (DVD rating) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Coronado National Forest, Arizona, USA

Company:

First Artists

Trivia:

The rifle Horn uses to such deadly effect in the film is an original Winchester Model 1876 in .45-60 caliber, fitted with a custom tang sight. Manufactured from 1877-1894, the Model '76 was an obsolete arm by the turn of the century, when the events of the story take place. All the available historical sources state that Horn actually used a .30-30 Winchester Model 1894 for his controversial activities as a "stock detective" in Wyoming. Horn gave this rifle to rancher C.B. Irwin not long before Horn's execution on November 20, 1903. It resides today in the collection of the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City.

Quotes:

Tom Horn: [referring to the witnesses at his hanging] Sam, I never did see such a pasty-faced bunch of marshals.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Steve McQueen: The Essence of Cool (2005) (TV)

Unusual western

Many good comments are already posted. I want to point out a few additional facts about the making of the movie that might be interesting to some. I remember reading a feature article about the making of Tom Horn in American Cinematographer or American Film or one of the other trade magazines. One technique that is very different for a major Hollywood film is that the filmmakers decided to use very little makeup on the actors in order to make the film a more realistic portrayal of life at that time. The fact that Linda Evans agreed to be photographed without makeup is a testament both to her natural beauty and her strong commitment to this film. Watch closely and you will spot many scenes where the lighting and makeup are unflattering to the actors, but the effect adds to the feel of this under-appreciated film. The costumes are also accurate for the period -- no belts (remember suspenders?), lots of wool and plenty of earth tones. In order to avoid the unpredictable weather and short summer in the location on the northern plains where the film is set, the movie was filmed in (if memory serves) Arizona. And guess what? Right in the middle of production, it snowed big-time! A quick decision had to be made whether to delay the filming or to go ahead, knowing that the snow would not last long in that climate (making continuity a problem). They decided to go for it and the shooting schedule was changed so that all outdoor snow scenes were shot over the course of a couple of days. This was a mammoth task for the crew and cast to pull off, but they managed to shoot all the outdoor scenes before the snow melted, and only had to use fake snow in a couple of street scenes. Anyway, Tom Horn was one of the first westerns to try and give a more accurate historical portrayal of the old west and that alone sets it apart from most Hollywood westerns.