The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez (29 Jun. 1982)

The retelling of an incident in Gonzales, Texas in 1901 revolving around a stolen horse, mistaken identity and a killing. An unusual story of the all too usual exploitation of the powerless... See full summary »

Director:

Robert M. Young

Writers:

Américo Paredes (book), Victor Villaseñor,

Stars:

Edward James Olmos, James Gammon, Tom Bower

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Edward James Olmos	...	Gregorio Cortez
James Gammon	...	Sheriff Frank Fly
Tom Bower	...	Boone Choate
Bruce McGill	...	Reporter Blakely
Brion James	...	Captain Rogers
Alan Vint	...	Mike Trimmell
Timothy Scott	...	Sheriff Morris
Pepe Serna	...	Romaldo Cortez
Michael McGuire	...	Sheriff Glover
William Sanderson	...	Cowboy
Barry Corbin	...	Abernathy
Jack Kehoe	...	Prosecutor Pferson
Rosanna DeSoto	...	Carlota Muñoz
Buddy Vigil	...	Skin
Zach Porter	...	Fly's Posse

Storyline

The retelling of an incident in Gonzales, Texas in 1901 revolving around a stolen horse, mistaken identity and a killing. An unusual story of the all too usual exploitation of the powerless in Texas History.

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Plot Keywords:

texas | courtroom | historical event | what happened to epilogue | multiple perspectives | 

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Taglines:

The true story of one man who made a difference.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

MGM

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

29 June 1982 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Cerrillos, New Mexico, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,305,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$909,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Embassy Pictures Corporation, National Endowment for the Humanities, The, Olmos Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The author of the book, Américo Paredes, hated this movie. According to Paredes, Gregorio Cortez did not shed one tear while he was in jail and yet, Cortez cries in the movie. Anytime someone would ask him his thoughts about the movie, he would be so angry about it that he would refuse to discuss the movie and instead, would have his wife tell them why he disliked it.

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Goofs

In some shots during the courtroom scenes, one of the jurors can be seen to be wearing a modern pair of dark-rimmed spectacles.

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Quotes

Captain Rogers: Well, out here if it crawls, it'll bite ya, if it flies, it'll sting ya and if it grows it'll stick ya!

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Connections

Referenced in Spy Kids (2001)

User Reviews

A film deserving re-discovery-- a gritty allegory of bilingualism

Robert Young is an American director whose fitful opportunities to direct nearly always has turned up singular results. This treatment of the legend of a master horseman who evaded capture during weeks of vigilante pursuit shows Young's usual care with milieu, historical detail, and shadings of character. Olmos is a splendid icon in the lead, but the revelation is James Gammon, who never had a better film role, and the supporting cast is studded with fine character actors (including two who come over w/Olmos from the BLADE RUNNER set to appear here). A climactic scene, involving a female translator working between law and prisoner in a tiny cell, has stayed in my mind for 18 years for its depiction of a heartbreaking communion between adversaries. But Young knows what Westerns do best-- trains and horses, the two most cinematic subjects in the world-- and they're both here in aces.