Hearts of the West (1975)

Lewis Tater writes Wild West dime novels and dreams of actually becoming a cowboy. When he goes west to find his dream, he finds himself in possession of the loot box of two crooks who ... See full summary »

Director:

Howard Zieff

Writer:

Rob Thompson

Stars:

Jeff Bridges, Andy Griffith, Donald Pleasence

2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jeff Bridges	...	Lewis Tater
Andy Griffith	...	Howard Pike
Donald Pleasence	...	A.J. Nietz
Blythe Danner	...	Miss Trout
Alan Arkin	...	Kessler
Richard B. Shull	...	Stout Crook
Herb Edelman	...	Polo (as Herbert Edelman)
Alex Rocco	...	Earl
Frank Cady	...	Pa Tater
Anthony James	...	Lean Crook
Burton Gilliam	...	Lester
Matt Clark	...	Jackson
Candice Azzara	...	Waitress (as Candy Azzara)
Thayer David	...	Bank Manager
Wayne Storm	...	Lyle

Storyline

Lewis Tater writes Wild West dime novels and dreams of actually becoming a cowboy. When he goes west to find his dream, he finds himself in possession of the loot box of two crooks who tried to rob him. During his escape, Lewis stumbles on to the set of a Wild West movie, and through mishap and chance, becomes a star of Hollywood Westerns.

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Plot Keywords:

mule | cowboy | b western | hollywood california | 1930s | 

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Taglines:

Jeff Bridges is Lewis Tater, the Iowa farm boy who blazed a trail across the barren wastes of Hollywood and Vine in MGM's comedy surprise "Hearts of the West."

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Genres:

Western | Comedy

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 October 1975 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hollywood Cowboy

Filming Locations:

Vasquez Rocks Natural Area Park - 10700 W. Escondido Canyon Rd., Agua Dulce, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Part of a cycle of movies made during the mid-1970s about Tinseltown, old Hollywood, and its Golden Age, including the silent film era. The pictures include Inserts (1975), Valentino (1977), Nickelodeon (1976), Silent Movie (1976), The Wild Party (1975), The Last Tycoon (1976), Hearts of the West (1975), The Day of the Locust (1975), and The World's Greatest Lover (1977).

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Goofs

The road that the old jalopy travels is clearly a modern two-lane-wide paved blacktop, with sand barely covering the lane markers.

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Quotes

[after Lewis does the 'jumping on the horse' stunt]
Kessler: Those damn cowboys! I always said they were great, didn't I? I always said you can't beat 'em.
Cameraman: You always said you couldn't trust 'em.
Kessler: Well, you misunderstood me.

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Crazy Credits

The film opens with the 1930's MGM logo.

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Connections

Referenced in The Lion Roars Again (1975)

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Soundtracks

We'll Make Hay While the Sun Shines
(uncredited)
Written by Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed

User Reviews

Almost Unseen

The mid-70's saw a misguided false nostalgia for early Hollywood. I'd like to think it was on account of the last few octogenarian (and up) moguls dying off (Samuel Goldwyn died at 94 in '74, Jack L. Warner passed in the fall of '78 at 86, Darryl F. Zanuck, ill with Alzheimer's, dying in '79) and that the younger turks sensed something. Unfortunately what spewed forth was mostly crap: Gable and Lombard, W.C. Fields and Me, the dull interpretations of The Great Gatsby, The Last Tycoon, and the cinematic nadir: Won Ton Ton the Dog that Saved Hollywood... a film so utterly awful that they must've thought Rin Tin Tin would sue. Nickelodeon belongs in there somewhere too. But along the way there were a few minor gems, namely, underrated The Day of the Locust (particularly for Burgess Meredith's performance) and Hearts of the West, which I saw in a theater in Portland it's brief release. I don't think it rated a week's screen time. Inarguably, the plot's thin stuff, but Jeff Bridges' Lewis Tater ranks as his best pre-Starman turn as an actor. He took naiveté to an entirely new plateau. Andy Griffith delivers a nice performance as an amiable, if duplicitous character actor who's descended into a life in poverty row oaters. The then-50-year old Griffith had just recovered from a serious medical condition and hadn't been seen in a feature film since a 1969 flop, Angel in My Pocket. Griffith here is far, far removed from anyone's image of Sheriff Andy Taylor. The supporting cast is superb, especially Alan Arkin who captures the essential cheapness of a Gower Gulch producer/director... he seems to be based on Mascot's Nat Levine. Don't look for the picture to go much of anywhere, just enjoy the ride. I liken the experience very similar to 1982's Cannery Row; you know you've seen better pictures, but you never somehow enjoyed one more and you don't exactly know why.