Rancho Deluxe (1975)

Two drifters, of widely varying backgrounds, rustle cattle and try to avoid being caught in contemporary Montana.

Director:

Frank Perry

Writer:

Thomas McGuane

Stars:

Jeff Bridges, Sam Waterston, Elizabeth Ashley

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jeff Bridges	...	Jack McKee
Sam Waterston	...	Cecil Colson
Elizabeth Ashley	...	Cora Brown
Clifton James	...	John Brown
Slim Pickens	...	Henry Beige
Charlene Dallas	...	Laura Beige
Harry Dean Stanton	...	Curt
Richard Bright	...	Burt
Patti D'Arbanville	...	Betty Fargo
Maggie Wellman	...	Mary Fargo
Joe Spinell	...	Mr. Colson (as Joseph Spinell)
Bert Conway	...	Wilbur Fargo
Anthony Palmer	...	Karl
Richard McMurray	...	Mr. McKee
Danna Hansen	...	Mrs. McKee

Storyline

Jack McKee (Jeff Bridges) and Cecil Colson (Sam Waterston) are bumbling drifters who make a living by rustling cattle in the wilds of Montana. Jack left his wealthy parents because he resented their posh lives. Cecil is of Caucasian and Native American descent seeking his own path in life away from his grumpy cowboy father (Joe Spinell). Both Jack and Cecil hustle and rustle their way in the world by targeting cattle owned by wealthy ranch-owner John Brown (Clifton James). Frustrated that someone is killing his cattle, John hires a pair of ranch hands, Burt and Curt (Richard Bright and Harry Dean Stanton), to find the rustlers. When Brown realizes he cannot trust his two inept ranch hands, he turns to the grizzled former rustler Henry Beige (Slim Pickens) to find the cattle thieves. Jack and Cecil always stay a step ahead of their pursuers, not realizing that their luck must run out sometime.

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Plot Keywords:

yellowstone national park | ranch hand | ranch | drifter | rustler | 

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Taglines:

Oh give me a home, with a low interest loan, A cowgirl and two pickup trucks. A color TV, all the beer should be free, And that, man, is Rancho Deluxe.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance | Western

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 March 1975 (USA)

Also Known As:

Amigos e Aventureiros

Filming Locations:

Yellowstone National Park, Montana, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Elliott Kastner Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (DeLuxe Color)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Contains a scene in which Jeff Bridges and Harry Dean Stanton have a discussion in a bar while playing PONG, the first widely-released arcade video game, first sold by Atari in 1972. Both actors spent copious amounts of their off-time in the bar playing the game, so much so that the game was incorporated into the scene. Bridges would later literally get sucked into the video game world in Disney's TRON, released in 1982.

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Quotes

Curt: [referring to Beige] Poor bastard is so old he creaks like "The Inner Sanctum!"

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Alternate Versions

Television version features two additional minutes of alternate footage and runs 95 minutes.

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Connections

References Desire Under the Elms (1958)

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Soundtracks

Left Me With a Nail to Drive
Written and Performed by Jimmy Buffett

User Reviews

A solid "Top Ten Desert Island Flick"

My favorite "modern" western with a great cast, solid story line and plenty of laughs. Music in the background by Jimmy Buffet is a delight. Not a serious, complicated story but one that is interesting enough to make you stick around and enjoy the performances of Bridges, Waterston, Ashley, Dallas and Pickins. Slim's line after he cuts out the slug that downed a steer out on the cold Montana range, (he identifies the bullet as coming from a 50 caliber Sharps rifle) "This is startin' to git downright romantic!" is a hoot. Sexy Charlene Dallas playing her role as the innocent niece made me want to see more of her. To top it all are the great wide open spaces of Montana as backdrop to the film. The ideal movie to view on a weekend afternoon with lots of popcorn and a cold glass, or hot cup of your favorite beverage.