The Electric Horseman (1979)

A rodeo star past his prime steals his company's horse and rides into the desert, with a feisty reporter accompanying him.

Director:

Sydney Pollack

Writers:

Robert Garland (screenplay), Paul Gaer (screen story)

Stars:

Robert Redford, Jane Fonda, Valerie Perrine

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Redford	...	Sonny
Jane Fonda	...	Hallie
Valerie Perrine	...	Charlotta
Willie Nelson	...	Wendell
John Saxon	...	Hunt Sears
Nicolas Coster	...	Fitzgerald
Allan Arbus	...	Danny
Wilford Brimley	...	Farmer
Will Hare	...	Gus
Basil Hoffman	...	Toland
Timothy Scott	...	Leroy
James Sikking	...	Dietrich (as James B. Sikking)
James Kline	...	Tommy
Frank Speiser	...	Bernie
Quinn K. Redeker	...	Bud Broderick (as Quinn Redeker)

Storyline

Sonny Steele used to be a rodeo star, but his next appearance is to be on a Las Vegas stage, wearing a suit covered in lights, advertising a breakfast cereal. When he finds out they are going drug the horse in case its too frisky, he rides off into the desert...

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Plot Keywords:

las vegas nevada | horse | cowboy | media | journalist | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance | Western

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 December 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Electric

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$12,500,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$61,801,971

Company Credits

Production Co:

Wildwood Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sydney Pollack: Seen making a pass at Jane Fonda during a Las Vegas convention. Also, seen dealing cards in the first casino scene a Caesar's Palace. He is wearing a white shirt.

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Goofs

After Hallie Martin tapes a statement by Sonny Steele in the great outdoors, she drives back to town, sees that it's crawling with cops and returns to warn Steele that he can't go back to town because it's crawling with cops. So what do they do? Ditch her car, get in the camper and drive right into town.

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Quotes

Man: Hey! Hey, Hallie, Hallie Martin! We met in New York, remember?
Hallie Martin: Did we like each other?

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Alternate Versions

The film's original soundtrack has been changed in different ways for its two DVD releases:

• The Image DVD replaces Dave Grusin's beautiful "Freedom Epilogue" score music (where the horse is set free) with a reprise of "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys" by Willie Nelson, originally heard during the opening credits. This actually works well, though one wonders why a piece of original score had to be changed.
• The newer Universal release goes a step further, removing "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys" from the opening credits (and in fact from the film completely) as well as "Freedom Epilogue" and replaces them both with a very inappropriate generic harmonica-driven instrumental which is meant to sound like a Willie Nelson song.

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Connections

Featured in The Directors: The Films of Sydney Pollack (2000)

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Soundtracks

Midnight Rider
(uncredited)
Written by Gregg Allman and Robert Payne
Performed by Willie Nelson

User Reviews

Great Movie!

I was only 11 years old at the time when this movie hit the theatres. A friend of mine and his dad invited me to go see The Electric Horseman. I knew of Robert Redford, but this was the first movie of his that I had seen in a theatre. I really enjoyed it, and I thought how cool Redford was as a modern day cowboy. I have never been a fan of Jane Fonda, but she is a very actress and she did a fine job in this movie. I thought the addition of Willie Nelson and his music really made this a great film. I read once that Redford and Nelson sat next to each other on an airplane flight and Redford asked Willie if he wanted to be in the movie. I also really love the soundtrack and the scenery is incredible. I wish that this movie would come out on Blu ray soon so I can buy it. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend that you rent it.