The Tracker (1988)

After a series of vicious crimes by a renegade group of cowboys, led by "Red Jack" Stilwell, a legendary tracker, Noble Adams is pulled out of retirement to capture Stilwell, dead or alive.... See full summary »

Director:

John Guillermin

Writer:

Kevin Jarre

Stars:

Kris Kristofferson, Scott Wilson, Mark Moses

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kris Kristofferson	...	Noble Adams
Scott Wilson	...	John 'Red Jack' Stillwell
Mark Moses	...	Tom Adams
David Huddleston	...	Lane Crawford
John Quade	...	Lomax
Don Swayze	...	Brewer
Geoffrey Blake	...	Miller
Leon Rippy	...	Chub Dumont
Ernie Lively	...	Bob
Karen Kopins	...	Sarah Bolton
Celia Xavier	...	Inez
Jeff Celentano	...	Lon (as Jeff Weston)
Jennifer Snyder	...	Mary Bolton
Brynn Thayer	...	Lottie Adams
Jose Rey Toledo	...	Redondo

Storyline

After a series of vicious crimes by a renegade group of cowboys, led by "Red Jack" Stilwell, a legendary tracker, Noble Adams is pulled out of retirement to capture Stilwell, dead or alive. Reluctantly, needing more men, he allows his son, Tom to tag along, revealing to Tom a whole brutal side of ruthlessness Noble thought he left behind.

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Plot Keywords:

murder spree | manhunt | tracker | rape | native american | 

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Taglines:

He thought his days of violence had ended... But the battle between good and evil is never over.

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 March 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dead or Alive

Filming Locations:

Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, Colorado, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,800,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Eaves Movie Ranch,HBO Pictures,Incorporated Television Company (ITC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

John Guillerman's last movie.

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Goofs

Several times during the course of the movie, aircraft con trails are clearly visible in the sky. At the time this movie takes place, the Wright brothers had not yet flown their Flyer.

User Reviews

Great Eighties Western

Renegade Mormon psychopath (!) Scott Wilson and fellow prisoners, including John Quade and Don Swayze, bust out of prison and go on a bloody rampage. Famous retired tracker Kris Kristofferson is pressed back into service by lawman David Huddleston to help catch them and ends up bringing his eastern educated son. Upon hearing that Kristofferson is tracking them, Wilson ups the ante by kidnapping two young girls.

This is one grim, eighties style western that never lets up in terms of action and suspense. The teleplay by Kevin Jarre (who also wrote Tombstone) has a lot of psychological depth, with Kristofferson revealing to his son a different, more violent side and in turn teaching the young lawyer how to be a man.

It's good to see character actor David Huddleston in a non-comedic hero role. Scott Wilson is also good as the pitifully disturbed heavy, probably his best role since In Cold Blood. Kristofferson gives a better performance here than in Pat Garrett And Billy The Kid.

Director John Guillerman also scored big with faux spaghetti western El Condor, with Jim Brown and Lee Van Cleef. He does a great job capturing the great natural beauty as well as the dark side of the old west.