Director Sam Peckinpah (“Convoy” 1978) created a boring western movie in 1962 called “Ride the High Country.” The meandering screenplay by N. B. Stone Jr., William Roberts, and Peckinpah tells the story of a retired lawman, played by Joel McCrea in one of his last roles, hired to guard a shipment of gold. He gets his old friend to help, portrayed by Randolph Scott in his final big screen appearance. What a terrible way for McCrea and Scott to close out their show business careers that both began around 1928.
On the other hand, co-star Mariette Hartley made her motion picture debut here. Others include Warren Oates, Ron Starr, Edgar Buchanan, James Drury, L. Q. Jones, John Anderson, John Davis Chandler, Jenie Jackson, and Percy Helton. Cinematographer Lucien Ballard filmed some fantastic scenery in Metrocolor in the Inyo National Forest, Mammoth Lakes, Malibu Creek State Park, and Griffith Park in Los Angeles. Despite this one positive factor, “Ride the High Country” rode low with movie goers and lost money at the box office for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Ride the High Country (1962)
cinema
My Review
Director Sam Peckinpah (“Convoy” 1978) created a boring western movie in 1962 called “Ride the High Country.” The meandering screenplay by N. B. Stone Jr., William Roberts, and Peckinpah tells the story of a retired lawman, played by Joel McCrea in one of his last roles, hired to guard a shipment of gold. He gets his old friend to help, portrayed by Randolph Scott in his final big screen appearance. What a terrible way for McCrea and Scott to close out their show business careers that both began around 1928.
On the other hand, co-star Mariette Hartley made her motion picture debut here. Others include Warren Oates, Ron Starr, Edgar Buchanan, James Drury, L. Q. Jones, John Anderson, John Davis Chandler, Jenie Jackson, and Percy Helton. Cinematographer Lucien Ballard filmed some fantastic scenery in Metrocolor in the Inyo National Forest, Mammoth Lakes, Malibu Creek State Park, and Griffith Park in Los Angeles. Despite this one positive factor, “Ride the High Country” rode low with movie goers and lost money at the box office for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.