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Steve McQueen, Robert Preston, Ida Lupino, Ben Johnson, Joe Don Baker ... see more see more... , Barbara Leigh , Don 'Red' Barry , Rita Garrison , Charles Gray , Bill McKinney , Mary Murphy , Matthew Peckinpah , Sundown Spencer , Dub Taylor , Casey Tibbs , Rod Hart , Sandra Deel

Sam Peckinpah eschews his slow-motion bullet ballets for this quiet character study of ex-rodeo cowboy turned drifter Junior Bonner (Steve McQueen), who returns home to Arizona to reconcile with the f... read more read more...amily he hasn't seen in years. Bonner is shocked to see that the solid family he was hoping to come back to is breaking apart. His parents, Ace (Robert Preston) and Elvira (Ida Lupino), have separated, and his brother Curley (Joe Don Baker) has turned into a heartless real estate tycoon, parceling off sections of his parent's land for quick money. With nowhere to turn and nowhere to run, Bonner has to face himself and try to find a way to regain his self-respect. He is given that opportunity at the town's Fourth of July Rodeo, where he is determined to mount and ride and unrideable bull. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

Flixster Users

60% liked it

2,836 ratings

Critics

88% liked it

17 critics

PG, 1 hr. 40 min.

Directed by: Sam Peckinpah

Release Date: August 2, 1972

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DVD Release Date: March 13, 2001

Stats: 119 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (119)

  • mjgildea
    May 23, 2011
    mjgildea
    Junior Bonner works if you look at it as a bunch of good scenes but as a whole movie its not that great. I would call this more of a Steve McQueen movie than a Sam Peckinpah film (as McQueen's presence for the most part carries it.) Robert Preston and Ida Lupino as McQueen's pare... read morents manage to steal every scene they're in (same for Charmagne.) Unfortunately the story never really figures out what it wants to do but the bar fight towards the end was a nice distraction from that fact. It looks like it could be about the death of The Old West for a few minutes but it turned into this goofy, folksy prodigal son kind of thing that turned into a day at the rodeo by default. A lot of little unspoken things are never tied up or explained (the movie wasn't clever, coy or sly enough to give the audience the impression this was done intentionally) and the end just... kind of happened as opposed to having been built up to. I love that Sam Peckinpah did this type of movie, but I just wish it was better.
  • jjnxn
    November 8, 2009
    jjnxn
    How much you enjoy the film overall depends on your interest or affection for the rodeo but there are some really fine performances. McQueen is fine but Robert Preston and Ida Lupino really take acting honors as his parents. The scene between them on the stairs is an example of w... read morehat great actors can do to make characters live on the screen. Something that helps sell the story is that the two of them really look like they could be Steve's parents. A subtle drama of the kind that is rarely made today.

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Critic Reviews

Roger Ebert
October 23, 2004
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The movie simply never comes together and works as a whole. The material is terribly thin. Full Review

Vincent Canby
May 20, 2003
Vincent Canby, New York Times

Junior Bonner, based on an excellent original screenplay by Jeb Rosebrook, is Peckinpah in the benignly comic mood that, I suspect, is much more the natural fashion of this fine director than is the g... Full Review

Don Druker
January 1, 2000
Don Druker, Chicago Reader

A film filled to overflowing with small, subtle beauties. Full Review

Sean Axmaker
July 19, 2009
Sean Axmaker, Turner Classic Movies Online

... a gentle character study and a lyrical portrait of family, respect and integrity in the face of adversity. Full Review

David Nusair
July 9, 2009
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews

...the leisurely pace effectively prevents the viewer from wholeheartedly connecting with the material. Full Review

Cole Smithey
December 9, 2007
Cole Smithey, ColeSmithey.com

Gravy.

August 30, 2006
TV Guide's Movie Guide

A trifle clumsy, but affecting nonetheless. Full Review

Walter Chaw
June 28, 2005
Walter Chaw, Film Freak Central

There's something essential about boys playing men in front of the women they love. Full Review

Jeremy Heilman
January 15, 2005
Jeremy Heilman, MovieMartyr.com

A superior rodeo movie. Full Review

Jeffrey M. Anderson
August 7, 2004
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

One of Peckinpah's loveliest films, simmering with family animosity but also brimming with terrific moments of graceless quiet. Full Review

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