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Joel McCrea, Randolph Scott, Mariette Hartley, Ron Starr, James Drury ... see more see more... , Edgar Buchanan , Jenie Jackson , R.G. Armstrong , L.Q. Jones , John Anderson , Warren Oates , John Davis Chandler , Byron Foulger , Percy Helton , Carmen Phillips , Joel Mc Crea

This Sam Peckinpah-directed feature outing was intended as the cinematic swan song for both Randolph Scott and Joel McCrea; while McCrea would unexpectedly emerge from retirement, this 1961 western se... read more read more...rves as an excellent valedictory for both men. The time is the early 1900s, when the Old West was slowly and stubbornly giving way to the new. McCrea plays Steve Judd, an ex-lawman living on the fringes of poverty but maintaining his dignity and honesty. Hired to escort a gold shipment from the wide-open mining town of Coarse Gold, he engages his old pal Gil Westrum (Scott) to help him. But Gil hasn't Steve's integrity, and he and his young saddle pal Heck Longtree (Ronald Starr) hope to talk Steve into helping them steal the gold. En route to Coarse Gold, the three riders spend the night at the farm of a religious fanatic (R.G. Armstrong), whose daughter Elsa (Mariette Hartley in her film debut), chafing at her father's loud piety, is planning to elope with her boyfriend Billy (James Drury). The next day, Elsa insists on joining up with the group so she can marry Billy at Coarse Gold, leading to numerous complications and, of course, a final shoot-out that allows Steve and Gil to reconcile their differences and pave the way for the film's elegiac finale. Released at the tail end of the western genre, and virtually thrown away by MGM, Ride the High Country feels like an elegy for the western itself -- and Peckinpah himself would go on to revise western conventions with such later efforts as The Wild Bunch (1969) and Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (1973). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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3,795 ratings

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93% liked it

14 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 34 min.

Directed by: Sam Peckinpah

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DVD Release Date: January 10, 2006

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Flixster Reviews (201)

  • brooklynspo
    June 26, 2010
    brooklynspo
    Peckinpah's debut is one kickass western. Highlights include a stunning death scene and a truly moving "The End" final shot. Features some beautiful crane cinematography and some neat editing. Slightly marred by an occasionally intrusive score. Great memorable performances all ar... read moreound.
  • ythelastman89
    July 7, 2010
    ythelastman89
    I think this is actually a pretty cool movie and I enjoyed it as much as I possibly could. However, I'm not a big fan of Joel McCrea or Randolph Scott. Therefore, the nostalgia factor really didn't hit home to me. Even with that handicap, Sam Peckinpah's debut is pretty incredibl... read moree. It's wonderfully shot, moody and fun. I think my favorite shot of the entire movie is the scene where one of the bad guys is shot in the gut and the camera just stays on him while he slowly dies.
  • mjgildea
    March 24, 2010
    mjgildea
    Ride the High Country is a great western that had so much potential to turn into just another forgettable western, but under Sam Peckinpah's incredible direction refuses to. Randolph Scott and Joel McCrea play incredibly well off of each other and wind down their careers on an in... read morecredibly high note. Peckinpah brilliantly straddles the line between a fun buddy western and also manages to get downright disturbing (the wedding and... reception at the whorehouse) while foreshadowing what would become later, darker territory for him. I almost lost my shit when McCrea called the gang redneck peckerwoods during the final showdown and Christ, how I loved this movie...!
  • flixsterman
    June 6, 2009
    flixsterman
    There's just something about watching Randolph Scott and Joel McCrea on horseback that makes me want to mosey along down yonder and punch some little doggies.
  • toejambaseball24
    October 17, 2011
    toejambaseball24
    Pretty entertaining and surprisingly funny. Doesn't stand out as one of the great Westerns that I've seen, but pretty solid. No major complaints here.
  • jonnycrumley
    March 23, 2009
    jonnycrumley
    Great western. Old school cowboys Joel McCrea and Randolph Scott, are superb in this lesser known western. The movie is beautifully shot, with some stunning scenery on show, and cast do an excellent job, with an intelligent script. Director Sam Peckinpah later became famous for d... read moreirecting The Wild Bunch and Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, but I prefer this one.
  • Dracula787
    December 22, 2008
    Dracula787
    This wasn?t Sam Peckinpah?s first film, but it might as well have been, because even if he hadn?t made another movie it would have still earned him a place in the pantheon. This certainly isn?t the dramatic departure from the traditional western genre as some of his later work, ... read morein many ways it may have simply been the last great traditional western in the vein of John Ford. The film?s success is rooted mainly in the great skills of Joel McCrea, whose character is an incredibly likable and honorable. His speech about wanting to ?enter my house justified,? is one of the great moments in all of cinema, one that resonates long after the movie ends. Randolph Scott, Ron Starr, and Mariette Hartley are also great. This isn?t an action driven film, and it isn?t graphic like Peckinpah?s later films, but the two scenes of action are expertly filmed and choreographed. Peckinpah would go on to make bigger grander films, but this may still be their equal, it?s a small scale masterpiece.
  • fb68600877
    April 15, 2012
    fb68600877
    Terrific film, where Joel McCrea gives the best performance I've ever seen out of him. The area shot is gorgeous, and a bit out of the ordinary for a Western. The ending is pretty classic, too, and more than a bit touching.
  • thrusz
    July 25, 2008
    thrusz
    I really need to see more Sam Peckinpah.

    This is the movie that is argued over which represents the death of the classic Western. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is claiming that it is the last classic Western. I guess that makes Ride the High Country the firs... read moret of the new formula. I think that there's a bit of truth to that. This movie gets into far darker theme than the simple shootout. This is a movie about rape, greed, and betrayal and that's not something I'm really used to seeing in my classic Western.

    I have to applaud Sam Peckinpah for stepping out of himself so much to view his work as something outside of time. He knew what his movie was going to be compared to and he cast two old favorites for the two lead actors. Joel McCrea is one of my favorite older actors. He's always been this figure of respect and morality while still having that tough guy feel. He's playing an older character. It really is like watching a sequel of those old movies with a gap between the first movie and the second movie. We get to see a character who has gone through a lot and still has that sense of morality, but that morality is far more fine tuned and realistic than simply the good guy standing out against the backdrop of the West. Then paring them up with a younger man and woman just makes that contrast all that much more present. The younger characters have that ignorance and naivite' of youth and these gentelman are aware of that, but have a new kind of morality. A morality full of grey (hair) and questionable decisions.

    The movie doesn't really pick up to the heavy stuff until the second half of the film. Really, the introduction of the brothers goes into a fairly dark place. We have this very innocent girl who just gets fed to these brutes who are, in all essence, rapists. They use the law to their own advantage and manipulate this girl to the point of a breakdown all brought on in the span of twenty minutes. Peckinpah really develops the character of this girl as someone vibrant and full of life who seems to be sheltered from the real world to someone who is broken and disillusioned to what is right and what is wrong. We see the true nature of rape and violence and what it can do. This girl is scared for her life and she feels like she has no one protecting her. Then the three people who protect her are the old man who is noble, the old man who is a crook, and the young man who follows the crook. This isn't the bunch of people that we've seen in the previous Westerns and it is really very obvious. While the A-story may follow where this money is going to go, her B-story is far more interesting and I believe eventually replaces the A-story.

    On some level, this is a morality play. We see the breakdown of two lifelong friends. Their age (I can't stress this enough) is what makes this movie all the more important. These are young, foolish friends who split. These are friends who would previously die for one another breaking company. There is a deep trust that is broken and it is a powerful choice. The end works very well with this theme. You feel the darkness that begins to lift and you know that the world is a generally good place, despite the events of the movie. I think that's the perfect ending for this movie and, although not unique by most cases, I do think it fits really well into this movie.

    Finally, I'd like to point out Warren Oates in this movie. He plays one of the more minor characters, but he's fantastic. He plays a creep scoundrel so well that you actually kind of want to see him succeed just so he can get more screentime.
  • jazzmonk
    April 19, 2008
    jazzmonk
    Scott and McCrea are both excellent in this film, and they both retired from film after this movie. It was a wise move, because I don't think they could have ended on a higher note.
    Excellent Peckinpah.

View All Ride the High Country Reviews

Critic Reviews

Bosley Crowther
May 20, 2003
Bosley Crowther, New York Times

Symbols of a waning era who eventually clash over right and wrong, Messrs. McCrea and Scott mesh perfectly, with the latter getting the drollest lines -- and there are plenty. Full Review

Jeffrey M. Anderson
September 10, 2010
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

Using everything that came before and predicting everything that came after, Ride the High Country can now be seen as the lynchpin in the history of the entire Western genre. Full Review

John J. Puccio
April 23, 2010
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis

...great entertainment: humorous, adventurous, inventive, and enthralling. Full Review

David Bezanson
December 20, 2005
David Bezanson, Filmcritic.com

Ride the High Country vigorously and colorfully brings alive the Old West of cinematic myth. Full Review

Tom Block
March 23, 2001
Tom Block, culturevulture.net

A film of abundant visual beauty through whose heart blows a chill valedictory breeze. Full Review

January 1, 2000
TV Guide's Movie Guide

A much-loved revisionist Western, director Peckinpah's second feature film proved to be a bittersweet swan song for the Old West and a classy farewell to the screen for actors Scott and -- for some ye... Full Review

Dennis Schwartz
January 1, 2000
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

A superior Western featuring two of that genre's greats, Joel McCrea and Randolph Scott, who were both in their 60s at the time... Full Review

October 18, 2008
Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Dave Kehr
January 1, 2000
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

Click to read the article Full Review

Chuck O'Leary
October 9, 2005
Chuck O'Leary, Fantastica Daily

No review available.

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    • Steve Judd: All I want is to enter my house justified.
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