Rodeo champ Jeff McCloud (Robert Mitchum) retires after another hit. He goes back to his childhood home to find the rundown shack occupied by an old farmer. Wes (Arthur Kennedy) and Louise Merritt (Susan Hayward) drive by to see the homestead. He's a ranch hand and they often come looking to buy the place which they can't afford. Wes recognizes Jeff and gets him a job at the ranch. Wes admires Jeff and hopes that he would mentor him in rodeo riding despite his wife's misgivings.
This modern western is a slice of the American pie. It's a stale broken apple pie that has accumulated some dust and dirt. Modern audience would see the genesis of the modern indie. The big stars inhabit these roles. Hayward's acting does border on melodrama sometimes. Mitchum is beyond reproach. The old style is still on display. It's like speaking in the old tongue but trying to write in a new way. The only big drawback is the fake rodeo closeup action scenes of Wes. That limitation is understandable but I'd rather have a stunt rider from further away or use a stuntman in the role. There is plenty of rodeo work otherwise and his character is rather bland anyways. A real rodeo stuntman may actually inject more reality which would be really something.
This modern western is a slice of the American pie. It's a stale broken apple pie that has accumulated some dust and dirt. Modern audience would see the genesis of the modern indie. The big stars inhabit these roles. Hayward's acting does border on melodrama sometimes. Mitchum is beyond reproach. The old style is still on display. It's like speaking in the old tongue but trying to write in a new way. The only big drawback is the fake rodeo closeup action scenes of Wes. That limitation is understandable but I'd rather have a stunt rider from further away or use a stuntman in the role. There is plenty of rodeo work otherwise and his character is rather bland anyways. A real rodeo stuntman may actually inject more reality which would be really something.