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List Price: $9.98 | | Label: Paramount
Salesrank: 22034
Released: June 4, 2002 |
| Our Price: $4.18 |
| Used Price: $3.90 |
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MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
WILL PENNY, AN AGEING COWPOKE, TAKES A JOB ON A RANCH WHICH REQUIRES HIM TO RIDE THE LINE OF THE PROPERTY LOOKING FOR TRESPASSERS OR, WORSE, SQUATTERS. HE FINDS THAT HIS CABIN IN THE HIGH MOUNTAINS HAS BEEN APPROPRIATED BY A WOMAN WHOSE GUIDE TO OREGON HAS DESERTED HER AND HER SON.
Will Penny Reviews:
A Great Western 
2009-08-13 - One of the late Chuck Heston's favorite films, this is the tale of an aging cowboy in a changing world. Will Penny is an illiterate, aging cowboy who does the only job he has known since he was young and finds a mother and son, love and comes to the realization that he can't be what they need -- in own his mind does the right thing -- and rides away. It is a wonderful, low-key film with one of Heston's best performances (in a career so full of them) with great supporting work by Joan Hatckett, Donald Pleasance, Bruce Dern, Anthony Zerbe, Ben Johnson, J.D. Spradlin and his debut movie role, Lee Majors. A wonderful, moving western. If you are a fan of western films, this one has to be a part of your collection. No if's, an's or but's. Nice background featurete.
DIsappointed 
2009-06-18 - After reading other reviews I bought this DVD. I'm not a Charlton Heston fan, but I do like vintage westerns. I suppose the story this movie is based on is a decent one. Parts of the movie show that a cowboy's life can be dirty and smelly (ain't no showers behind the bushes).
Unfortunately, the main actors in this movie don't do it justice. There is NO chemistry between Mr. Heston and his co-star, Ms. Hackett.
I would like to correct a few plot points which other reviewers have repeated: the main character, Will Penny, is NOT "staked out" in the desert. He is beaten and stabbed; his gear is taken from him and he is left to die. The woman does not "find" him, she is already installed in Will's cabin which Will Penny manages to stumble to after an unknown time in the wilderness.
Will's character is drawn to the woman and uncomfortable at the same time while the female is somehow drawn to him. The actors TRY to portray this in very cramped quarters. They don't manage it; I was a little embarassed for them.
Both characters are pretty much one-dimensional; the woman's son is almost an afterthought in the film.
One last thing....the characters in this film have got to be the worst shots in the history of the west.
DVD works just fine; sound and picture are good.
Worth Every Penny 
2008-09-30 - Chuck in fine form as a crusty sodbuster but a bit dour throughout. Earnest performances help carry it along but it's not quite entertainment, is it ? I don't think I can recommend buying it but should prove a worthwhile curiosity as a Wednesday night rental.
Hesten's favorite
2008-08-01 - Very good movie and one of Heston's favorites. Not a "traditional" western, but one of my favorites. Well acted and entertaining.
Heston's lone cowboy 
2008-06-10 - This minor classic Western, totally ignored by Paramount when it was released in '68, stands as one of the best performances the late Chuck Heston ever gave even over "Major Dundee" which he wrote off as a fiasco in an interview he gave. He should be proud of this film because unlike many Westerns of its time, this one is more character-driven than like say "Silverado" which sacrifices character development for action (Lawrence Kasden could take a pointer from this flick). The late Joan Hackett is also excellent as the lone woman who takes in Heston after he is beaten by the crazen Donald Pleasance & his family (Bruce Dern, etc) and learns to love again as she falls for this lonely, 50'ish cowboy. Tom Gries directed with a sure hand and the outdoor photography is fantastic. This western along with Peckingpah's "Ride the High Country" stands as one of the true classics of this genre. Whole heartedly recommended for Heston enthusiasts and western buffs!!
