Ride the High Country

Summary

Editorial Note: As a website we are absolutely thrilled to celebrate the legacy of Sam Peckinpah through reviews of ten of Sam’s most notable films with special introductions by the great scholar Garner Simmons. Garner’s book Peckinpah: A Portrait in Montage – The Definitive Edition: 50 Years After “The Wild Bunch” from the Writer Who Knew Him Best has recently been released in audiobook format. It is an exceptional document of Peckinpah’s career told from those who worked closely with Sam. Fans of Peckinpah would be wise to read it as soon as they can get their hands on it. As soon as I finished listening to the audiobook, I contacted Garner to see if he was interested in helping our site celebrate Sam’s filmography and also celebrate the release of his book in audio form. To our delight, Garner agreed to write introductions for ten films from Sam’s career that span chronologically from Ride the High Country to The Killer Elite. We are so grateful to Garner for taking the time to write these intros for our small site. If you have not yet read Garner’s fantastic book, here is a link where you can purchase the book in numerous formats. (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1079792333?pf_rd_r=YDKB0W2PGJBS8PHZ6BJX&pf_rd_p=edaba0ee-c2fe-4124-9f5d-b31d6b1bfbee )

Without further ado – here is Garner’s introduction to Ride the High Country:

In 1961, Hollywood was in flux.  Directors like John Ford and Howard Hawks were in the twilight of their careers. Desperate for a hit, MGM had cast Marlon Brando in Munity on the Bounty a picture that would ultimately cost nearly $20 million.  As cost overruns mounted, MGM, fearing the worst, decided to commission 20 small pictures each with a budget of less than $1 million in the hope that if any of them hit, it would help offset the red ink. In short, it was the perfect opportunity for a talented young director to begin to make a name for himself. Having risen quickly through the ranks of television, Sam Peckinpah was gifted, smart and secure in his own talents.  Hired by producer Richard Lyons, Peckinpah took a good script and polished it until it was a great one. He then cast it with two aging but commanding stars – Joel McCrea and Randolph Scott – and surrounded them with a brilliant cast many of whom he had worked with before including R.G. Armstrong, Warren Oates, and L.Q. Jones. As the love interest he cast two unknowns: Ron Starr and Mariette Hartley. Behind the camera, he brought in renowned cinematographer Lucien Ballard.  With Dick Lyons running interference with the studio Peckinpah managed to bring the film in on schedule and on budget. A tour de force that announced the emergence of a major new talent: Sam Peckinpah.

Our Review:

Over the past few years, Warner Bros. has been releasing a line of films on Blu-ray under the umbrella of their Archive Collection. I have been steadily impressed with the films that they have chosen for this line, but none more so than their release of Sam Peckinpah’s early western classic Ride The High Country.

Ride The High Country revolves around a former lawman, Steve Judd (the excellent Joel McCrea – best known for his role in Sullivan’s Travels,) who finds himself in a position to deliver some gold for a bank across a dangerous trail into mining country. The pay isn’t much, but Judd is looking for a new lease on life. He accepts the job and he hires for companions his old partner Gil Westrum (the great Randolph Scott) and Gil’s protege Heck Longtree (Ron Starr.) Unbeknownst to Judd, the men plan to steal the gold if given the chance. As they make their way through the trail they meet a preacher and his daughter Elsa (Mariette Hartley.) Elsa has left her house to marry a man named Billy Hammond (James Drury) in the mining town that they are riding towards. Heck becomes taken with Elsa just in time for her to marry Billy. It is revealed that Billy is a degenerate and so is his entire family (including a really lively Warren Oates.) This causes trouble for all of the men as they attempt to rescue her from Billy’s gang.

Ride The High Country was Sam Peckinpah’s first masterpiece. The cinematography by Lucien Ballard is very pretty and well-shot. Since the film was shot in CinemaScope and Metrocolor it looks great on Blu-Ray. The performances In the film are exceptional. Randolph Scott was so pleased with his performance he actually retired saying that he could do no better. I am in agreement with him. It’s a great performance. Joel McCrea is every bit his equal in the film, delivering a very believable performance as Steve Judd. The film has many trademarks that fans of Peckinpah will recognize, including  some violence against women (which is unfortunately in many of his films due to their importance to the plot, not because he hated women like some have accused.) Also present in the film is the tough but realistic dialogue which Peckinpah was a master of writing. I was also excited that Warren Oates (Bring Me The Head of Alfredo Garcia) has a small but potent role in the film. 

I feel confident that both fans of Westerns and fans of Peckinpah will quickly fall in love with this film. It is not as rough around the edges as Peckinpah’s later works, but still captures the same free spirit of those films. This was Peckinpah’s first triumph and it holds up beautifully.

Video

Warner Bros. did an incredible job on the transfer of the film using a brand new scan of the film in 2K from the original negatives. Fans of the film should be very pleased with the meticulous attention to detail that this transfer has been given. This is essentially a film that was meant to be on Blu-Ray, with beautifully shot cinematography by Lucien Ballard. The film was filmed in CinemaScope and Metrocolor. The colors are lifelike and the clarity is top notch. This transfer is top-notch and on par with a Criterion release. I have been incredibly impressed with Warner’s dedication to their archive releases and this is another great example. Fans will be extremely pleased. This earns a rare perfect score from me.

Audio

Warner Bros. have provided a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track that sounds very good. The score is so engrossing that I constantly questioned whether or not this was actually a surround mix. Clarity is very solid. I did not detect any dropouts or notable hiss. I really have no complaints in this department that come to mind. It is quite obvious that some real love went into restoring this early Peckinpah classic.

Supplements:

Commentary with Nick Redman, Paul Seydor, Garner Simmons, and David Weddle – Nick Redman was the proprietor of Twilight Time and a noted film historian. These other gentlemen have literally written the definitive books on Peckinpah. An enjoyable track with tons of information. Well worth your time. *It is worth noting that the author of the intro at the beginning of this review also is featured on this great commentary track.

A Justified Life – Sam Peckinpah and the High Country – This is an extended interview with Sam’s sister who remembers their humble roots growing up and the high and low points of Sam’s life. This is an interesting piece.

Theatrical Trailer

Overall Scores:

Video – 5/5

Audio – 4.5/5

Overall – 4.5/5

Ride the High Country is a great film by master filmmaker Sam Peckinpah. This ranks as one of the best films from Peckinpah with fantastic performances by both Joel McCrea and Randolph Scott. It’s not as rough around the edges as later Peckinpah works, but it still shares numerous qualities that his other films have. I love a good Western and this one fit the bill. Warner Bros.’ restoration of the film is nothing short of fantastic and the supplemental features while limited are both informative and enjoyable. If you are a fan than I would not hesitate to pick this one up.

Portions of this review originally appeared on Blu-ray Authority. A special thanks to Garner Simmons for his intro.