1972
GP
Warner Bros.
2 h 14 m

1972
GP
Warner Bros.
2 h 14 m

Summary Rancher Wil Andersen is forced to hire inexperienced boys as cowhands in order to get his herd to market on time but the rough drive is full of dangers and a gang of cattle rustlers is trailing them.

Directed By: Mark Rydell

Written By: William Dale Jennings, Irving Ravetch, Harriet Frank Jr.

1972
GP
Warner Bros.
2 h 14 m

1972
GP
Warner Bros.
2 h 14 m

The Cowboys

Name: The Cowboys
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Western
Released: 1972-01-13
Duration: 2 min 14 s
Rating: 52
Cast: John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, Bruce Dern, Colleen Dewhurst, Alfred Barker Jr.

Metascore Mixed or Average Based on 7 Critic Reviews

User Score Generally Favorable Based on 6 User Ratings

7.5

My Score

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Where to Watch

Directed By: Mark Rydell

Written By: William Dale Jennings, Irving Ravetch, Harriet Frank Jr.

Where to Watch

Critic Reviews

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Metascore

Mixed or Average Based on 7 Critic Reviews

14% Positive
1 Review

86% Mixed
6 Reviews

0% Negative
0 Reviews

All Reviews
Positive Reviews
Mixed Reviews
Negative Reviews

Critic Reviews

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Metascore

Mixed or Average Based on 7 Critic Reviews

14% Positive
1 Review

86% Mixed
6 Reviews

0% Negative
0 Reviews

All Reviews
Positive Reviews
Mixed Reviews
Negative Reviews

Chicago Sun-Times

It's the ending, really, that spoils The Cowboys. Otherwise, it's a good-to-fine Western, with a nice, sly performance by Roscoe Lee Browne as the trail cook, and the usual solid Wayne performance.

By Roger Ebert FULL REVIEW

Variety

The story [from a novel by William Dale Jennings] is long and episodic, and its gentle treatment makes the length something of a hindrance to maximum enjoyment.

FULL REVIEW

Time Out

Although the film is well performed and beautifully shot by Robert Surtees, its ideology is highly objectionable, celebrating as it does the turning of the boys into hardened killers.

FULL REVIEW

Empire

After several successful films where he plays the tough-as-nails cowboy, Wayne wasn't about to break the pattern now. Playing the only character he knows, he gives several inspiring speeches to an unlikely group of kids who turn from boys to men.

By Kim Newman FULL REVIEW

TV Guide Magazine

Mark Rydell shows some fine touches in his third feature, but the result is an overlong and often-dull movie that had the rare distinction of being one of the few John Wayne westerns that gasped at the box office.

FULL REVIEW

The New York Times

So flecked with minor dishonesties that you come to recognize it as a sort of Formica Western, something that amounts to a parody of the real thing.

By Vincent Canby FULL REVIEW

The New Yorker

Pious muck.

By Pauline Kael FULL REVIEW

User Reviews

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User Score

Generally Favorable Based on 6 User Ratings

7.5

83% Positive
5 Ratings

0% Mixed
0 Ratings

17% Negative
1 Rating

User Reviews

View All

User Score

Generally Favorable Based on 6 User Ratings

7.5

83% Positive
5 Ratings

0% Mixed
0 Ratings

17% Negative
1 Rating

There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.

Details

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Production Company Sanford Productions (III)

Release Date Jan 13, 1972

Duration 2 h 14 m

Rating GP

Genres

Tagline All they wanted was their chance to be men...and he gave it to them.

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Awards

Western Heritage Awards

• 1 Win & 1 Nomination

The Cowboys

Where to Watch

Where to Watch

Top Cast

John Wayne

Wil Andersen

Roscoe Lee Browne

Jebediah Nightlinger

Bruce Dern

Long Hair, Asa Watts

Colleen Dewhurst

Kate

Alfred Barker Jr.

Fats - Cowboy

Nicolas Beauvy

Dan - Cowboy

Steve Benedict

Steve - Cowboy

Robert Carradine

Slim Honeycutt - Cowboy

Norman Howell

Weedy - Cowboy

Stephen R. Hudis

Charlie Schwartz - Cowboy

Sean Kelly

Stuttering Bob - Cowboy

A Martinez

Cimarron - Cowboy

Clay O'Brien

Hardy Fimps - Cowboy

Sam O'Brien

Jimmy Phillips - Cowboy

Mike Pyeatt

Homer Weems - Cowboy

Slim Pickens

Anse Peterson

Lonny Chapman

Homer's Father

Charles Tyner

Stonemason

Sarah Cunningham

Annie Andersen

Allyn Ann McLerie

Ellen Price

Critic Reviews

Critic Reviews

Critic Reviews

Critic Reviews

User Reviews

User Reviews

User Reviews

User Reviews

Details

Details

Awards

Awards

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