Will Penny

Tom Gries stumbled with his action-packed 100 Rifles but he's on much-firmer ground with this character-rich Western. With a career-best Charlton Heston heading an excellent cast, Will Penny (1968) is a winner.

Will Penny (Charlton Heston) is an aging cowhand getting too old for his job. Along with his younger partners (Lee Majors and Anthony Zerbe) he survives an encounter with psychotic Preacher Quint (Donald Sutherland) and his squirrely sons and winds at the ranch of hard-luck settler Catherine (Joan Hackett) and her son (Jon Gries). Ranch boss Alex (Ben Johnson) gives Will a job, but he's ambushed by Quint's gang and left for dead. Will holds up up with Catherine and son and begins to develop feelings for them, but Will's self-doubt (and those pesky Quints) complicate matters.

Will Penny is a marvelously down-to-earth Western. Gries's sparse script and spirited direction (beautifully shot in Inyo County, California) provide a realism without overdoing the revisionism: we actually believe we're in the Old West. The obvious comparison is The Culpepper Cattle Co., but Will Penny scores points over that grungy flick because you actually care what's going on. Instead of pervasive filth, Will Penny focuses on its story and characters.

Will Penny's plot is episodic in a good way, allowing Will to encounter an interesting array of situations. Gries handles the relationships with admirable maturity: Catherine and Will have some sweet scenes, especially a bath scene and her teaching Will a Christmas carol, that make its resolution poignant. The Quints are feral rednecks reminiscent of the Hammonds from Ride the High Country and we can't wait to see them wasted; Will's partners are nicely sketched individuals rather than mere foils. The final shootout is a bit contrived (though certainly exciting), but the melancholy finale (a muted replay of Shane) works perfectly.

Charlton Heston isn't thought of as a Western star but he did some of his best work in the genre (The Big Country, Major Dundee). Heston cited this film as a personal favorite, and certainly his performance is among his best. Illiterate, rough-hewn, his physique giving way to middle-aged paunch, Penny is a decent fellow trying to make sense of his life: he's known nothing but cow-punching and doesn't know how to deal with his advancing age or affection for Catherine. Heston tones down his usual exuberence, giving a thoughtful, considered turn.

Joan Hackett makes an excellent love interest, charming and reserved. Donald Pleasance (Halloween) turns in his usual hammy performance, a perfect counterpoint to Heston's stoicism. Lee Majors and Anthony Zerbe (Cool Hand Luke) have nice chemistry with Heston while creating memorable characters of their own. Director's son Jon Gries plays a very likeable kid; he'd go on to a respectable acting career of his own.

Western fans will love the supporting cast. Ben Johnson and Slim Pickens were real-life cowboys before starting in movies and they take to their roles like fish to water. Bruce Dern, Luke Askew and Matt Clark were ubiquitous fixtures of this era's Westerns and are right at home. Further down the cast list are G.D. Spralin (The Godfather Part II) and Roy Jenson (The Wind and the Lion).

Will Penny is an enjoyable Western. In an era often obsessed with grim revisionism, Tom Gries' oater nicely mixes a down-to-earth tone with stylish entertainment.