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Review by Belinda New 22nd September 2020

Written and directed by John C. Champion [“Laramie”], Mustang Country was his directorial debut and the script that lured gentleman of the silver screen Joel McCrea out of retirement for his 83rd and final motion picture. The touching wilderness adventure strongly appealed to McCrea, whose film Ride the High Country [1962, Director Sam Peckinpah] won accolades and became a classic.

Montana-Canada border, 1925...

With his loyal dog Luke and his horse Rosey, Dan, a former rodeo star and sheep rancher scours the wilds of the Canadian Rockies in pursuit of a renegade mustang called Shoshone. Dan meets up briefly with Griff and Teejay, two cowpokes who failed to rope the elusive stallion and so decide to give up the chase. Dan rides on. He has fallen on hard times and is in need of the substantial reward money the prize mustang would bring.

In a struggle with Shoshone, Dan is knocked unconscious and aided by a young Indigenous boy, Nika, who has rejected the false historical teachings of his school and run away to join his grandfather, a great hunter whom Nika is sure will find and capture the mustang. Sadly, the boy’s hopes are crushed when they find his revered elder has passed.

Soft-hearted Dan and Nika come to an agreement to track the lone stallion and split the reward money between them. Their efforts are confounded at every turn as the playful, clever stallion proves a formidable adversary – prancing on hillsides, taunting them and thwarting their ingenious attempts to corral him. The four companions find the wild, untamed country daunting - including the ominous three-toed grizzly bear responsible for destroying Dan’s sheep ranch and wounding tenacious Luke in a fight the previous year. Tragedy strikes when the heroic dog faces the grizzly once last time, and a despondent Dan decides to go after Three Toes alone.  

Luck and mishap collide that night when Rosey gets loose and bolts during a storm. In daylight, an agitated Shoshone appears in a clearing before Nika and Dan. The mustang beckons them to follow and they find Rosey mired deeply in mud. Man and boy try unsuccessfully to pull her out but soon realize they need “horse power” – one more favour from the valiant, and vigilant stallion. Shoshone allows himself to be roped and the three drag a weary Rosey out of the muck. Lonesome no more, Shoshone nuzzles Rosey, and the rag-tag family sets off south to Great Falls, Montana. They hunker down for the night in an abandoned ranch. Dan secures Rosey and Shoshone in the corral.

But fate is as unpredictable as the rogue grizzly, who has been stalking them the whole time. Three Toes tears into the corral in the darkness and savagely attacks Dan. Once again, Shoshone to the rescue - he courageously menaces the grizzly and an injured Dan manages to fire the single shot which brings down his relentless three-toed foe.

Their mission accomplished but their adventure just beginning, Dan, Nika, Rosey and Shoshone head for ‘home’, determined to stay together.

~

Writer/Director/Producer:  John Champion

Director of Photography: J. Barry Herron  

Music: Lee Holdridge

Song: “Follow Your Restless Dream” - sung by Denny Brooks, lyrics by Joe Henry, Music by Lee Holdridge

Run time: 79 minutes

Release Date: November 19, 1976

Cast:

Joel McCrea: Dan

Nika Mina: Nika

Robert Fuller: Griff

Patrick Wayne: Tee Jay

Tails from the wild…

The stunning American Saddlebred named Tiger (Shoshone) led a stellar career, gracing the fox-hunt scene with Lucille Ball in Mame [1974] and such films as 1776, [1972] with Ken Howard. Rottweiler Rote (Luke) appeared in television episodes of “Gunsmoke”, “Bewitched” and belonged to Gregory Peck in I Walk the Line [1970]. The film’s threatening villain, Three Toes is played by Tag, a 1200 pound, 9 foot grizzly who appeared in multiple films such as Walt Disney’s King of the Grizzlies. If you look closely during the epic battle between Three Toes and Luke – a fleeting glimpse of the leg of Tag’s trainer is caught on film!

While Mustang Country appears to be Nika Mina’s first and only feature film role, stars Robert Fuller and Patrick Wayne [The Searchers, 1956] ride in for brief cameos. The film marked the professional reunion of the “Laramie” star with Producer John Champion. It was also the first time Robert Fuller and his idol Joel McCrea appeared together on screen. Mustang Country won an award for outstanding family entertainment in a western motion picture at the 1976 Western Heritage Awards.  

Mustang Country was shot on location in the glorious vistas of Banff National Park, Canada. Apparently during filming, the cast dined on buffalo fondue at The Grizzly House restaurant, which has been serving up exotic delights to travellers since 1967 and today is still a central draw in Banff.

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Not only was Mustang Country an award winning movie it was also released as a paperback novel which is still available on Amazon today - 44 years on!!

And of course

the DVD

Play the intro theme from

Mustang Country

Play “Follow Your Restless Dream”

Mustang Country was shot on location in the glorious vistas of Banff National Park, Canada. Apparently during filming, the cast dined on buffalo fondue at The Grizzly House restaurant, which has been serving up exotic delights to travellers since 1967 and today is still a central draw in Banff.