Anyone who frequents this movie blog knows that I love Westerns, and the ones featuring John Wayne are some of my favorites. With that being said, and even though I'm prone to giving an extra bonus point or two to a John Wayne film, 1972's The Cowboys is a legitimately good movie.
The film is about a rancher named Wil Anderson (played by Wayne) who has a long cattle drive coming up. Unfortunately, at the last minute all of his ranch hands leave to join the gold rush. Desperate for help, Anderson is forced to hire a group of school boys to assist him. Anderson teaches the boys how to properly rope and herd cattle and, even though he gets frustrated with them at various points, Anderson ends up becoming something of a father figure to the boys. So much so that when Anderson is killed by bandits and the herd is stolen, the boys set out to kill the bandits, recover the herd, and complete the drive.
This one isn't quite on the same level as The Searchers, True Grit, or The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, but I really enjoy it. Overall, it's a solid Western and one I recommend to anyone who is a fan of the genre.
I give this one a 4 out of 5.
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