The Stalking Moon (1968)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Robert Mulligan

Writers:

Alvin Sargent (screenplay)
Wendell Mayes (adaptation)

Release Date:

15 February 1969 (Sweden)

Genre:

Romance | Western

Plot:

When an army scout retires to a farm in New Mexico he takes pity on a white woman and her half-breed son recently rescued from indians...

Plot Keywords:

Half Breed | Son | Apache Indian | Male Female Relationship | One Man Army

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Gregory Peck	...	Sam Varner
Eva Marie Saint	...	Sarah Carver
Robert Forster	...	Nick Tana
Noland Clay	...	Boy
Russell Thorson	...	Ned
Frank Silvera	...	Major
Lonny Chapman	...	Purdue
Lou Frizzell	...	Stationmaster
Henry Beckman	...	Sgt. Rudabaugh
Charles Tyner	...	Dace
Richard Bull	...	Doctor
Sandy Brown Wyeth	...	Rachel (as Sandy Wyeth)
Joaquín Martínez	...	Julio
Boyd 'Red' Morgan	...	Stage Driver Shelby (as Red Morgan)
Nathaniel Narcisco	...	Salvaje

Runtime:

109 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:G | Iceland:16 | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Red Rock Canyon, Nevada, USA

Company:

National General Production Inc.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: The movie was set and filmed in the Mojave Desert, yet in an early scene at an Army camp, the still night air is filled with the sound of crickets and frogs. This would be fine had the camp been in or near an oasis, but it clearly was not. With no wind, there should have been no sound at all from outside the camp.

Quotes:

Sarah Carver: I didn't have the courage to die. I knew what I had to do to stay alive.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Reflections of Evil (2002)

Excellent, suspenseful Western melodrama!

The dripping water of suspense slowly and agonizingly paces this excellent Western thriller! Gregory Peck brings humanity and unflinching heroism to his role, his noble instincts drawing him to the protection of an emotionally-battered woman and her young Indian son from her overwhemingly cunning, bloodthirsty, vindictive, and elusive Indian lover/husband who wants the boy at all costs. Set amid the rocky, forested beauty of the Southwest, an atmosphere of seething, sinister tension is effectively created and sustained throughout the picture by the restraint of the actors, the patience of the director, the skill of the editor, and evocative musical scoring. Great, moody picture with some tender touches and a terrific pay-off!