Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here (1969)

Director:

Abraham Polonsky

Writers:

Harry Lawton (book)
Abraham Polonsky (written by)

Release Date:

31 October 1969 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama | Western

Plot:

Based on true events, Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here, tells the story of one of the last Western manhunts...

Plot Keywords:

On The Run | Sheriff | Native American | Posse | Suicide

Awards:

Won 2 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 1 win

US TV Schedule:

Sat. Jan. 9

12:15 PM

AMC

Cast

Robert Redford	...	Deputy Sheriff Christopher 'Coop' Cooper
Katharine Ross	...	Lola
Robert Blake	...	Willie Boy
Susan Clark	...	Dr. Elizabeth Arnold
Barry Sullivan	...	Ray Calvert
John Vernon	...	George Hacker
Charles Aidman	...	Judge Benby
Charles McGraw	...	Sheriff Frank Wilson
Shelly Novack	...	Johnny Finney
Robert Lipton	...	Charlie Newcombe
Lloyd Gough	...	Dexter
Ned Romero	...	Tom
John Wheeler	...	Newman
Erik Holland	...	Digger (as Eric Holland)
Garry Walberg	...	Dr. Mills

Also Known As:

Willie Boy (USA) (trailer title)

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

USA:PG (re-rating) (1975) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | USA:M (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Joshua Tree, California, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Quotes:

[first lines]
Tom: Did you see that crazy Calvert go by?
Willie Boy: Ate his dust.
Tom: When did you get back to Banning, Willie Boy?
Willie Boy: Five o'clock freight.
Tom: Goin' to the fiesta?
Willie Boy: Is that where you're goin', Tom?
Tom: Trailin' Mr. Calvert with a tow just in case he breaks down - or breaks his neck.
Willie Boy: Well, I guess that's where I'm goin'.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Beautiful Girls (1996)

This film is overlooked too often

I consider Robert Blake's performance in this movie to be one of his best, and this comes from someone who has always thought he was a fine actor. Robert Redford, too, shines here as the sheriff, and almost all the supporting cast keeps up with the two male leads.

Blake's character is a Paiute Indian who is the object of a manhunt which is sensationalized by the press because of its concurrence with a visit by President Taft. The sheriff is pressured into hunting down the Indian and the girl he loves but whose father has forbidden the match.

It's a good solid early-1900s Western with much better-than-average acting. But it's not so much an action film as it is a character study -- of Blake's character and, to a lesser degree, Redford's. It brings to life the racism and exploitation that white Europeans brought with them to America.