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The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970)
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Overview
Release Date:
22 May 1970 (Finland) moreTagline:
Cable Hogue says..."Do unto others... as you would have others do unto you."Plot:
A hobo accidentally stumbles onto a water spring, and creates a profitable way station in the middle of the desert. full summary | add synopsisPlot Keywords:
moreAwards:
1 win moreUser Comments:
Sam Peckinpah's Best Film moreCast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Jason Robards | ... | Cable Hogue | |
| Stella Stevens | ... | Hildy | |
| David Warner | ... | Joshua | |
| Strother Martin | ... | Bowen | |
| Slim Pickens | ... | Ben Fairchild | |
| L.Q. Jones | ... | Taggart | |
| Peter Whitney | ... | Cushing | |
| R.G. Armstrong | ... | Quittner | |
| Gene Evans | ... | Clete | |
| William Mims | ... | Jensen | |
| Kathleen Freeman | ... | Mrs. Jensen | |
| Susan O'Connell | ... | Claudia | |
| Vaughn Taylor | ... | Powell | |
| Max Evans | ... | Webb Seely | |
| James Anderson | ... | Preacher |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parentsRuntime:
121 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 moreSound Mix:
MonoCertification:
Singapore:NC-16 | West Germany:16 | UK:PG | Australia:M | West Germany:12 (re-rated) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 (1970) | USA:R | Iceland:12MOVIEmeter: 
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
This was the favorite film of the director. Often, when asked to speak about his work, he brought a print of this film to show, instead of one of his more famous works. moreGoofs:
Anachronisms: The American flag Hogue flies at Cable Springs has 48 stars. The film is supposed to take place in 1908. There were not 48 states in the U.S. (nor subsequent 48 stars on the flag) until 1912. moreQuotes:
Reverend Joshua Sloan: He charged too much. He was as stingy as they come. Yes, he might have cheated, but he was square about it. Rich or poor, he gouged them all the same. moreMovie Connections:
Featured in Sam Peckinpah's West: Legacy of a Hollywood Renegade (2004) (TV) moreSoundtrack:
A death in the family moreFAQ
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When people mention Sam Peckinpah, the film most mentioned is The Wild Bunch. While I'm a big fan of that very violent film, I find out that most people don't even know about The Ballad Of Cable Houge, which I feel is his finest film.
The film is about a would be prospector named Cable Houge (Jason Robards in his best performance and that's saying a lot), who is left to die out in the desert with no water by his too partners (Strother Martin and L.Q. Jones). After almost dying out in the desert Cable actually finds water. He then buys the land and makes it a stop in the desert for stagecoaches to stop and refresh the horses. He becomes friends to a traveling and lecherous preacher (well played by David Warner) and a sweet prostitute, Hilly (played by the sweet faced Stella Stevens). But what Cable is mainly doing is lying in wait for the time that he runs into his former partners again.
It's a simple fable told with very little violence, and it's well told. It's definitely not the film that you would expect from the man who made the Wild Bunch. Warner Bros. who released it didn't know what to do with it and just threw out at the public with very little publicity, and the film never go the attention that it should have. Hopefully future film scholars with rediscover this gem and lift it from obscurity.