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The Lusty Men (1952)

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Critic Reviews: 3
Fresh: 3 | Rotten: 0

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Average Rating: 3.9/5
User Ratings: 330

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Movie Info

The titular Lusty Men are rodeo riders in this modern-day western, assembled with a touch of the offbeat by director Nicholas Ray. Former rodeo star Robert Mitchum, disabled by a series of accidents, hobbles back to his Oklahoma hometown in hopes of replenishing his bank account. Aspiring bronco-buster Arthur Kennedy hires Mitchum to train him for an upcoming rodeo, promising that they'll split the winnings. It doesn't take a crystal ball to predict that Mitchum will soon fall hard for Kennedy's

Unrated, 1 hr. 53 min.

Western, Drama

Cast

All Critics (10) | Top Critics (3) | Fresh (10) | Rotten (0)

A somewhat slow starter, once underway it is kept playing with growing interest under Nicholas Ray's firm direction.

October 23, 2007 Full Review Source: Variety | Comment
Variety
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The punch of the film is in its details of rodeo life as it is, and for this R. K. O. and Producer Jerry Wald have a dynamic film.

March 25, 2006 Full Review Source: New York Times | Comment
New York Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

A masterpiece by Nicholas Ray -- perhaps the most melancholy and reflective of his films.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | Comment
Chicago Reader
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Ray's last b/w film captures the life of rodeo players with vivid details, lyrical images, and melnacholy mood, centering on a romantic triangle, well played by Arthur Kennedy, Susan Hayward, and especially Robert Mitchum as the aging champ.

July 1, 2009 Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | Comment

Ray's direction is superb, and all three leads give bravura performances.

October 23, 2007 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | Comment
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Functions as mini-ethnography, laying bare the alluring and dangerous world of bronc- and braman-riding, while spinning an artful melodrama about aging, fame, and failure

August 7, 2006 Full Review Source: Not Coming to a Theater Near You | Comment
Not Coming to a Theater Near You

The story isn't much (the security of family life versus the rootlessness and danger of working as a rodeo rider), but the situation is rich in emotional resonances which Ray conjures into life convincingly.

June 24, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out | Comment

Ray takes a thin story and enriches it with depth, complexity, and interesting characters.

October 29, 2005 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | Comment
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

[Ray] was happiest with personal stories where a confrontation between characters leads to a conclusion, however sombre. The confrontation here is complex.

May 24, 2003 Full Review Source: Film4 | Comment

The first few brief sequences in Nicholas Ray's rip-roaring rodeo flick tell us visually almost everything that we need to know about the director's interest in this story.

March 24, 2003 Full Review Source: MovieMartyr.com | Comment
MovieMartyr.com
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for The Lusty Men

this is one of nicholas ray's best films with a terrific performance by robert mitchum. i can't quite make out why i have never heard about this before. it might be the ridiculous title. anyway, a great gritty and realistic rodeo story. don't pass it up

March 31, 2011
rubystevens
Stella Dallas

Super Reviewer

spare tough little drama of the rodeo circuit. Fine performances

December 9, 2007
jjnxn
jay nixon

Super Reviewer

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Foreign Titles

  • The Lusty Men- Arena der Cowboys (DE)
  • Les Indomptables (FR)
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