"The Ballad of Cable Hogue" could be labeled a drama, love story or comedy or perhaps all three. It's not considered by many, including Warner Bros.) to be one of Producer/Director Sam (love me or leave me) Peckinpah's better films. But for what it's worth, I liked it.
A penniless hobo, Cable Hogue (Jason Robards Jr.) is left strasnded on the desert by a couple of worthless fiends, Bowen (Strother Martin) and Taggart (L.Q. Jones). Hogue manages, after four days, to stumble upon a spring in the middle of nowhere. As it happens the spring is located on the stagecoach route half way along its' run. Hogue comes up with the idea of charging each user of his water a fee for a drink.
Hogue goes to town and meets with the local banker Cushing (Peter Whitney) who gives him a small loan to help him get started. While in town, Hogue becomes infatuated with a local "saloon girl( named Hildy (Stella Stevens) but she winds up throwing him out of her room.
Back at the water hole, Hogue builds up a ramshackle relay station for the stage line. It becomes successful so he goes to the manager of the line Quittner (R.G.Armstrong) to get authorization (and compensation) to operate the station. Quittner at first refuses and goes to the site to find water on his own but fails and is forced to user Hogue's facilities. Hogue becomes friendly with the stagecoach driver Ben Fairchild (Slim Pickens) who brings him his payments from Quittner.
An evangelist, Reverend Joshua Sloan (Davis Warner) arrives and ends up working with Hogue. Sloan goes to town and discovers a young woman, Claudia (Susan O'Connell) in tears over what Sloan believes to be her husband. When it turns out to be her brother who died and her brutish husband Clete (Gene Evans) arrives, Sloan is forced to do some fast talking.
Meanwhile, Hildy has been run out of town by the good folk and comes to Hogue's station. A relationship develops and things are going along nicely when Hildy decides to follow her dream and go to San Francisco and marry the richest man there. In a tearful good-bye she leaves.
One day, who should get off the stage but Bowen and Taggart. Thet see that Hogue has prospered and return shortly thereafter to rob him. But Hogue is ready for them. Hogue confronts them and is forcing them to undress before casting them into the desert when Taggart refuses and draws on Hogue but is killed in the attempt. The sniveling Bowen begs for his life just as Hildy returns (it is 3 years later) in a fancy automobile and finery Sloan who had also left to pursue his fortune also turns up on a motorcycle with side car.
Hogue realizes that his days as a relay station operator are coming to and end and plans to go to New Orleans with Hildy until.......................................................
Robards, who was known to bend the elbow, must have had a rare good relationship with Peckinpah as both had a penchant for the bottle. Stella Stevens was never more beautiful and makes a feisty and very sexy Hildy. You have got to admire how Slim Pickens handled that six up team that pulled the stagecoach.
No slow motion killings this time although a certain lizard who was blown in half, would disagree.
A penniless hobo, Cable Hogue (Jason Robards Jr.) is left strasnded on the desert by a couple of worthless fiends, Bowen (Strother Martin) and Taggart (L.Q. Jones). Hogue manages, after four days, to stumble upon a spring in the middle of nowhere. As it happens the spring is located on the stagecoach route half way along its' run. Hogue comes up with the idea of charging each user of his water a fee for a drink.
Hogue goes to town and meets with the local banker Cushing (Peter Whitney) who gives him a small loan to help him get started. While in town, Hogue becomes infatuated with a local "saloon girl( named Hildy (Stella Stevens) but she winds up throwing him out of her room.
Back at the water hole, Hogue builds up a ramshackle relay station for the stage line. It becomes successful so he goes to the manager of the line Quittner (R.G.Armstrong) to get authorization (and compensation) to operate the station. Quittner at first refuses and goes to the site to find water on his own but fails and is forced to user Hogue's facilities. Hogue becomes friendly with the stagecoach driver Ben Fairchild (Slim Pickens) who brings him his payments from Quittner.
An evangelist, Reverend Joshua Sloan (Davis Warner) arrives and ends up working with Hogue. Sloan goes to town and discovers a young woman, Claudia (Susan O'Connell) in tears over what Sloan believes to be her husband. When it turns out to be her brother who died and her brutish husband Clete (Gene Evans) arrives, Sloan is forced to do some fast talking.
Meanwhile, Hildy has been run out of town by the good folk and comes to Hogue's station. A relationship develops and things are going along nicely when Hildy decides to follow her dream and go to San Francisco and marry the richest man there. In a tearful good-bye she leaves.
One day, who should get off the stage but Bowen and Taggart. Thet see that Hogue has prospered and return shortly thereafter to rob him. But Hogue is ready for them. Hogue confronts them and is forcing them to undress before casting them into the desert when Taggart refuses and draws on Hogue but is killed in the attempt. The sniveling Bowen begs for his life just as Hildy returns (it is 3 years later) in a fancy automobile and finery Sloan who had also left to pursue his fortune also turns up on a motorcycle with side car.
Hogue realizes that his days as a relay station operator are coming to and end and plans to go to New Orleans with Hildy until.......................................................
Robards, who was known to bend the elbow, must have had a rare good relationship with Peckinpah as both had a penchant for the bottle. Stella Stevens was never more beautiful and makes a feisty and very sexy Hildy. You have got to admire how Slim Pickens handled that six up team that pulled the stagecoach.
No slow motion killings this time although a certain lizard who was blown in half, would disagree.