Search - The Shooting

Director Monte Hellman used his beloved "hunter as hunted" theme for his near-existential western The Shooting. Jack Nicholson and Warren Oates are starred in this bare-bones tale of an ex-bounty hunter (Oates) with a price on his head and the cocky young gun (Nicholson) who hopes to collect. The film seems to be exclusively populated by Life's Losers; but even with portents of doom throughout, the ending is still a jaw-dropping experience. Demonstrating the parsimony he'd learned while working with Roger Corman, director Hellman shot The Shooting in Utah simultaneously with another feature, Ride in the Whirlwind, for a combined budget of $150,000. Completed in 1967, The Shooting did not receive widespread release until after Jack Nicholson achieved stardom in the early 1970s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Warren Oates - Willett Gashade
Will Hutchins - Coley
Millie Perkins - Woman
Jack Nicholson - Billy Spear

Considering its low budget and age, Monte Hellman's existential Western =The Shooting looks stunning in this 1.85:1 widescreen transfer. The browns and reds of the desert burn off the screen, allowing the movie's desolate feel to sink in, while the Dolby Digital Audio does justice to the tension-filled score and dialogue -- one can't ask for more in audio and video quality. Supplemental material isn't too skimpy either, though the firing-gun animation that crops up between menu selections is more than a bit annoying. The commentary, in the form of a Q&A session with Monte Hellman and actress Millie Perkins, is informative and sometimes riveting, but no real secrets are handed out; a viewer still has to decide on his or her own who the characters are and what their motives may be. The "Cast & Crew" feature is definitely one of the better biography/filmography supplements of this nature; the information doesn't seem tacked on and the menus are quite attractive and professional. The "Photo Gallery" presents nine black-and-white, behind-the-scenes images of cast and crew. The "Chapters" menu allows instant access to the DVD's 12 chapters. Trailers for The Shooting, Cockfighter, and Ride the Whirlwind (all of them Hellman movies), as well as a TV spot for Cockfighter, can be viewed via the "Coming Attractions" feature. ~ Tim DiGravina, All Movie Guide

These movies have the subject or theme of The Shooting...
4	Yellow Sky (NR)
3	Jesse James (NR)
2	Terror in a Texas Town (NR)
S	Any Gun Can Play
2	7 Men From Now (NR)
S	Budd Boetticher Box Set [Widescreen]
S	Budd Boetticher Box Set [Widescreen]
These movies share cast/crew with The Shooting...
1	Ride in the Whirlwind (NR)
9	Goin' South [Widescreen] (PG)
1	China 9, Liberty 37 (R)
2	Cockfighter [Widescreen] (R)
5	The Last Detail (R)
2	The Missouri Breaks (PG)
6	The Two Jakes (R)
13	The Terror
16	The Wild Bunch (R)
89	A Few Good Men (R)
1	Beast From Haunted Cave [Special Extended Version] (NR)
4	Return of the Magnificent Seven (NR)
S	Back Door to Hell (NR)
These movies are similar to The Shooting...
S	Chato's Land (PG)
17	One-Eyed Jacks
1	Ride in the Whirlwind (NR)
S	The Stalking Moon (G)
1	China 9, Liberty 37 (R)
6	Two-Lane Blacktop [Widescreen] (R)
1	The Wooden Gun (NR)