Tom Horn (1980)

Disapointment

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Blistering performances.

This is unfairly forgotten western from the decade were western were slowly dying until the 1985. " Tom Horn" deserves more praise , since this is a good western and one of last movies of Steve McQueen. It's his last good movie.The movie is full of brilliant dialogues. I don't remember when was the last time I have seen a movie where almost every exchange is intelligent and funny. The movie is worth watching for the dialogues alone.The story is a little predictable , but the movie is well directed by William Wiard and grips you from start to finish. I felt sad at the end and that was the whole point.The movie made me sad , because it was not only the goodbye to Tom Horn, but also to Steve McQueen ("Papillon") . Both were heroes from the past that were slowly dying in a changing world that didn't need them. McQueen did make one more movie after this one , but for me this is his good bye. A good movie and a great farewell to wonderful actor.I give it 7/10.

This film removes any doubt that at this stage of his career Steve McQueen had moved beyond his King of Cool persona and had become a great actor. The hanging scene is especially moving in light of the fact McQueen was dying of cancer. When he looks at his real-life good buddy Slim Pickens and tells him "Keep your nerve Sam, 'cause I'm gonna keep mine", it's one of the most poignant farewells in movie history. It's a shame that this was not Mc Queen's final moment on film, or that "Tom Horn" was not his final movie. Instead, that distinction went to the "The Hunter," an earnest but flawed action movie. Yet, even here, McQueen manages to impress with his self-deprecating humor: his inept driving and his "I'm too old for this s**t" facial expressions.

This film, while not a classic, is an important and entertaining view of the dying days of the American West. Tom Horn, as portrayed by McQueen, is a legend past his prime.... misunderstood and out of place in the new century. In a number of ways, the film is similar in this respect to the films Unforgiven as well as the Grey Fox (which also featured Richard Farnsworth).My only real disappointment in the film was the short amount of screen time for Linda Evans. She was dynamic in the few scenes in which she appeared and had excellent chemistry with McQueen.This film was superior to the earlier Nevada Smith and is a must-see for fans of the genre .

I was so shocked by Steve McQueen's death, that I could not see this film during years. Tom Horn is an unusual western, a must for everyone who likes the genre. I must confess though that if I had not read some IMDb user comments and and also used Google to know more about Tom Horn the meaning of the film would have escaped me. It is hard to understand why Tom Horn does not defend himself and help his lawyer, but then this is the whole point of the film. Linda Evans is quite a presence, we don't see enough of her, McQueen has quite a performance in spite of being ill, and Richard Farnsworth and Slim Pickens are always a pleasure to see. It is almost as if the film borrows McQueen's style. Objective,tough, nothing is superfluous.