Cattle Drive movies are a special kind of western. While drives figure into a lot of them, few are really ABOUT them. They tend to be a lot more about the characters, relationships, and struggle against the elements. Cattle Empire isn't the best by far. Red River, Lonesome Dove, and even episode of the miniseries Centennial, "The Longhorns" are better. However, there's plenty to see here.
Joel McCrae gives a good performance as John Cord, a man whose reputation has been tarnished and starts conflicted between a desire to get back at those who unjustly punished him and his true nature as an honest, dedicated trail boss. Don Haggerty as Ralph Hamilton is probably the only really other performance of note. A man blinded by Cord years previously, but is more than willing to give him a second chance. Ostensibly, it's because he's desperate to get his cattle to market first and he knows Cord is his best chance. However, it's clear all along he's harboring a secret.
The rest of the cast is mainly by the numbers. Most of the people working under Cord are so openly hostile, it's actually hard to sympathize with the damage Cord's men did to them and their town five years earlier. This includes Hamilton's younger brother Douglas. More fleshing out would have served them well and made the final revelation more satisfying as we don't care that they feel guilty.
The villain of the piece is fairly straightforwardly evil, but is clearly outmatched by Cord in all respects, so he never feels that threatening. Of course a cattle drive film doesn't really nee a villain and he would have served just as well as a competitor than an outright villain. It seems the cliched showdown is the only reason.
Watch for McCrae, an entertaining and underrated actor.
Joel McCrae gives a good performance as John Cord, a man whose reputation has been tarnished and starts conflicted between a desire to get back at those who unjustly punished him and his true nature as an honest, dedicated trail boss. Don Haggerty as Ralph Hamilton is probably the only really other performance of note. A man blinded by Cord years previously, but is more than willing to give him a second chance. Ostensibly, it's because he's desperate to get his cattle to market first and he knows Cord is his best chance. However, it's clear all along he's harboring a secret.
The rest of the cast is mainly by the numbers. Most of the people working under Cord are so openly hostile, it's actually hard to sympathize with the damage Cord's men did to them and their town five years earlier. This includes Hamilton's younger brother Douglas. More fleshing out would have served them well and made the final revelation more satisfying as we don't care that they feel guilty.
The villain of the piece is fairly straightforwardly evil, but is clearly outmatched by Cord in all respects, so he never feels that threatening. Of course a cattle drive film doesn't really nee a villain and he would have served just as well as a competitor than an outright villain. It seems the cliched showdown is the only reason.
Watch for McCrae, an entertaining and underrated actor.