The Lusty Men (1952)

100% of critics liked it
(10 reviews)
87% of users liked it
(338 ratings)

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… More 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 wife Susan Hayward; she can take Mitchum or leave him, but decides to take him so that he'll continue to train Kennedy. After a falling out, Mitchum quits his job and enters the rodeo himself, hoping to win the prize from the arrogant Kennedy. He proves he still has what it takes, but does so at the price of his life. The Lusty Men was co-adapted by one-time cowboy David Dotort from a Life magazine story by Claude Stannish. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 53 min.
Directed By: Nicholas Ray
Genres: Western, Drama

In Theaters: Sep 24, 1952 Wide

Critic Reviews

Variety Staff, Variety
A somewhat slow starter, once underway it is kept playing with growing interest under Nicholas Ray's firm direction.
Bosley Crowther, New York Times
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.
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
A masterpiece by Nicholas Ray -- perhaps the most melancholy and reflective of his films.
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
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.
, TV Guide's Movie Guide
Ray's direction is superb, and all three leads give bravura performances.
Leo Goldsmith, Not Coming to a Theater Near You
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
, Time Out
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.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Ray takes a thin story and enriches it with depth, complexity, and interesting characters.
, Film4
[Ray] was happiest with personal stories where a confrontation between characters leads to a conclusion, however sombre. The confrontation here is complex.
Jeremy Heilman, MovieMartyr.com
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.

Read all 10 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Stella D

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
jay n

spare tough little drama of the rodeo circuit. Fine performances

Cast

            Susan Hayward as Louise Merritt

            Robert Mitchum as Jeff McCloud

            Arthur Kennedy as Wes Merritt

            Arthur Hunnicutt as Booker Davis

            Frank Faylen as Al Dawson

            Walter Coy as Buster Burgess

            Carol Nugent as Rusty Davis

            Maria Hart as Rosemary Maddox

            Lorna Thayer as Grace Burgess

            Burt Mustin as Jeremiah

            Karen King as Ginny Logan

            Jimmy Dodd as Red Logan

            Eleanor Todd as Babs

            Lane Bradford as Jim-Bob Tyler

            Robert Bray as Fritz

            Paul E. Burns as Waite

            Mary Jane Carey
            
            Lane Chandler as Announcer

            Sam Flint as Doctor

            Riley Hill as Hoag the Ranch Hand

            Emmett Lynn as Travis White

            Dennis Moore as Cashier

            Denver Pyle as Niko

            Marshall Reed as Jim-Bob

            Chuck Roberson as Tall Cowboy

            George Sherwood as Vet

            Glenn Strange as Rig Ferris the Foreman

            Ralph Volkie as Slicker

            Dan White
            
            Chili Williams
            
            Sheb Wooley as Slim

            Gerald Roberts
            
            Hazel Boyne
            
            Alice Kirby as Girl

            Sally Yarnell
            
            Jerry Ambler
            
            Louise Saraydar
            
See full cast