The Shadow Riders

Sometimes you have to start a war to finish one.

6.5
19821h 36m

After starring in "The Sacketts", Tom Selleck and Sam Elliott team up again but this time as Mac and Dal Traven, in a movie based on a classic Louis L'Amour novel. They are brothers, who meet up at the end of the Civil War fighting on opposite sides. They go home only to find their family in dire need and their sisters and brother kidnapped by ruthless raiders. They set out to rescue their family.

Production

Logo for Columbia Pictures Television

Trailers & Videos

Thumbnail for video: The Shadow Riders (1982) ORIGINAL TRAILER [HD]

The Shadow Riders (1982) ORIGINAL TRAILER [HD]

Cast

Photo of Tom Selleck

Tom Selleck

Mac Traven

Photo of Sam Elliott

Sam Elliott

Dal Traven

Photo of Ben Johnson

Ben Johnson

Uncle 'Black Jack' Traven

Photo of Geoffrey Lewis

Geoffrey Lewis

Major Cooper Ashbury, Comanchero Leader

Photo of Gene Evans

Gene Evans

Colonel Holiday Hammond, Gunrunner

Photo of Katharine Ross

Katharine Ross

Kate Connery / Sister Katherine

Photo of Dominique Dunne

Dominique Dunne

Sissy Traven

Photo of Scanlon Gail

Scanlon Gail

Yankee Officer

Photo of R.G. Armstrong

R.G. Armstrong

Sheriff Miles Gillette

Photo of Marshall R. Teague

Marshall R. Teague

Lieutenant Butler

Photo of Jane Greer

Jane Greer

Ma Traven

Photo of Jeannetta Arnette

Jeannetta Arnette

Southern Belle

Photo of Owen Orr

Owen Orr

Frank King

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Reviews

J

John Chard

5/10

The Traven Brothers.

The Shadow Riders is directed by Andrew V. McLaglen and adapted to screenplay by Jim Byrnes from the novel written by Louis L'Amour. It stars Tom Selleck, Sam Elliott, Katharine Ross, Dominique Dunne, Ben Johnson and Geoffrey Lewis. Music is by Jerrold Immel and cinematography by Jack Whitman.

A CBS TV production, The Shadow Riders has Selleck (Mac Traven) and Elliott (Dal Traven) as brothers, who even though they fought on different sides in the Civil War, there fondness for each other still exists. With the war now officially ended, the brothers meet up and head for the family home, here they find their parents telling of how their sisters and Dal's girlfriend Kate (Ross) have been abducted by Renegade Rebels. The men promptly set off in search of their loved ones...

It's all very much standard stuff, both in plot telling and production values. Exuding very much a family feel, it's a disappointingly bloodless and sexless picture, with some cliché'd dialogue, poor musical accompaniments to certain scenes (tonally way off) and filler sequences thrown in for good measure. That said, it's very much a harmless piece, with the two male leads good company to share some time with, while Johnson and Harry Carey Jr. offer up a welcoming presence. Location scenery is also well photographed, keeping things airy, and ultimately it's a decent enough time waster for Western fans not expecting an under seen gem. 6/10

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