[Jeremiah finds Del Gue buried in the sand]
Jeremiah: Indians put you here?
Del Gue: Well, it weren't Mormons. Blackfoot name a Mad Wolf, nice enough fellow, don't talk a whole hell of a lot.


Jeremiah Johnson (1972)

Directed by Sydney Pollack

Robert Redford as Jeremiah Johnson
Will Geer as Bear Claw Chris Lapp
Stefan Gierasch as Del Gue
Delle Bolton as Swan
Josh Albee as Caleb


Storyline / Plot


Jeremiah Johnson had no desire to fight in the Mexican war headed out west instead. After stopping by a frontier trading post to buy traps, supplies and a rifle, Jeremiah headed for the Rocky Mountains. Little did he know, he was in way over his head. The first couple of months nearly killed him. There was a lot more to learn than he had expected. It was the little things that got Jeremiah in trouble. He didn’t have enough food. After running out of food and getting very hungry, he bails into a stream and gets wet during freezing temperatures. Furthermore, he can’t seem to shoot or stalk game worth a hill of beans. Another lesson Jeremiah learns is not to build a camp fire under fir trees laden with snow. Jeremiah was right at the end of his wit when he runs across Bear Claw (Will Geer) a very practiced mountain man.

If Jeremiah had not have run into Bear Claw, with out a doubt, he would have met his maker right there in those frozen mountain meadows. Bear Claw is as funny as he is ornery. Right off the bat he gives Jeremiah Johnson a real initiation to life style of the Rocky Mountains…

Bear Claw: Can you skin Grizz?
Jeremiah: I can skin'em as fast as you can catch'em.
[Bear Claw runs through the cabin with a massive Grizzly close behind him and jumps out the back window]
Bear Claw: Skin that one greenhorn and I'll get you another!


Jeremiah spends the winter with Bear Claw and learns the essentials to staying alive in the mountains. Spring arrives and Jeremiah strikes out to find some good trapping. Along the way he runs across a fellow mountain man buried plum up to his neck in the sand. It turns out that Del Gue (Stefan Gierasch) had a difference of opinion with the Indians.


[Jeremiah finds Del Gue buried in the sand]
Jeremiah: Indians put you here?
Del Gue: Well, it weren't Mormons. Blackfoot name a Mad Wolf, nice enough fellow, don't talk a whole hell of a lot.

Jeremiah helps Del Gue and makes another friend in the process. Friends were a very dear thing to have that far west in those times. I am not sure if Del Gue was a help or a hindrance. Although Del Gue was a precarious character, he was able to speak several tongues of the native Indians. This saved their scalps on more than one occasion. Along the way Jeremiah had taken a wife and a young mute boy who was a survivor of an Indian attack on a family of white settlers. His Indian wife and the boy had built a cabin and were quite content when Jeremiah makes a grave decision.

[Spoiler Paragraph]

The Army sent a detachment of it’s 3rd Calvary to rescue a group of stranded settlers in the Rockies. Jeremiah agreed to guide them through the frozen passes to the stranded group of settlers. Along the way they go across a sacred Crow burial ground. Jeremiah knew better and would pay for his decision dearly. When he returned home his family had been slaughtered by the Crow. Jeremiah goes on the war path and the Crow want his hair! The rest of the film is survival of the fittest as the Crow and Jeremiah Johnson have their own private war.

Conclusion

In my opinion Jeremiah Johnson is one of the better movies to come out of the seventies. It is also one of Sydney Pollacks best films as a director. The acting by Redford, Geer and Gierasch were all outstanding. I believe Jeremiah Johnson and The Last Castle are two of Robert Redford’s best performances. The plot was straightforward and entertaining. The scenery of the Zion National Park in Utah was gorgeous. When combined with the cinematography and directing it makes a breathtaking setting for the movie, Jeremiah Johnson. I was glad to see it available on DVD. I immediately purchased the film for my personal collection. I would recommend Jeremiah Johnson to anyone who enjoys outdoors types of movies or Westerns.


Quotes From Jeremiah Johnson

Jeremiah: Won't he see my feet?
Bear Claw: Elk don't know how many feet a horse has!
-------
Del Gue: Ain't that Hatchet Jack's rifle?
Jeremiah: Yep, found him froze to a tree.
Del Gue: Damn! He was a wild one, old Hatchet Jack. He was livin' two year in a cave up on the Mussel shell with a female panther. She never did get used to him.


Features From The DVD: Jeremiah Johnson

• Original Theatrical Trailer
• Featurette; The saga of Jeremiah Johnson
• Interactive menus & Production notes


Similar Movies
• The Mountain Men


RUNTIME 1 hours 56 minutes
Rated: [PG] For violence / language

Thanks for the read,
~Mac

©2004 Joe McMaster

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older