Tom Selleck and Sam Elliott play Mac and Dal Traven, two amiable brothers who fought on opposing sides during the Civil War. Now, the war is over, but one revenge-crazed associate of Dals', Major Ashbury (Geoffrey Lewis), is intent on keeping the war going. To that end, he's made an alliance with a rascally gun runner, Holiday Hammond (Gene Evans). Meanwhile, Ashbury and his men have gone on a spree of crimes including the kidnapping of members of the Traven family.
This Louis L'Amour adaptation (by executive producer Jim Byrnes) amounts to agreeable entertainment, with the expected stunts, action scenes, and lovely scenery. The story is nothing special, but it's not hard to follow, and it DOES kill time amiably. What really makes it work as well as it does is the able cast, including such Western veterans as Ben Johnson (as Mac and Dals' scoundrel of an uncle, Black Jack Traven), R.G. Armstrong, and Harry Carey, Jr. Elliotts' real-life longtime companion, Katharine Ross, is vibrant as Kate, and it's no surprise that the two of them share a natural chemistry. Jeff Osterhage co-stars as a scrappy Traven sibling. Other familiar faces include Dominique Dunne (in what was sadly her last role), Marshall R. Teague, and Jane Greer as Carey's wife. Selleck and Elliott look right at home in this genre, just as they always do, and show off plenty of charisma. Johnson clearly has fun getting to play a colourful role.
The writing might not be particularly sharp or witty, but these filmmakers, led by director Andrew V. McLaglen, *still* manage to show their audience a pretty good time. Nobody ever appears to take any of this very seriously, anyway. It's just "good", lighthearted, amiable, predictable TV-level Western storytelling.
Seven out of 10.
