Will Penny

“He was a peaceful man. But he could kill! He was a hard man. But he could smile! He was a shy and lonely man. But he could love!”

Will Penny (Charlton Heston) is an aging cowpoke who wants one more paying job, so he takes work riding the line of a ranch, watching for trespassers and squatters. High in the mountains, he finds Catherine Allen (Joan Hackett) and her young son already living in his cabin, left behind by the guide who was taking them to Oregon. Tom Gries writes and directs with a slow patience, letting the winter close in around them.