ActionWesternAdventure

Bite the Bullet

At the beginning of the 20th century, a newspaper organizes an endurance horse race : 700 miles to run in a few days. 9 adventurers are competing, among them a woman, Miss Jones, a Mexican, an Englishman, a young cow-boy, an old one and two friends, Sam Clayton and Luke Matthews. All those individualists will learn to respect each other.

Release Date : 1975-09-26

Language :SpanishEnglish

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : Persky-Bright ProductionsVistaColumbia Pictures

Production Country : United States of America

Alternative Titles :

Cast

Character Name : Sam Clayton

Original Name : Gene Hackman

Gender : Male

Character Name : Miss Jones

Original Name : Candice Bergen

Gender : Female

Character Name : Luke Matthews

Original Name : James Coburn

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mister

Original Name : Ben Johnson

Gender : Male

Character Name : Sir Harry Norfolk

Original Name : Ian Bannen

Gender : Male

Character Name : Carbo

Original Name : Jan-Michael Vincent

Gender : Male

Character Name : Jack Parker

Original Name : Dabney Coleman

Gender : Male

Character Name : Honey

Original Name : Sally Kirkland

Gender : Female

Character Name : Slim

Original Name : Buddy Van Horn

Gender : Male

Character Name : Rosie

Original Name : Jean Willes

Gender : Female

Character Name : Mexican

Original Name : Mario Arteaga

Gender : Male

Character Name : Reporter

Original Name : Robert Donner

Gender : Male

Character Name :

Original Name : Lucia Canales

Gender : Male

Character Name : Gebhardt

Original Name : John McLiam

Gender : Male

Character Name : Lee Christie

Original Name : Robert F. Hoy

Gender : Male

Character Name : The Wood Cutter

Original Name : Jerry Gatlin

Gender : Male

Character Name : Steve

Original Name : Walter Scott

Gender : Male

Character Name : Billy

Original Name : William H. Burton Jr.

Gender : Male

Character Name :

Original Name : Joe Brooks

Gender : Male

Character Name :

Original Name : Darwin Lamb

Gender : Male

Character Name : J.B. Parker (uncredited)

Original Name : Paul Stewart

Gender : Male

Reviews

Wuchak

@Wuchak

2021-06-23

***Big-budget Western about a 700-mile endurance race with a top-notch cast*** In 1906, a 700-mile horse race in the Western wilderness is sponsored by a newspaper. The racers include two former Rough Riders (Gene Hackman & James Coburn), a part-time prostitute (Candice Bergen), a punk “Kid” (Jan-Michael Vincent), an aged cowboy (Ben Johnson), a Mexican with a toothache (Mario Arteaga) and an English gent (Ian Bannen). “Bite the Bullet” (1975) was written & directed by Richard Brooks, who said the movie is based on several historical cross-country races subsidized by newspapers and cities from 1880-1910. The most well-known was a 1908 race from Evanston, Wyoming, to Denver backed by the Denver Post with a $2500 prize, which was his main inspiration. While this was a big budget production with a kick-axx cast it’s not often cited on Best Westerns lists, probably because the long race makes it a one-of-a-kind Western that’s not about a suspense-building story, but rather an episodic adventure with character-defining vignettes. Speaking of which, it helps if you utilize the subtitles to keep up with the sometimes mumbled dialogues. Unfortunately, the escaped convict subplot seems shoehorned into the last act. It's like Brooks tried too hard to concoct an "exciting" ending, but ended up almost ruining the movie. The film runs 2 hours, 12 minutes, and was shot in Nevada (Carson National Forest & Lake Mead), New Mexico (White Sands) and Colorado. GRADE: C+/B-