RIDE THE HIGH COUNTRY (1961) Old-timers and newcomers in Peckinpah's dying West

In Sam Peckinpah’s RIDE THE HIGH COUNTRY, it's get to see two aging actors, Joel McCrea and Randolph Scott, both Western icons who had specialized in characters of quiet heroism and other admirable qualities, sharing the screen. Steve Judd (McCrea) and Gil Westrum (Scott), hired to transport gold from a mining community through dangerous territory, reminisce as they ride. Steve is a man of moral rectitude who believes in fulfilling his obligations, 'doing the job' just like in his old days as lawman; Westrum is out to make one last score so as to retire with a measure of comfort. Both are heroic figures – old-timers striving to make ends meet in a changing West where they no longer belong, and for both, it's the last ride. And a darned good one but for a silly subplot involving a naive bride (Mariette Hartley) and her uncouth husband-to-be. (Trivia note: This was Hartley’s first film in what has become a long career in movies and TV. She played the young girl headed to her wedding. In the '70s, I cast her in a Haggar slacks commercial.)