The Tracker (1988)

Noble Adams, a legendary tracker, is coaxed out of retirement to hunt down crazed killer Red Jack Stilwell and his gang. Now it's kill or be killed in a West so wild you can never turn your back on a stranger.

The Tracker

One of the greatest westerns I have watched. Of course I think Kris Kristofferson rates one of the greatest. I don't like sad ending movies but I am so glad I didn't miss this one. Noble Adams (Kris) was one of the best trackers of his time. He showed no mercy to the killers he tracted and he knew if he wasn't hard they would surley kill him. But on his gentle loving side he send his son Tom Adams (Mark Moses) to get an education so people would look up to him and he could walk proud. Noble now felt no one would ever feel Tom was unfortunate. Mark did a great job of acting and sure gave the movie some suprises of what a college student could learn along with book learning. I recommend this DVD highly
I will watch it again and again.
Tom Adams April 17, 2008

DVD movies

I remember this movie from my days watching cable TV movies. I love westerns, not enough made nowadays. Good story, solid movie, but limited appeal. October 18, 2007

No Academy Awards Here

A pretty lame western from all aspects. Weak story line, poor character development and the acting (if one can call it that)was almost non-existant. The movie was filmed in beautiful locations however, the director was not even interested enough in the project to shoot in locations void of jet trails in the sky.

If you like westerns like I do, I would not watch this one more than once. I was very relieved when it ended, so relieved I skipped the credits at the end. January 14, 2006

Good morality tale

Westerns seem uniquely well suited for the presentation of (near) epic morality tales. Even when made for television they lend themselves to the Big Issues. Beautifully filmed in New Mexico, THE TRACKER is a 1988 HBO production that touches on the stuff with deep roots - need and obligation, trust and home. Mostly, though, it about vengeance and the fine line between the Good and the Bad.

The Bad is ably portrayed by Scott Wilson, who's probably best remembered as Robert Blake's killing-spree partner in In Cold Blood. Wilson plays fervent Danite and general sicko Jack `Red Jack' Stillwell. The legendary Danites, as the movie explains, were a perverted branch of Mormons who cleansed the Earth by indiscriminate murder. When Red Jack and gang invade New Mexico Federal Marshal Lane Crawford (David Huddleston) is called on to track them down, dead or alive. But Crawford isn't as young as he used to be, and he needs help. He calls on old friend and renowned tracker Noble Adams (Kris Kristofferson - `even the Apaches were afraid of Adams.') Although inwardly reluctant, Adams agrees to track down the bad guys. Even more reluctant is he to allow his half-son Tom (Mark Moses) to tag along, but the young man is set on it. And so it is three hunting six - four bad guys and two female hostages.

Although Kristofferson sometimes comes across a little detached he doesn't do anything here to embarrass Kevin Jarre's smart script or John Guillermin's taut direction. Noble Adams is more complex than Kristofferson plays him. He's a reluctant avenger, a brutal killer when the situation demands it, a man who sends his son off to college and learns that his return home may not be permanent. It's the type of character western fans like to cheer for, one that's best developed by an actor who can play all the angles. We cheer for Adams, alright, but we're a lot more interested when Wilson's Red Jack is on the screen. All that doesn't make THE TRACKER any less a very good western, nor one that I wouldn't hesitate to heartily endorse.
October 23, 2005

Formulaic HBO entry

Plot, drama, suspense, character development -- this western has them all, to reasonable measure. It seems awfully like other HBO movies I have seen. If you like westerns, this may be a candidate for an evening's entertainment. If you like exceptional westerns, try "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance", "A Big Hand for the Little Lady", "El Mariachi", "Stagecoach" or the Clint Eastwood spaghetti westerns. September 6, 2003

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