Lonely Are the Brave

A fiercely independent cowboy arranges to have himself locked up in jail in order to then escape with an old friend who has been sentenced to the penitentiary.

• Director: David Miller
• Genre:Drama / Western
• Runtime:103 minutes

Cast

Kirk Douglas : John W. “Jack” Burns
Gena Rowlands : Jerry Bondi
Walter Matthau : Sheriff Morey Johnson
Michael Kane : Paul Bondi
Carroll O’Connor: Hinton (truck driver)

John W. “Jack” Burns (Kirk Douglas) works as a roaming ranch hand much as the cowboys of the old West did, refusing to join modern society. He rejects much of modern technology, not even carrying any kind of identification such as a driver’s license or Social Security card.

Burns rides up on his horse to visit Jerry (Gena Rowlands). She is the wife of an old friend named Paul Bondi who has been jailed for giving aid to illegal immigrants. Jack explains his dislike for a society that restricts a man on where he can or can’t go, what he can or can’t do.

After a violent barroom fight against a one-armed man in which he is compelled to use only one arm himself, Burns is arrested. When the police decide to let him go, he punches a cop to deliberately get himself thrown in jail so he can see Paul.

While there he incurs the wrath of a sadistic deputy (George Kennedy). Burns is badly beaten while under arrest. He tries to persuade Paul to bust out of jail, but Paul has a family and too much at stake to become a fugitive from the law, so he refuses to go. Burns breaks out by himself.

He heads for the hills on horseback. The police mount an extensive search, Sheriff Johnson (Walter Matthau) in charge of the manhunt. When a helicopter joins in the chase, Burns shoots it down with his rifle by damaging its tail rotor, causing the pilot to lose control. The deputy who beat him is also out looking, but Burns gets his revenge. Read more