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| Director: Tom Gries
Actors: Charlton Heston, Joan Hackett, Donald Pleasence, Lee Majors, Bruce Dern
Studio: Warner Home Video
List Price: $9.95
Buy New: $0.99
You Save: $8.96 (90%)
New (9) Used (22) Collectible (7) from $0.99
Rating:  42 reviews
Sales Rank: 2555
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Hifi Sound, Original Recording Reissued, Original Recording Remastered, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: VHS Tape
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 108 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.3 x 4.2 x 1.1
ISBN: 0792110463
UPC: 097360672336
EAN: 9780792110460
ASIN: 0792110463
Theatrical Release Date: April 10, 1968
Release Date: January 1, 1998
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-10 of 42
 tom gries misses the target February 26, 2002
R. Durham (Lakeside Park, KY United States)
6 out of 13 found this review helpful
I can't join the other reviewers in their praise for this movie. Tom Gries attempts, through character development, to present a "thinking man's" movie, but winds up with a s-l-o-o-w moving "entertainment" movie. My take: STORY (2*) This is merely an extended diary of what Will did yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Although the events do have some relevance to each other, they are presented in a slightly dis-jointed fashion that keeps the movie from segueing smoothly from scene to scene. I was also uncomfortable with the finish and it's failure to complete the minor tensions in the plot (ie what will happen to Hackett and her son? How does Ben Johnson's character respond to the events? Has Will Penny retained his honor (most important trait for any western hero?, etc.)) ACTING (2*): Heston carries this film with an understated performance, closely followed by Hackett as the love interest. Johnson is his usual solid self. All others are forced to the point of caricature, particularly Donald Pleasence. The result is an ensemble that I am not emotionally invested in. CINEMATOGRAPHY (3*): I have pan-and-scan, but even in wide screen this is an average presentation from an artistic viewpoint, with very little sense of big-sky. MUSIC (4*): The opening theme is superb western movie music, the rest forgettable. For Heston-Hackett fans, go for it, otherwise not recommended.
WILL - (SHANE) - PENNY MEETS PALE RIDER April 23, 2007
wdanthemanw (Geneva, Switzerland)
6 out of 10 found this review helpful
Director Tom Gries is mostly known for the two movies, Breakout and Breakheart Pass, he directed in 1975 for Charles Bronson at the peak of his career then. But this director, unlike the great majority of his contemporary colleagues of the end of the sixties, had the one in a lifetime opportunity to direct a script he had himself written and this movie was WILL PENNY, shot during the 1967-1968 winter.
If, during the projection of the film, the viewer inevitably thinks about George Stevens's Shane, WILL PENNY nevertheless lives its own life and offers scenes that linger in the head, at least mine, for quite a while. First of all, I must say that the scenes between Charlton Heston and Joan Hackett are so bashful and true that I had to make an effort to remember that I was watching a western, the male cinematographic genre in essence. Secondly, I was captivated by the performance of Donald Pleasence who, as Preacher Quint, fills the screen with his magnetism as soon as he appears. Look at him when he curses Will Penny after the death of his son Romulus or when he starts to dance alone in Penny's cabin, madness is literally pouring out of him. These are great moments of Cinema.
A DVD zone baby, it's cold outside.
Will Penny March 15, 2000
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
I have the great privilege to know Mr. Heston, and Will Penny is one his favorites. It was particularly advantageous because he could home once in awhile! The intense character he portrayed is worth the price, and I would consider it a "sleeper" type of film. If you look at the cast, and the interaction you can see that the actors chosen for this film are right on. Let it grow on you. Yep, it's a little slow at times, but given the times (and some reflection on the reality of those times) it is a good flick...
 A Real Life Western with a Super Cast August 9, 1999
elkman2@juno.com (U.S.A.)
5 out of 7 found this review helpful
This movie was so real. It was like a camera coming down from the sky and focusing on "Will Penny" and following his life for a few months. Powerfull cast and heart wrenching story. The best western I have ever seen. Joan Hackett was superb!!
This is possibly the richest film I have ever seen. December 10, 1999
5 out of 9 found this review helpful
As well as my favorite. I'd been looking for it on video for years, scouting the TV listing for the rare times that TNT or AMC would show it. This is simply a magnificent piece of cinema, with incredibly graceful camera work, classic characters, and simply the best score I've had the pleasure to hear. The music itself is reason enough to watch the film. I know, I know, it's long and maybe a little slow at times, but this isn't Bruce Willis here, this is art. I've been tellng people about this movie for years. Spread the word.
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