Posse (1975 film)

Posse is a 1975 Americanrevisionist Western film inTechnicolor andPanavision. It was produced and directed byKirk Douglas who also starred. The screenplay was written byChristopher Knopf andWilliam Roberts. The plot centers on aU.S. marshal with political ambitions leading an elite posse in pursuit of a notorious train robber to further his political career. The film premiered in New York City on June 4, 1975, and in June the same year inBerlin at the25th Berlin International Film Festival, where Douglas was nominated for theGolden Bear.^[1]

Posse
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Kirk Douglas
Screenplay by	Christopher Knopf William Roberts
Based on	The Train 1971 short story byLarry Cohen Robert Perham
Produced by	Kirk Douglas Phil Feldman
Starring	Kirk Douglas Bruce Dern Bo Hopkins James Stacy Luke Askew David Canary
Cinematography	Fred J. Koenekamp
Edited by	John W. Wheeler
Music by	Maurice Jarre
Production company	The Bryna Company
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date	June 4, 1975 (1975-06-04)
Running time	92 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Plot

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Howard Nightingale (Douglas), a U.S. marshal, leads an elite uniformedposse to track down and capture infamous train robber Jack Strawhorn (Bruce Dern). He is doing so to further his political career, as he is running to become a U. S.Senator. When Nightingale captures Strawhorn, his election seems inevitable, but Strawhorn disrupts everything when he escapes, kidnapping Nightingale in the process. He demands a ransom of $40,000 from the posse for Nightingale's safe return—the same amount of money the posse burned when it first tracked Strawhorn down and killed the members of his gang. To raise the money, Nightingale's posse has to rob the town, thus turning the public against Nightingale. The posse members, since they first captured Strawhorn, had been given reason to doubt that their loyalty to Nightingale is reciprocated. It sets up a final confrontation where they have to reassess on whose side they are.