The Outlaw Josey Wales
Movie, 1976, The '70s, Set in After the Civil War
The Outlaw Josey Wales is #20 of 34 in release order and #17 of 34 in chronological order in the Westerns.
The story
After avenging his family's brutal murder, Wales is pursued by a pack of soldiers. He prefers to travel alone, but ragtag outcasts are drawn to him - and Wales can't bring himself to leave them unprotected.
The Outlaw Josey Wales recap
The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) follows a Missouri farmer who joins Confederate guerrillas after Union raiders kill his family, then flees to Texas. Clint Eastwood directs and stars as Josey. Redlegs led by Captain Terrill (Bill McKinney) burn his farm and murder his wife and son. When the war ends, Josey refuses to surrender with his band; the rest are betrayed by their leader Fletcher (John Vernon) and massacred by Union troops. Josey shoots up the camp, escapes with the wounded young Jamie, and becomes a wanted man hunted by Terrill and Fletcher. Heading south he gathers a ragged family: Lone Watie (Chief Dan George), an elderly Cherokee; Little Moonlight, a Navajo woman he saves from traders; and Grandma Sarah and her granddaughter Laura Lee (Sondra Locke), Kansas settlers he rescues from Comancheros. They settle on Sarah's Texas ranch, and Josey rides alone to make peace with the Comanche chief Ten Bears (Will Sampson). A 1986 sequel, The Return of Josey Wales, starred Michael Parks.
The Outlaw Josey Wales ending explained
The Outlaw Josey Wales ends with Josey killing Terrill with his own sabre and being let go by Fletcher, who pretends not to know him. Terrill's Redlegs attack the ranch and the family fights them off. In the town of Santo Rio, the locals tell Texas Rangers that Josey Wales died in Mexico, and Fletcher goes along, saying he will look for Josey in Mexico himself. Josey says they all died a little in that war and rides off, bleeding. The film adapts Forrest Carter's novel Gone to Texas.
Post-credits scenes
No. There is no post-credits scene.
Where to watch The Outlaw Josey Wales
The Outlaw Josey Wales is streaming on YouTube (free) in the US. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 7.8/10, Rotten Tomatoes 91%
Where it fits
- Release order: after Blazing Saddles, before Pale Rider.
- Chronological order: after Blazing Saddles, before Pale Rider.
Cast
- Clint Eastwood as Josey Wales
- Chief Dan George as Lone Watie
- Sondra Locke as Laura Lee
- Bill McKinney as Terrill
- John Vernon as Fletcher
- Paula Trueman as Grandma Sarah
- Sam Bottoms as Jamie
- Geraldine Keams as Little Moonlight
- Woodrow Parfrey as Carpetbagger
- Joyce Jameson as Rose
- Sheb Wooley as Travis Cobb
- Royal Dano as Ten Spot
Directed by Clint Eastwood.