When it comes to "coming of age" films, no actor was better at portraying the misguided, troubled teen than Robby Benson: from his TV films "Death Be Not Proud" (1975) and "The Death of Richie" (1977), to his theatrical films "Ode to Billy Joe" (1976) and "One on One" (1977), Benson always delivers on-screen.
Here, Benson makes his feature film debut -- and as a leading man at the age of fifteen! (not forgetting his pre-stardom bit parts in the 1974 TV films "Remember When," "All the Kind Strangers," and "Virginia Hill") -- in this adaptation of a best-selling 1969 western novel of the same name.
After the murder of his drunkard lawyer of a father at the hands of a drunken Union soldier in a senseless bar brawl, Jory is left fatherless and homeless. Later, upon confronting the drunk soldier, who subsequently attacks Jory, the youth easily -- yet accidentally -- kills him.
Now a fugitive, Jory finds a job -- and home -- as part of a horse-drive; he gains a defacto father in the drive's leader (an excellently-grizzled John Marley, best known for the "horse head" scene in "The Godfather") and brother in the gun-trick slingin' Jocko (a really good, yet one-and-done acting gig by musician BJ Thomas, known for the worldwide hits "Hooked on a Feeling" and "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head"; he does theme song, "Jory," here). While his fellow cowhands doubt the meek fifteen year old can meet the demands of the job, Jory "comes of age" and not only proves himself to his fellow cattle-drivin' cowboys, but becomes an affable gunslinger -- and avenges the murder of Jocko.
While "Jory" is certainly a well-shot and edited film, as well as acted (look for a young Anne Lockhart and Linda Purl), amid the flux of westerns of the time, "Jory" failed to find an audience; it proved to be the only English-language feature film from Mexican director Jorge Fons.
"Jory" proves to be a great start of a career, as Robby Benson really shines; more so that he's the same age of his character -- and not some a thirty year old playing a fifteen year old (as did Mark Hamill at the age of 25 playing a 19 year old; Benson auditioned but lost out on the orphaned space jockey role; ironic considering "Star Wars: ANH" (itself a space western) and "Jory" follow the same plotting -- with BJ Thomas's Jocko as an ersatz Han Solo, here).
While you can watch "Jory" both on You Tube and Tubi (the former is the better-quality rip; not as washed-out and blurry), you can also pick up a copy as part of Mill Creek's "The Swinging Seventies" 50-film pack.
Here, Benson makes his feature film debut -- and as a leading man at the age of fifteen! (not forgetting his pre-stardom bit parts in the 1974 TV films "Remember When," "All the Kind Strangers," and "Virginia Hill") -- in this adaptation of a best-selling 1969 western novel of the same name.
After the murder of his drunkard lawyer of a father at the hands of a drunken Union soldier in a senseless bar brawl, Jory is left fatherless and homeless. Later, upon confronting the drunk soldier, who subsequently attacks Jory, the youth easily -- yet accidentally -- kills him.
Now a fugitive, Jory finds a job -- and home -- as part of a horse-drive; he gains a defacto father in the drive's leader (an excellently-grizzled John Marley, best known for the "horse head" scene in "The Godfather") and brother in the gun-trick slingin' Jocko (a really good, yet one-and-done acting gig by musician BJ Thomas, known for the worldwide hits "Hooked on a Feeling" and "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head"; he does theme song, "Jory," here). While his fellow cowhands doubt the meek fifteen year old can meet the demands of the job, Jory "comes of age" and not only proves himself to his fellow cattle-drivin' cowboys, but becomes an affable gunslinger -- and avenges the murder of Jocko.
While "Jory" is certainly a well-shot and edited film, as well as acted (look for a young Anne Lockhart and Linda Purl), amid the flux of westerns of the time, "Jory" failed to find an audience; it proved to be the only English-language feature film from Mexican director Jorge Fons.
"Jory" proves to be a great start of a career, as Robby Benson really shines; more so that he's the same age of his character -- and not some a thirty year old playing a fifteen year old (as did Mark Hamill at the age of 25 playing a 19 year old; Benson auditioned but lost out on the orphaned space jockey role; ironic considering "Star Wars: ANH" (itself a space western) and "Jory" follow the same plotting -- with BJ Thomas's Jocko as an ersatz Han Solo, here).
While you can watch "Jory" both on You Tube and Tubi (the former is the better-quality rip; not as washed-out and blurry), you can also pick up a copy as part of Mill Creek's "The Swinging Seventies" 50-film pack.