Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining Story of the Fur Trappers of the Rockies
Review: "The Mountain Men" tells the story of two free-spirited fur trappers along the Rocky Mountain range in the mid-19th century. Billy Tyler(Charlton Heston) and Henry Frapp (Brain Keith) are two rather down-on-their luck trappers living the good life on the wide open frontier, trapping beaver, going to rendezvous, and getting drunk. But the pair get caught up in a raid by Blackfeet Indians and Tyler winds up gaining the affections of Running Moon, the wife of the powerful Blackfeet warrior Heavy Eagle, who soon becomes obssessed with killing Tyler and taking back his "property". Tyler and Frapp spend most of their time paling around and trying to keep one step ahead of the vengeful Heavy Eagle, before finally forced into the obligatory final confrontation. "Mountain Men" is entertaining and interesting in that it depicts a timeperiod often ignored in modern film. While I felt that there was a bit of unnecessary silliness in certain segments, the film held my interest, especially so as it shows the hardships faced by many of the longhunters who went out as the outriders of white civilization, as well as the strong relationship between the whites and the native tribes with whom they lived and died. It is too bad that films of this genre are few and far between. I would also recommend the other fur-trapping classic "Jeremiah Johnson".
Rating: 
Summary: Very Entertaining and Instructive....for Muzzleoaders
Review: "The Mountain Men" tells the story of two free-spirited fur trappers along the Rocky Mountain range in the mid-19th century. Billy Tyler(Charlton Heston) and Henry Frapp (Brain Keith) are two rather down-on-their luck trappers living the good life on the wide open frontier, trapping beaver, going to rendezvous, and getting drunk. But the pair get caught up in a raid by Blackfeet Indians and Tyler winds up gaining the affections of Running Moon, the wife of the powerful Blackfeet warrior Heavy Eagle, who soon becomes obssessed with killing Tyler and taking back his "property". Tyler and Frapp spend most of their time paling around and trying to keep one step ahead of the vengeful Heavy Eagle, before finally forced into the obligatory final confrontation. "Mountain Men" is entertaining and interesting in that it depicts a timeperiod often ignored in modern film. While I felt that there was a bit of unnecessary silliness in certain segments, the film held my interest, especially so as it shows the hardships faced by many of the longhunters who went out as the outriders of white civilization, as well as the strong relationship between the whites and the native tribes with whom they lived and died. It is too bad that films of this genre are few and far between. I would also recommend the other fur-trapping classic "Jeremiah Johnson".
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining Story of the Fur Trappers of the Rockies
Review: "The Mountain Men" tells the story of two free-spirited fur trappers along the Rocky Mountain range in the mid-19th century. Billy Tyler(Charlton Heston) and Henry Frapp (Brain Keith) are two rather down-on-their luck trappers living the good life on the wide open frontier, trapping beaver, going to rendezvous, and getting drunk. But the pair get caught up in a raid by Blackfeet Indians and Tyler winds up gaining the affections of Running Moon, the wife of the powerful Blackfeet warrior Heavy Eagle, who soon becomes obssessed with killing Tyler and taking back his "property". Tyler and Frapp spend most of their time paling around and trying to keep one step ahead of the vengeful Heavy Eagle, before finally forced into the obligatory final confrontation. "Mountain Men" is entertaining and interesting in that it depicts a timeperiod often ignored in modern film. While I felt that there was a bit of unnecessary silliness in certain segments, the film held my interest, especially so as it shows the hardships faced by many of the longhunters who went out as the outriders of white civilization, as well as the strong relationship between the whites and the native tribes with whom they lived and died. It is too bad that films of this genre are few and far between. I would also recommend the other fur-trapping classic "Jeremiah Johnson".
Rating:
Summary: How The West Was Won
Review: Although I enjoy the acting of Charlton Heston this DVD of the Mountain Men is not one of his Oscar winning performances. With that said it is still an enjoyable film with Brian Keith acting a part that is out of character from the usual roles he plays.
I agree to a point with other reviews on the DVD about it effects lose from showing the nature scenes in full screen and not wide screen. I find what has been neglected in the reviews by others about the film is the struggle that is faced by all its characters. First the two mountain men are struggling with the decline of the fur industry and their future in it. Secondly the Native Americans are struggling with the White Man entering upon and changing their way of life. I feel by watching the DVD you get a chance to look at some of the problems that must have been faced by both sides during this period of change in American history.
All in all an enjoyable DVD with a great perspective of how the West must have been won.
Rating:
Summary: amazing
Review: an excellent film, what can i say but it is a one in a millio
Rating: 
Summary: An awful western.
Review: Beware! This film is terrible. The storyline and dialogue are ludicrous. The acting can be charitably described as wooden. The film is just one more "white guys vs. the Indians" psuedo-epic. Most of the Indians look like rejects from a Bonanza episode. Just a mess!
Rating: 
Summary: "Sit down, flatlander."
Review: Hawken muzzle loaders. Plugs of chewing tobacco the size of your fist. Buffalo robes. Beaver pelts. Jugs of whiskey. But enough about last night's party. Director Richard Lang's THE MOUNTAIN MEN is a rough-and-tumble yarn depicting the fur trapping industry's final days in the pristine splendor of the northern Rockies. Even in such a remote region, the demand back East for top hats made of beaver skin resulted in the virtual extinction of the buck-toothed rodents in their mountain habitats; on top of that, silk hats were rapidly becoming the fashion craze, creating even more of a hardship on the gritty mountain men who trapped along countless streams and rivers, searching for what remained of the elusive beaver population. It was a hard life, predicated on an individual's ability to survive in a harsh environment based on his wits and his bare hands. Interaction with other people was rare--the need to get along with neighboring Indian tribes a must. And infrequently, perhaps once every two or three years, the trappers would unite at a "rendezvous" to trade their pelts for cash and let off a little steam. To say that such a gathering was rowdy and violent is kind of like saying turtles have shells. Charlton Heston "shines" (a little mountain man lingo, there) as fur trapper Bill Tyler, a quiet man who only wishes to be left alone so he can find that last valley just teeming with beaver. But there's a problem: while fighting off a band of Blackfoot bent on stealing his horses and supplies he attracts the company of a young squaw (Victoria Racimo) who happens to be married to a chief with a very serious attitude (Stephen Macht). Thus Tyler and his new companion are forced to run, and run, and run some more to escape the warrior's wrath. While Heston is solid in his role, Brian Keith absolutely steals the show as crusty Henry Frapp. Henry, a friend of Tyler's, is a cantankerous, foul-mouthed, fun-loving old coot who vividly breathes life into the mountain man persona. Keith dominates every scene he's in, and he's fun to watch. Heck, THE MOUNTAIN MEN is fun to watch. The screenplay, incidentally, was written by Heston's son, Fraser, who obviously did his homework concerning this fascinating aspect of the Old West. Grab a plug of tobacco and enjoy.
--D. Mikels
Rating:
Summary: "Sit down, flatlander."
Review: Hawken muzzle loaders. Plugs of chewing tobacco the size of your fist. Buffalo robes. Beaver pelts. Jugs of whiskey. But enough about last night's party. Director Richard Lang's THE MOUNTAIN MEN is a rough-and-tumble yarn depicting the fur trapping industry's final days in the pristine splendor of the northern Rockies. Even in such a remote region, the demand back East for top hats made of beaver skin resulted in the virtual extinction of the buck-toothed rodents in their mountain habitats; on top of that, silk hats were rapidly becoming the fashion craze, creating even more of a hardship on the gritty mountain men who trapped along countless streams and rivers, searching for what remained of the elusive beaver population. It was a hard life, predicated on an individual's ability to survive in a harsh environment based on his wits and his bare hands. Interaction with other people was rare--the need to get along with neighboring Indian tribes a must. And infrequently, perhaps once every two or three years, the trappers would unite at a "rendezvous" to trade their pelts for cash and let off a little steam. To say that such a gathering was rowdy and violent is kind of like saying turtles have shells. Charlton Heston "shines" (a little mountain man lingo, there) as fur trapper Bill Tyler, a quiet man who only wishes to be left alone so he can find that last valley just teeming with beaver. But there's a problem: while fighting off a band of Blackfoot bent on stealing his horses and supplies he attracts the company of a young squaw (Victoria Racimo) who happens to be married to a chief with a very serious attitude (Stephen Macht). Thus Tyler and his new companion are forced to run, and run, and run some more to escape the warrior's wrath. While Heston is solid in his role, Brian Keith absolutely steals the show as crusty Henry Frapp. Henry, a friend of Tyler's, is a cantankerous, foul-mouthed, fun-loving old coot who vividly breathes life into the mountain man persona. Keith dominates every scene he's in, and he's fun to watch. Heck, THE MOUNTAIN MEN is fun to watch. The screenplay, incidentally, was written by Heston's son, Fraser, who obviously did his homework concerning this fascinating aspect of the Old West. Grab a plug of tobacco and enjoy.
--D. Mikels
Rating:
Summary: Great realism
Review: Heres one that has been a favorite of mine since i first saw it. Panoramic in all aspects. Granted it may not be for the whole family as some have pointed out but then not all movies are made for children. I highly doubt if mountain men were concerned with the politically correct world in which some seem to be obsessed. At any rate its a great movie. Wheres the DVD?????
Rating:
Summary: The story of the end of an era
Review: Heston and Keith are excellent in their protrayals of two trappers at the end of the fur trade. All they have left is their memories of the way that it was. Men of their ilk were the ones which opened the West for all the expansion to follow. An enjoyable video.
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