The Hunting Party

The Hunting Party is a Western set in Texas, where the outlaw Frank Calder and his gang arrive in the territory ruled by rancher Brandt Ruger. Calder, who cannot read or write and blames that for his circumstances, abducts a woman intending to have her teach him, only to discover she is Melissa Ruger, the wife of the powerful local landowner. Ruger responds by organizing a pursuit, joined by wealthy friends, and the group relies on powerful long-range rifles to track and kill the kidnappers. The story follows both the chase across the plains and the changing relationship between captor and captive.

The film was directed by Don Medford, released in July 1971 and running 111 minutes. It was the first of the two features Medford directed, followed a decade later by Sizzle. Lou Morheim produced, and the screenplay is credited to Morheim, William W. Norton and Gilbert Ralston. Oliver Reed plays Calder, Candice Bergen plays Melissa Ruger, and Gene Hackman plays Brandt Ruger, with Simon Oakland, Mitchell Ryan and L.Q. Jones among a credited cast of 28. It is a British and American co-production from United Artists, Levy-Gardner-Laven and Brighton Pictures.

Audience response has been modest: on IMDb it holds 6.2 out of 10 from around 3,900 votes, and on TMDB 6.1 out of 10 from 78 votes.