It's too bad that Sam Elliot was born about 30 years too late and was not on the scene in the 40s and 50s when westerns began to change to more adult themes. He was as born to the saddle as a Joel McCrea or a Gary Cooper was, Elliott would have been a superstar then.Not that he's done too badly now as The Desperate Trail shows. It's just that westerns have limited release for a specialized audience now. When we meet Elliott he's a marshal escorting a handcuffed prisoner for a date with a hangman. His prisoner is Linda Fiorentino and a holdup interrupts the journey.When all is said and done another passenger Craig Sheffer makes off with several grand in Wells Fargo money and Fiorentino is loose and Elliott in a most embarrassing position. Naturally the marshal rounds up a posse and pursues the outlaws.But this is a western with modern and adult themes, more modern than was discussed even in those beginning days of adult westerns. Sam and Linda do have a relationship of sorts and Linda is a battered spouse. As the film progresses Elliott is shown not to be the upstanding marshal that he professes to be and what we expect in the usual type of westerns.If you like action there are more than enough shooting incidents to satisfy your craving. Elliott, Fiorentino, and Sheffer give fine performances in the leads.A western with some very modern themes.

Headstrong young gal Sarah O'Rourke (Linda Fiorentino in fine feisty form) is sentenced to hang after she kills her abusive husband. However, Sarah manages to escape from the clutches of her husband's vengeful father Marshal Bill Speakes (a superbly flinty portrayal by Sam Elliott) and goes on the lam with suave highwayman Jack Cooper (a solid and charming performance by Craig Sheffer). Naturally, Speakes gives chase. Director P.J. Pesce, who also co-wrote the clever and hard-edged script with Tom Abrams, relates the gripping story at a zippy pace, ably crafts a tough gritty tone, stages the exciting shoot-outs with skill and aplomb, draws the main characters with genuine depth, and sprinkles nice touches of amusing wry humor throughout. The startling moments of brutal'n'bloody violence pack quite a wicked punch. Fiorentino and Sheffer make for appealing leads; they receive sturdy support from Frank Whaley as Jack's gentle nerd brother Walter and John Furlong as reprehensible heel Zeb Hollister. Moreover, it's an absolute treat to see Elliott play a real ruthless bastard for once. Michael Bonvillain's crisp cinematography gives this picture a pleasing bright look and makes cool use of strenuous slow-motion. Stephen Endelman's offbeat, yet lively score hits the rousing spot. A satisfying sagebrush saga.

This little-known Western is well-made and well-cast, with strong performances from Craig Sheffer and Linda Fiorentino. What starts out as a light-hearted romp becomes progressively darker, shading into tragedy at the end. There is an unusual and striking music score, which materially adds to the film.

Sam Elliot and Linda Fiorentino go toe to toe in this very entertaining TV western. Elliott plays Marshall Bill Speakes, a lawman obsessed with catching Sarah O'Rourke (Fiorentino), his fugitive daughter-in-law. It seems that Sarah killed her husband. Speakes is understandably rather upset and tears up the west pursuing her when she escapes his grasp. Along the way, Sarah allies herself with a dandified highwayman and the story becomes a rather quirky Bonnie and Clyde story. But things aren't always what they seem as Speakes' tactics for catching the pair become increasingly ruthless as Elliott goes against his usual good-guy image. The audience sympathies are fully with the outlaws in this story. Writer-Director Pesce gives the story a relentless pace as the antagonists maneuver around each other. Visually, the film owes a lot to Leone and Peckinpah (right down to the slow motion death scenes) but the plot is so fast-paced and the characters are so interesting, the pyrotechnics never over-shadow the story. If you are a fan of either Elliott or Fiorentino, The Desperate Trail is a must see.