Wild Rovers

An aging cowboy Ross Bodine works alongside younger Frank Post on Walt Buckman's Montana ranch. Ross harbors a dream of retiring to Mexico after a lifetime of hard range work. The feud with the neighboring sheepman Hansen creates constant tension around the place.

Frank suggests a heist as a way to grab quick money and escape north toward Mexico. Ross weighs the plan, torn between a safer retirement and the thrill of one last job. The idea plants the seed for the chain of events to come.

Ross and Frank clash with Hansen's enforcers in a saloon scuffle that underscores the feud's volatility. Buckman responds by withholding pay from his cowhands to cover the saloon damages. The tension pushes Ross toward the bank robbery plan.

Ross decides to participate in the bank robbery to secure money for retirement and to satisfy the ranch's debts. He agrees to the plan, signaling a turn from peaceful cattle work to crime. The decision marks a turning point for the trio.

Ross drives banker Joe Billings to town at gunpoint while Frank holds Mrs. Billings, Sada, hostage at their home. The two men execute the bank robbery, driving away with a large cash stash. The tension of the crime begins to ripple through the community.

Ross returns with thirty-six thousand dollars. Before leaving, he gives Billings three thousand to protect the ranch workers' pay. Sada later urges Billings to keep the money and not inform the Sheriff.

A posse is formed that includes Buckman's two sons, John and Paul, spurred by their father to bring the robbers to justice. They set out with raw determination to enforce the law. The pursuit casts a shadow over the men who took part in the crime.

Ross and Frank continue toward Arizona, stopping for supplies on the way. In town, Ross hires a prostitute and Frank keeps winning at poker, drawing unwanted attention. The journey tightens their bond until danger intrudes.

A card player resents Frank’s big wins and shoots him in the leg. Ross rushes to aid his partner, and a fierce shootout erupts, leaving several people dead. The injury sets a harsher pace for the fugitives and their pursuers.

On their return toward the Buckman ranch, Buckman and Hansen have a fatal run-in that ends with both men dead. The murder changes the stakes for all involved and leaves the ranch unsettled. The cycle of violence tightens around the remaining characters.

John and Paul learn of their father's death from a Tucson sheriff. The younger man Paul contemplates turning back, while John becomes obsessed with catching the outlaws. The brothers' paths diverge as the pursuit grows more personal.

Frank refuses to see a doctor and his leg wounds worsen until he dies on the trail just before John and Paul catch up. Ross is then gunned down as the pursuit closes in. The violent ending underscores the film’s fatalism.

Devastated, Paul rides away in disgust, while John is left to struggle with carrying Ross's body back to the scene of the crime. The attempt highlights the brothers’ diverging feelings about justice and loyalty. The film closes with them facing the consequences.

The final image rewinds to a flashback of Ross riding a bucking bronco with Frank cheering him on. The memory serves as a bittersweet coda to a doomed partnership. It emphasizes the fragile dream that precipitated the tragedy.