The Horsemen

The Horsemen (1971)

A Horse Worth Killing For. A Dream Worth Dying For.

In Afghanistan, the ruthless sport of buzkashi is a game of great pride. When Uraz breaks his leg and loses a spirited match, he brings shame to his village, especially his father. After losing his leg below the knee, Uraz, to regain his honor, must learn to ride again and win with a special, one-of-a-kind horse.

Date of release
1971-08-16
TMDB
6.3 / 10 (25)
Runtime
1h 50m
Genres
Action, Adventure, Drama
Director
John Frankenheimer

Casting

Interesting facts

  • Based on: The Horsemen

The Horsemen is a 1971 American adventure film starring Omar Sharif, directed by John Frankenheimer; screenplay by Dalton Trumbo. Based on a 1967 novel by French writer Joseph Kessel, Les Cavaliers shows Afghanistan and its people the way they were before the wars that wracked the country, particularly their love for the sport of buzkashi. The film was filmed in Afghanistan and Spain.

Production

The original novel was published in 1967. It was a best seller in France before being released in the US. Film rights were bought by John Frankenheimer and Edward Lewis who set up the film at Columbia. Dalton Trumbo, who had just written The Fixer for Frankenheimer, was signed to do the script.

The film took two and a half years to make and was shot on location in Afghanistan, and in Spain (including Caminito del Rey). According to director John Frankenheimer:

It represents for me the first time I've been able to put together the two sides of my work – the spectacle like Grand Prix or The Train and the intimate kind of picture like Birdman of Alcatraz or Seven Days in May. For me it has a very contemporary meaning, which is why I did it. It's a man looking for himself, a theme that I've done over and over on TV and in movies. I do think that Dalton Trumbo is the best screenwriter we've got...

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

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