5/5 The Shadow Riders
  by Bruce A. Ingebo (Lacey, WA USA)
Very good western. Typical of any Louis L'Amour stories-good and interesting. Tom Selleck and Sam Elliott are very good together as they are in the Sackett movies. When you throw in Ben Johnson, you have a great mix.

5/5 LOVE THE WESTERNS
  by Horsegal (Texas)
Fun and entertaining...good family film. Interesting to see Tom and Sam in their early western years.

3/5 Low budget shows
  by J. D. Best, author (Arizona)
Shadow Riders (1982) has a great cast, but a weak script with lackluster direction. This was a made-for-television movie, made with a small budget and hurried production schedule. It's interesting to compare this movie with Crossfire Trail (2001). Both are Louis L'Amour stories, both star Tom Selleck, but the quality of made-for-cable versus made-for-television is obvious.


4/5 Fun, but not particularly deep...
  by Jim Davis (Maryland Heights, MO USA)
This is a "fun" western. The good guys triumph with hardly a scratch and the bad guys go down like bowling pins. If you enjoy films of this type (and I do) then you'll enjoy this one.

Despite being made for TV the production values are excellent and the casting first rate (any western with Elliott and Selleck is well cast). The plot is straightforward - our two heroes have to save their sisters and others from being sold to a brothel in Mexico by renegade Confederates. There are a few complications along the way: the Confederates are double crossed, the heroes have to spring their uncle out of jail, etc. Everything is resolved in a satisfying happy ending.

A lot of people don't like their films without the slightest trace of tragedy for the protagonists. I can watch them all day long. The film does lack depth but that's expected with just over an hour and a half running time. This one's worth it for the cast alone.

5/5 Sam Elliott at his best!!
  by Sadie Walters
A great western story. I had this movie on VHS and when my VCR died I upgrated to DVD. Well worth the price