2009
Fourteen-year-old Mattie Ross hires the gruff U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn and joins forces with Texas Ranger LaBoeuf to track down Tom Chaney, the outlaw who murdered her father. The trio faces numerous dangers and outlaws in the Indian Territory, with LaBoeuf eventually leaving and then returning to save Mattie from Chaney. Mattie confronts Chaney, shooting him, but falls into a snake pit and is bitten, leading Cogburn to heroically race her to medical aid. Years later, Mattie, having lost an arm to the snakebite, arranges for Cogburn's body to be moved to her family cemetery, reflecting on his "true grit" at his grave.
Save the Cat beat sheet
Young Mattie Ross arrives in Fort Smith to avenge her father’s murder, hiring Marshal Rooster Cogburn and reluctantly joining forces with Texas Ranger LaBoeuf.
Open full beat sheetMattie Ross is listed as Protagonist. A fourteen-year-old girl, later a forty-year-old woman, determined to avenge her father's murder. In the parsed data, Mattie Ross is connected to 48 scenes, 89 dialogue lines, 89 text mentions, first appearing around scene 3.
48 scenes / 89 dialogue linesRooster Cogburn is listed as U.S. Marshal. A one-eyed, aging, hard-drinking, and pitiless U.S. Marshal with a reputation for true grit. In the parsed data, Rooster Cogburn is connected to 30 scenes, 108 dialogue lines, 109 text mentions, first appearing around scene 6.
30 scenes / 108 dialogue linesLeBoeuf is listed as Texas Ranger. A Texas Ranger tracking Chaney for the murder of a state senator. In the parsed data, LeBoeuf is connected to 17 scenes, 51 dialogue lines, 64 text mentions, first appearing around scene 13.
17 scenes / 51 dialogue linesTom Chaney is listed as Antagonist. The man who shot and killed Frank Ross; a fugitive hiding in the Indian Territory. In the parsed data, Tom Chaney is connected to 7 scenes, 18 dialogue lines, 24 text mentions, first appearing around scene 39.
7 scenes / 18 dialogue linesLucky Ned Pepper is listed as Outlaw Leader. A gang leader operating in the Indian Territory. In the parsed data, Lucky Ned Pepper is connected to 6 scenes, 25 dialogue lines, 26 text mentions, first appearing around scene 40.
6 scenes / 25 dialogue linesCol. G. Stonehill is listed as Stock Trader. A licensed auctioneer and cotton factor in Fort Smith. In the parsed data, Col. G. Stonehill is connected to 2 scenes, first appearing around scene 7.
2 scenes / 0 dialogue linesYarnell is listed as Family Associate. A middle-aged black man who accompanies Mattie to Fort Smith. In the parsed data, Yarnell is connected to 2 scenes, first appearing around scene 2.
2 scenes / 0 dialogue linesJ. Noble Daggett is listed as Lawyer. Mattie's lawyer based in Dardanelle, Arkansas.
0 scenes / 0 dialogue linesMattie narrates the murder of her father by Tom Chaney in Fort Smith.
Mattie Ross, Tom ChaneyMattie and Yarnell travel to Fort Smith.
Mattie Ross, YarnellMattie identifies her father's body and argues with the undertaker about costs.
Mattie Ross, YarnellMattie watches a public hanging.
Mattie RossMattie questions the sheriff about Tom Chaney and potential marshals.
Mattie RossMattie attempts to speak with Rooster Cogburn while he is in the outhouse.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnMattie negotiates the sale of her father's ponies and horse with Stonehill.
Mattie Ross, Col. G. StonehillMattie checks into the boarding house and retrieves her father's belongings.
Mattie RossMattie watches Rooster Cogburn testify in court.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnCogburn is cross-examined by Mr. Goudy regarding his past killings and the circumstances of Aaron Wharton's death.
Rooster CogburnMattie approaches Cogburn to hire him to track Tom Chaney.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnMattie arrives at the boarding house and notices a man watching her.
Mattie Ross, LeBoeufLeBoeuf confronts Mattie in her room, revealing he is a Texas Ranger tracking Chaney.
Mattie Ross, LeBoeufMattie settles her business with Stonehill and buys a horse.
Mattie Ross, Col. G. StonehillMattie selects and names her horse Little Blackie.
Mattie RossMattie wakes Cogburn to finalize their agreement to hunt Chaney.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnMattie departs on her horse, Little Blackie, to pursue her father's killer.
Mattie RossMattie confronts the grocer about Rooster Cogburn's whereabouts and receives a note.
Mattie RossMattie forces her way across the river to catch up with Rooster and LeBoeuf.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, LeBoeufThe trio camps, and tensions rise between Rooster and LeBoeuf.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, LeBoeufLeBoeuf leaves the group after a heated argument with Rooster.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, LeBoeufRooster and Mattie visit Bagby's store to gather information on Chaney.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnRooster and Mattie ride and discover a hanging body.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnRooster and an Indian move a corpse; Mattie observes.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnRooster and Mattie ride; Rooster discusses his past and suspects they are being followed.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, LeBoeufRooster and Mattie encounter a dentist named Forster.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnRooster and Mattie approach a cabin and confront the occupants.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnRooster interrogates Quincy and Moon; violence ensues.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnRooster and Mattie wait for the gang.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, LeBoeuf, Lucky Ned PepperRooster tends to LeBoeuf's injuries.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, LeBoeufMattie prepares for the next day.
Mattie RossLeBoeuf and Rooster discuss legal concepts.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, LeBoeufRooster, Mattie, and LeBoeuf ride together; Rooster and LeBoeuf argue about their shooting skills and the incident where Rooster shot LeBoeuf.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, LeBoeufRooster leaves a bottle on a rock and tells the others to find their way back.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, LeBoeufRooster fires into a deserted mine entrance.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, LeBoeufThe group argues at the campfire; LeBoeuf decides to leave, and Rooster terminates the engagement.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, LeBoeufMattie insists on going with LeBoeuf; they shake hands and LeBoeuf leaves.
Mattie Ross, LeBoeufMattie prepares to sleep, tethering herself to her robe.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnMattie encounters Tom Chaney at the stream and attempts to arrest him.
Mattie Ross, Tom ChaneyLucky Ned Pepper and his gang arrive, capturing Mattie.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, Tom Chaney, Lucky Ned PepperMattie is held captive at the gang's camp; Rooster is seen leaving.
Mattie Ross, Rooster Cogburn, Tom Chaney, Lucky Ned PepperLucky Ned and his gang prepare to leave, abandoning Mattie with Chaney.
Lucky Ned Pepper, Mattie Ross, Tom Chaney, LeBoeufChaney attacks Mattie, but is knocked unconscious by LeBoeuf.
Tom Chaney, Mattie Ross, LeBoeufRooster confronts Lucky Ned and his gang in a shootout.
Rooster Cogburn, Lucky Ned PepperLeBoeuf shoots Lucky Ned, is knocked out by Chaney, and Mattie kills Chaney.
LeBoeuf, Lucky Ned Pepper, Tom Chaney, Mattie RossRooster rescues Mattie from the snake-infested pit.
Mattie Ross, Rooster CogburnAdult Mattie visits the Wild West Show and learns of Rooster's death.
Mattie RossMattie encounters Cole Younger and Frank James, who falsely claim Rooster Cogburn has died.
Mattie RossMattie arranges for the transport of Rooster Cogburn's body to Dardanelle.
Mattie visits Rooster's grave and reflects on her life and the people who judge her.
Mattie RossIn hand?! If he is not in a shallow grave, somewhere between here and Fort Smith, he is gone! Long gone! Thanks to Mr. LeBoeuf, we missed our shot! We have barked, and the birds have flown! Gone gone gone! Lucky Ned and his cohort, gone! Your fifty dollars, gone! Gone the whiskey seized in evidence! The trail is cold, if ever there was one! I am a foolish old man who has been drawn into a wild goose chase by a harpy in trousers--and a nincompoop! Well, Mr. LeBoeuf can wander the Choctaw Nation for as long as he likes; perhaps the local Indians will take him in and honor his gibberings by making him Chief! You, sister, may go where you like! I return home! Our engagement is terminated! I bow out!
. . . It's just like a cranky old maid to pull a stunt like that, burying him in the family plot. They say I love nothing but money and the Presbyterian Church and that is why I never married. It is true that I love my church and my bank. I will tell you a secret. Those same people talk mighty nice when they come in for a crop loan or a mortgage extension. I care nothing for what they say. I would have married a baboon if I had wanted and fetched it its newspaper and slippers every morning but I never had time to fool with it.
Azh I understand it, Chaney--or Chelmzhford, azh he called himshelf in Texas--shot the shenator'zh dog. When the shenator remonshtrated Chelmzhford shot him azh well. You could argue that the shooting of the dog wazh merely an inshtansh of malum prohibitum, but the shooting of a shenator izh indubitably an inshtansh of malum in shay.
I have already thought it over! You get mounted double fast! If I see you riding over that bald ridge to the northwest I will spare the girl. You have five minutes!
That pit is a hundred feet deep and I will throw you into it and leave you to scream and rot! How do you like that?
We have entered a wild place. Anyone coming in, wanting any kind of supply, cannot pick and choose his portal.
They will do it. It will embarrass you every time. Most girls like to play pretties, but you like guns do you?
They are both dead. I was in the very middle of it. It was a terrible thing to see. Do you need a good lawyer?
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