AllMovie

The title character in this made-for-cable contemporary Western could be hard-bitten cattle rancher John William Cooper (Lance Henriksen), or, for that matter, John's long-estranged daughter Jacqueline "Jake" Cooper (Jennie Garth). Having broken off relations with her dad due to an unpleasant incident involving her mother, Jake returns to Dry Creek Ranch after an eight-year absence with her young son, Billy (Dylan Wagner), in tow. The reasons have little to do with father-daughter love; John's father has died, and the ranch is now mortgaged to the hilt. Out of a sense of obligation, Jake agrees to work the ranch in hopes of putting it back on its financial feet, all the while keeping her distance from the taciturn John. Other interested parties include cowboy Morgan Murphy (Bradley Cooper), who wants to help Jake despite her father's resistance to Morgan's "newfangled" ranching methods, and John's old pal Amos (M.C. Gainey), who is determined to mend the fences between John and Jake. The Last Cowboy was first broadcast by the Hallmark Channel on January 17, 2003.