The 'vette is all dusty, motoring down a dirt road in Utah taking M & M to their next job as ranch hands. A light mood is initiated by their encounter with a boy named Homer trying to drag his recalcitrant mule from the highway.
Sentiment creeps in immediately as the kid sells his beloved mule for $25 to the old rancher, unable to take care of it himself. On the way home, the youngster stops at a cemetery grave to fill in his late father on current events. Maharis buys the mule from the rancher, intending to give it back to the boy. Homer and two older siblings have been on their own since their dad died two years back.
There's time for scenic locations backing a romantic interest for George with Homer's older sister Deborah Walley (billed as "Introducing...") and some horseback riding.
With a corny theme on the level of "no good deed goes unpunished", this bit of Americana reflecting on how family farms can easily go under nearly turns into a sob story that presents a hopeless situation from a sentimental point-of-view. The eldest brother is as stubborn as a mule about holding on to the family ranch (presaging the message of "Yellowstone"), and even the Corvette is enlisted to help fix the all-important well.
This tried-and-true type of storytelling, dating back to Silent Era movies starring Lillian Gish ("The Wind") or Mary Pickford, has a modern twist, as M & M pitch in to help save the day, learn some life lessons and the ultimate crucial importance of water is ably demonstrated. The concept of staying rooted irrationally in one place versus the boys' wanderings and freedom is powerfully supported, and I loved the footage in the end credits where it's not the Corvette hitting the open road this time around.