Review of The Wild Bunch (79)

Plot
An aging group of outlaws look for one last big score as the "traditional" American West is disappearing around them. No one is innocent in this gritty tale of desperation against changing times. Pump shotguns, machine guns and automobiles mix with horses and Winchesters in this ultra violent western.

Jason's Thoughts
The Wild Bunch was the first western I have ever watched from start to finish.  Prior to watching it, I heard and read many good things about how the movie reinvented the western genre with its realistic violence.  After watching it, I wondered to myself if the western movie genre was better or worse after this movie came out.

In a nutshell, this movie is two huge gunfights bookending two hours of absolutely nothing.  The opening battle hooked me in but I found myself bored out of my mind as it crawled towards the ending battle.  The rest of the film doesn't even deserve the time for me to write about it.  By default, this is the best western movie I have ever seen, but I do sincerely hope that the rest of the westerns on the list are better than this one was.

Crystal's Thoughts
Unlike Jason, I have seen actually seen many Westerns in my lifetime, as my father was an avid watcher of them when I was growing up.  Living in the boonies, we didn't get much for TV, so these were actually treats.  Thank goodness Wild Bunch never made my dad's Must See TV.  For me, Westerns are filled with violence and move at a quick pace.  There is a clear cut story line, usually someone being rescued, killed or chased.  While this movie certainly had a few killings and the main characters were wanted, the action pretty much stopped there.  I didn't feel there was much of a story line or even that the events that unfolded on the screen had much substance.

After we were about 90 minutes into the movie, I will admit, my hopes for the film got a little high.  There was a scene in which the group was stealing ammo off of a train.  Too bad 10 minutes later, I was back to fighting boredom and hoping instead for an end to the movie.  I look forward for when we get to a good Western on the list, so Jason can see just what it is the hype is all about.  Then again, we have watched every season of Deadwood, so he should have a clear picture of what to expect.

Comments

No comments have been posted.