American Outlaws

December 9, 2004

Rated: PG-13 Runtime: 105 min Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

American Outlaws is an attempt at a western for the 21st century. However, I do not think you’re going to be hearing this one mentioned in the same breath as movies featuring Clint Eastwood and John Wayne. Although I didn’t hate the movie, I’m reluctant to even put it in the same class as Young Guns.

American Outlaws

American Outlaws is a very, and I do mean VERY, loose interpretation of the story of Jesse James, portrayed here by Colin Farrell. As perhaps the most famous outlaw of the old west, there have been many stories written about Jesse James and his gang, so over the years it has become a bit unclear whether he was a good guy, a Robin Hood type character, or just a cold blooded killer. The truth probably lies somewhere inbetween, but in this movie James is a good guy all the way, driven to fight the railroad who is attempting to take his land. He and his gang take the fight to the railroad and it’s Pinkerton security agents by robbing their trains and stealing their money from banks.

All of the ingredients of a good western are here, although they do not exactly cover any new ground. However the execution leaves a bit to be desired. I guess my main problem is Colin Farrell. He’s definitely a pretty boy and this is his first major role, and it’s really hard to accept him as a bad ass outlaw. And in fact the story here shows him to be somewhat compassionate even when he really should go ahead and bust a cap in someone who deserves it. The rest of the casting and portrayal of these rough frontier outlaws is just as bad. Gabriel Macht, as Frank James, is even prone to quote Shakespeare! Scott Caan, as Cole Younger, is the only character who really shows a decent amount of color, but even he comes across as the same basic cocky wise ass character he has portrayed in his earlier roles. I think the entire cast should’ve been locked in a room and forced to watch The Good, The Bad and The Ugly followed by The Outlaw Josey Wales and concluding with Unforgiven to really get a good understanding of how to play an outlaw.

This film apparently wanted to gain appeal to the females by throwing in alot of beefcake. If the fat chicks sitting behind us at the screening were any indication, they succeeded. Here’s a tip on yet another type of person you want to avoid sitting near in a theater. If you see two fat chicks sitting together by themselves, get as far away as you possibly can. They’ll overreact to absolutely everything on screen and generally make alot of unnecessary noise as they try to entertain each other. I could’ve really done without the “whoo hoo’s” from Bertha and her sasquatch friend everytime one of these guys came on screen with his shirt off. And I really really hate it when someone talks to the screen.

Anyhow, despite the flaws and the distractions from the crisco twins, the movie did provide some really slick action sequences and enough good laughs to be enjoyable and worth the price of admission. For that, we give it 3 stars. However, I just hope this really isn’t what we have to look forward to in the future in terms of westerns from Hollywood. This is more of a western for the Dawson Creek watchers.

Posted by Billy Bob | Filed Under 3 Stars, Action, Ali Larter, Colin Farrell, Gabriel Macht, Gregory Smith, PG-13, Scott Caan, Theatrical, Western