Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Review #1289: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Cast: 
Paul Newman (Butch Cassidy), Robert Redford (the Sundance Kid), Katharine Ross (Etta Place), Strother Martin (Percy Garris), Henry Jones (Bike Salesman), Jeff Corey (Sheriff Bledsoe), George Furth (Woodcock), Cloris Leachman (Agnes), and Ted Cassidy (Harvey Logan) Directed by George Roy Hill (#962 - A Little Romance and #1178 - Slap Shot)

Review: 
It never proves to be a bad idea to do watch a Western, especially when you have a dynamite trio of actors and a capable director willing to have some fun with a genre as familiar as this one. The 1960s certainly could turn a film genre on its head a bit, as was the case with The Wild Bunch - which was a violent shocking take on the genre released the same year. Really the best representation of this film and its vision of a Western could be the scene involving the sheriff and his attempts at rounding people up to apprehend the two leads, which leads to a salesman trying to push bicycles as the new way to get around instead of horses. William Goldman was inspired by the exploits of the real-life duo of robbers in part because of the fact that they had a second act (running off to Bolivia after their pursuit by the "superposse"); he wrote it as a screenplay between 1965-66, but it initially did not receive interest in part because of the departure to South America by the characters, and numerous actors rejected being the stars such as Steve McQueen, Warren Beatty, and Jack Lemmon. In any case, adapting an Old West legend into its own little tale isn't exactly a new thing, but this is a film that is fairly clever in its approach, being good-natured with where it wants to go without pushing its audience too hard in any one direction, having a bit of fun alongside other moments that make this a worthy Western for anyone. Both Newman and Redford are fun to be around with, with the former having plenty of charm and a sense of humor, which sticks out in most scenes, such as him riding a bicycle with Ross while "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" (which ended up winning an Academy Award for Best Original Song for its writers, Burt Bacharach and Hal David) plays in the background. Redford is just as dynamic when it comes to garnering a sardonic moment in a role that helped boost him to full-fledged stardom - for good reason. Ross proves interesting as well, making for a fine spark within a trio that holds the ship well. There isn't a big bad like one sees with other Westerns, but the film doesn't really need one to really drive things, where little moments with others work just as fine in giving the film something to tell an interesting yarn that doesn't need all the facts to be a capable Western. The 110 minute run-time proves alright, with its surrounding first and latter halves holding a bit more steady than its middle involving the departure to Bolivia. The action does work out pretty nicely, including one amusing moment with a train and its clerk. It stands out well with its good sense of humor and timing, a pleaser for the crowds that stands just as tall today as it did a half century ago.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.