Bad Company

Great film.

One of the most original Westerns ever made. There are a few firearms but do NOT go in expecting an action movie. If you're familiar with Benton's oeuvre you've a better idea of what to expect

Nope: Has all the bad features of a drama: Boring, Slow, Awkward to the point of annoyance. And all the bad features of a fantastic film: Impossible to believe, crappy acting.

No real point to watching it unless the ending speeds up a lot.

81.000

A very interesting Western--specifically the way it combines elements of comedy, a coming-of-age tale, gritty drama (the latter complemented by Gordon Willis' dark cinematography and simple piano score). The way the film incorporates these elements are unselfconscious and subtle, and I really liked that approach. But the key is the acting and chemistry of the two leads--Jeff Bridges and Barry Brown. Unfortunately, the acting and chemistry didn't quite work for me.

Film 1111. Pretty different western. Simultaneously a coming of age friendship film and a dark drama, including a scene with a kid getting his head shot off. But that's New Hollywood, for you. Great Gordon Willis cinematography and good performances, especially from Barry Brown and Jeff Bridges, who make a nice pair.

The awkward interactions between the characters overshadows what is otherwise a very good movie. It's a refreshing take on both the western genre and the coming-of-age drama, with a great score, lovely cinematography and some decent attempts at humour. Bridges performance is also worth seeing.

An engaging, wryly humorous, and sneakily thoughtful Western affair.

81.000

Great cult western that is expertly made and features an excellent cast headlined by Jeff Bridges. Its clear that this was something of an inspiration for The Assassination of Jessie James By The Coward Robert Ford. That score is fantastic, too.

A refreshing and overlooked revisionist western. I really liked the acting, the dark, naturalistic cinematography by Gordon Willis and the scripts wry and ironic, almost mockingly, anti-'myth of the West' tone.

The Lil Wild Bunch, or Scamps Out West.

The colors and the scenes of this movie are bleak, but even in between showing us how rotten and selfish people can be, there are moments of companionship and kindness. Those moments and also in part, illusions, can be ripped away at a moment's notice and there was certainly one scene that surprised me and felt quite shocking. It's a slow, meandering movie, but I was never bored with it. A very solid, down-to-earth movie that in part reminded me of The Assasination of Jesse James.