Movie Type: Outlaw (Gunfighter) Film, Revisionist Western
Themes: Bank Robbery, Crime Sprees, Sibling Relationships
Main Cast: Colin Farrell, Scott Caan, Ali Larter, Gabriel Macht, Gregory Smith, Harris Yulin, Will McCormack, Kathy Bates, Timothy Dalton
Release Year: 2001
Country: US
Run Time: 93 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG13
Plot
This loosely fact-based oater attempts to mimic the youthful heartthrobs in Western garb formula of Young Guns (1988), as well as the cheeky humor and some plot elements of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969). Colin Farrell stars as Jesse James, who returns home from the Civil War to his small hometown to find that a crooked railroad baron (Harris Yulin) has been illegally forcing the residents from the homesteads to make way for a new rail line. Enraged, James leads a band of outlaws including his brother Frank (Gabriel Macht), Cole Younger (Scott Caan), and Younger's brothers Bob (Will McCormack) and Jim (Gregory Smith) on a criminal spree of bank robbing. Although their Robin Hood-style tactics soon make them local heroes, the James-Younger gang members find themselves pursued by the dogged Allan Pinkerton (Timothy Dalton), the world's first "private eye." Along the way, Jesse also finds romance with Zee Mimms (Ali Larter), the daughter of a local doctor (Ronny Cox). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
Review
Quite the cheery revisionist history of the life of Jesse James, the delayed release American Outlaws doubles as a Young Guns for the next generation, both in its righteous-outlaw structure and matinee-idol function. Whether the moviegoing public needs either project is doubtful. After a brief revival in the 1990s, westerns had again become a yawn by the early 21st century, especially those featuring a cast of poor man's alternatives to charismatic stars. Director Les Mayfield treats every robbery, shootout or narrow escape from the gallows as a chance for the actors to crack jokes and peddle their charm. This framework prevents the movie from developing a sense of weight or momentum, which might be okay if it were funny enough. It also entirely recasts James as an essential pacifist and darn fine gentleman to boot, a decision designed to propel Colin Farrell toward maximum heroic stardom. But Mayfield's dishonest interpretation of the character panders to the audience, undercutting Farrell and doing little for the other small-timers (Ali Larter and Scott Caan) trying to leapfrog to the next level. As the action goes, only one clever stunt along the outside of a train stakes claim to original choreography. American Outlaws was pushed back from a spring 2001 release to the dumping grounds of late August to avoid competition with Texas Rangers -- a worse disaster of a movie that ended up getting shelved for more than a year anyway. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
Ronny Cox - Doc Mimms; Terry O'Quinn - Rollin Parker; Nathaniel Arcand - Comanche Tom; Ed Geldart - Old Man Tucker; Muse Watson - Burly Detective
Credit
David C. Robinson - Co-producer, Luke Reichle - Costume Designer, Les Mayfield - Director, Michael Tronick - Editor, Jonathan A. Zimbert - Executive Producer, Trevor Rabin - Composer (Music Score), Cary White - Production Designer, Russell Boyd - Cinematographer, James G. Robinson - Producer, Bill Gerber - Producer, James M. Halty - Stunts, Roderick Taylor - Screenwriter, John Rogers - Screenwriter
American Outlaws opened to a dismal box office take and mostly negative reviews. Many critics cited a poor sense of time and place as a major cause of the film's problems. Others just dismissed the film as another Young Guns ripoff.
