Realistic, Grim, Mature, Modern Western (actually an Eastern)

Members of the James/Younger Gang were former Confederate bushwhackers in Missouri during the Civil War who kept on fighting after the conflict, although they didn't officially become the notorious gang until 1868, at the earliest. This Walter Hill-helmed movie details the events over the next dozen or so years during which the gang robbed banks, trains, and stagecoaches in Missouri, Kentucky, Iowa, Texas, Arkansas, Kansas, West Virginia and, lastly, Minnesota.

Speaking of the latter, to all intents and purposes the James-Younger Gang was destroyed with the ill-fated Northfield, Minnesota, bank robbery on the first day of hunting season on September 7, 1876, with only the James brothers escaping. They resurfaced in Nashville, Tennessee, with restless Jesse recruiting a new gang by 1879. The new group continued the gangs' criminal legacy in Alabama, Missouri, Louisiana and Mississippi. Ultimately, Frank moved to Virginia where it was safer while Jesse moved his family back to Missouri with the Ford brothers living with them as protection. By this time, Bob Ford had already had secret negotiations with the Missouri governor to bring in Jesse and shot him after breakfast in Jesse's living room on April 3, 1882.

There are some inaccuracies in the movie, e.g. Jesse James wasn't as wooden as James Keach portrays him, Belle Starr wasn't a prostitute and the bar knife fight never happened. But, what the heck, Hill gets the gist of the story right. The James/Younger guys, thankfully, are not painted as a bunch of good-guy Robin Hoods; but rather as outlaws who steal & kill for a living, justifying it by their bitter experiences in the Civil War. Nor are the Pinkertons made out to be the bad guys; they make some stupid mistakes, as is common, but they ultimately catch their quarry.

The gimmick with this film is that they used real-life brothers to portray the outlaw brothers: James and Stacy Keach as Jesse and Frank; David, Keith and Robert Carradine as Cole, Jim and Bob Younger; Randy and Dennis Quaid as Clell and Ed Miller; and Christopher and Nicholas Guest as Charlie and Bob Ford. Pamela Reed and James Remar are also on hand as Belle and Sam Starr.

The bar knife fight between Cole Younger and Sam Starr is an intense highlight. Although this particular fight never happened, fights like it did (Heck, when I was a teen a friend of mine got stabbed in the gut in a bar knife fight in a small town in the Northeast; so I personally KNOW it happens).

One striking aspect of the film is that it's more-so an Eastern than a Western; the events take place in the technically Eastern states noted above; not to mention that it was filmed largely in Georgia of all places (Parrott and Westville) and also in Rusk, Texas, which is in eastern Texas. These Eastern locations are nothing short of magnificent. It's just nice to see the East utilized in a Western storyline.

David Carradine is notable as Cole Younger. Remember him as humble Caine in "Kung Fu"? His character here is the express opposite of that noble character. James Keach is also potent as Jesse James; James portrays Jesse as a grim, hard man. You can easily see him leading this tough band of outlaws. In addition, Stacy is likable as always.

Although Pamela Reed plays her role of Belle Starr very well, Belle comes across as lifeless and sleazy (which is to be expected if you're a prostitute); I wouldn't touch her with a ten-foot pole. James Remar is memorable as the half-Indian Sam Starr.

Meanwhile the cinematography is top-of-the-line. The flick maintains your attention even after multiple viewings. That, to me, is a sign of a quality film.

I described it as a modern 'Western' in the title blurb even though it was released in 1980, 44 years ago as of this writing. To explain, I recently let a friend borrow the DVD, a friend who refuses to watch "old" movies (which is anything made before 2000, to him); he watched it and loved it. When I told him it was from 1980 he was aghast; he couldn't believe it.