Review of American Outlaws (2001) by Jonathan G — 10 Jun 2007

I have never been a real watcher or lover of westerns really but I have been into Jesse James history or outlaws in general from the old west, from Wyatt Earp to Billy the Kidd. When I saw the previews for this movie I figured I will go see this movie and see if it?s good or not. I watched it from beginning to end and loved every minute of it. The action was great, so was the acting and Colin Ferrell playing Jesse James. The movie pretty much shows a life of Jesse James from the time of when his brother, cousin?s and friends fight in the civil war to when the railroad company tries to take over everyone?s land to Jesse marrying and moving to Tennessee. I loved every minute of it especially the part where Jesse, his brother and friend go to save his cousin from being hanged for losing his temper and killing a couple of men. The movie also shows that he was a kind of crazy during gun fights and was very protective of family and friends. He also has gotten a enemy as well as a friend in a weird respectful way of a man by the name of Alan Pinkerton who created the Pinkerton Detective Agency.

The movie lets you know one version of how Jesse and his family lived their lives after the war and how he met Zee, his wife. It also shows how well everyone loved him and respected him in the community and how he repaid them with trying to get rid of the Railroad Company. If you love westerns you will love this movie. There are no really bad parts that I have seen. There are good and funny parts and very well done action sequences. The story/plotline was done very well and nothing was slow, it was very fast paced.