Review of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) by Rainer K — 26 Feb 2013

Is it my general aversion against anything that only remotely looks like a Western that hampers my viewing experiences of films like that, or is it just not that good?

I liked how it started out though. This opening credit silent movie was a great idea - one of several - to change the pace of the movie by director George Roy Hill, although it doesn't do much in setting up the characters or the plot.

I also liked the shoot-out at the end, and the famous freezed frame.

What was in-between is another story. First of all, couldn't anyone just decide if they want to do a buddy movie or a serious western drama? The overall tone and atmosphere changes throughout the film and certainly hurts the dramatic effect of the story. Actually, it was pretty much the same with their later film The Sting which I very much enjoyed, the subject matter in Butch Cassidy would have deserved a more earnest approach in my opinion.

An even bigger enigma than the constant change of tone was the turn of Etta Place, the girlfriend of Sundance Kid, from school teacher to bank robber without any training, motives or explanation. Beside the fact, that she doesn't have much screentime I couldn't really comprehend what made her a criminal.

I also didn't really get why they didn't stick with the "straight" work after successfully finishing their first job - it can't be too dangerous, they returned to bank robbing after all.

How this script could have won Best Original Screenplay at the Academy Awards is beyond my understanding. It's a mess - funny at times, kinda thrilling and featuring an eclectic duo of male leads - but still a mess.