Review of The Wild Bunch (1969) by Jeremy J — 17 Apr 2009

The Wild Bunch won a bunch of awards, most recently being names as the sixth best Western of all time by AFI. Itâ??s a great movie, very different from the traditional western.

A bunch of older outlaws are trying to rob one last bank before theyâ??re ambushed by a group of mercenaries led by a former outlaw. The gang escapes to Mexico where they spend time hiding before helping a Mexican warlord steal from the U.S. Army. Along the way they are hunted by the mercenaries and eventually run into problems with the Mexican warlord, resulting in lots of shooting and death.

The film is more violent than I expected, and there arenâ??t really any heroes. The gang members arenâ??t ever portrayed as Robin Hood types, and the group trying to catch them isnâ??t much better.

I love the camera work by Sam Peckinpah, he has an interesting style, sometimes filling the screen with crowds of people or trees and bushes, but you still never lose sight of the characters he wants you to focus on. He also switches between quick cuts and slowing the screen to give you a feeling of the action during the gunfights. Even without the story the choices made during filming are interesting to watch.