Missouri (1971)

Missouri: Directed by Blake Edwards. With William Holden, Ryan O’Neal, Karl Malden, Lynn Carlin. Tired of cow-punching for a living, two Montana cowboys rob a bank and flee but their employer’s sons chase after them.

“I was very surprised when I saw that u0026quot;Wild Roversu0026quot; was written and directed by Blake Edwards. Edwards is more known for his comedies and occasional dramas…not westerns. Was he up to the task? Well, considering what sort of film it is, having a non-western writer/director is actually a very good thing!u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWhy would I say this? Because u0026quot;Wild Roversu0026quot; is a totally deconstructed view of cowboys. Instead of the usual macho theatrics you see in a western, this one is much more like the lives of REAL cowboys….their dull and somewhat pointless lives. In the film, the guys work hard, get paid little, visit prostitutes, fight because they are bored, puke, and die young…like a real cowboy of the era. Thereu0026#39;s nothing romanticized about the men in this film and, if anything, they are a bit sad and pitiful. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIn the story, two of these drifting cow punchers, Ross and Frank (William Holden and Ryan Ou0026#39;Neal) begin to question their lives and their futures. To escape this, they consider robbing a bank. After all, better to die this way than to die on the job. But if they follow through with their plan, itu0026#39;s pretty certain that it wonu0026#39;t be easy and some folks will come gunning for them.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIn order to maintain the realistic style of the film, Edwards does not rush the film at all. Instead, itu0026#39;s slow and deliberate. Additionally, the cinematography often helps to convey a sense of loneliness–with wide screen shots of the lonely prairie. Itu0026#39;s lovely…but stark. This could make for a dull film (like u0026quot;Heavenu0026#39;s Gateu0026quot;) but the writer/director seemed to maintain the proper balance of dullness, scope and the story itself.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eSo is it any good? Well, itu0026#39;s difficult to judge based on the IMDB reviews. They run the gamut…from those hating it, the indifferent as well as those who think itu0026#39;s a masterpiece. As for me, I really appreciated u0026quot;Wild Roversu0026quot; because I used to be an American History teacher…and know Edwardsu0026#39; view of the west is far more realistic than 99% of the movies in this genre. Thoroughly exciting? No…but neither was life in the old west. Overall, very well made and well worth seeing provided you have an open mind and donu0026#39;t demand the usual western cliches and plot twists.”