The Wild Bunch

This movie is complex. While watching it I changed my mind a couple of times about how I felt about it. In the first half hour I almost gave it the hook but as the movie progressed I did appreciate it.

The overarching theme of the beginning and the end of the movie is violence. Violence, violence. Some parts of the movie were quite special. The film shot, the picturesque was in some cases magnificent. The actors William Holden and Ernest Borgnine were perfect fits.

Holden who I did not have a great knowledge of as an actor was firm and resolute, with a measured approach. I guess one could say a man's man. Borgnine , understated in his role, but still as with all of his roles he played the part with just the right pitch.

In the end the characters trying to adjust to a modernizing world go out in a blaze of glory with a wink and a nod to each other. The unspoken decision to confront great odds and risk death for what becomes the final time is worth watching. To so callously roll the dice in so casual a way about one's life tells much about the characters and where they are in their lives.

I was on the fence with this movie but in the end I give this a well above average movie.