When I was 14 or 15, I sneaked into our local flea pit to watch this film. Billy the Kid was every kid's hero in those days. But the posters of Jane Russell was the main reason that I risked getting caught. She didn't let me down. Her first film, and it showed, but wow, she was a creature from another planet. I'd certainly seen nothing like her. Having been brought up on Johnny Mac Brown, the Durango kid, and the like, this film was, at the time, a revelation. My pals all wanted to know how fast Billy was. Did he shoot Doc Holliday? Did Pat Garrett shoot him in the back? All I wanted to do was describe Jane Russell.
I watched The Outlaw on TV this week, and was disappointed. Time had done it no favours. The background music, which I hadn't noticed the first time round, was truly dreadful (Tchaikovsky was it? mixed with cartoon type sounds) I still found myself admiring Russell, who for most red blooded males of my age has been a great inspiration. Like Shane, and others, I think this was a film of its time, and probably doesn't deserve to be judged by this generation, who are seeing it for the first time.
I watched The Outlaw on TV this week, and was disappointed. Time had done it no favours. The background music, which I hadn't noticed the first time round, was truly dreadful (Tchaikovsky was it? mixed with cartoon type sounds) I still found myself admiring Russell, who for most red blooded males of my age has been a great inspiration. Like Shane, and others, I think this was a film of its time, and probably doesn't deserve to be judged by this generation, who are seeing it for the first time.