American Outlaws

If you're looking for a showcase for emerging Hollywood talent, American Outlaws is just the ticket. Its handsome young stars, playing Jesse and Frank James and gang, crack wise as if they were in a contemporary high school locker room. Combining authentic costumes and sets with stunt work befitting a Jackie Chan comedy, accompanied by an "Old West" soundtrack that's anything but old and only marginally Western, the film yields a few enjoyable highlights. Seasoned genre buffs, however, will cringe at the movie's clash of visual qualities, as well as the dialogue, which, while not as heinous as that in Maverick, is on par with Young Guns in terms of non-period flavor. It's not exactly a testament to the enduring potential of the authentic Western that was realized by Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven, made barely a decade before.

With all the light-hearted action and character interplay, it's hard to tell if director Les Mayfield (Flubber) is taking the material seriously, but this much is certain: the Jesse James here (played with effortless appeal by Tigerland newcomer Colin Farrell) and his brother Frank (Gabriel Macht) have almost no connection to historical fact. Nor do their fellow farm-raised gang members, the Younger brothers Cole (Scott Caan), Bob (Will McCormack), and Jim (Gregory Smith). (And Jesse's fiancée, played by Ali Larter, looks like she dropped in from a Gap commercial.) The gang's post-Civil War battle against a ruthless railroad baron (Harris Yulin) and his Pinkerton henchman (Timothy Dalton) seems arbitrary, irrational (since farmers typically welcomed railroads, not fought them), and riddled with clichés, turning the movie's bloodless shootouts into another opportunity for pretty-boy preening. --Jeff Shannon

Theatrical International release dates:
Europe: Dec 14, 01
Japan: Jun 28, 03

Movie Details

Cast: Colin Farrell, Scott Caan, Ali Larter, Gabriel Macht, Gregory Smith, Harris Yulin, Kathy Bates, Timothy Dalton, Will McCormack, Ronny Cox, Terry O'Quinn, Nathaniel Arcand, Ty O'Neal, Joe Stevens, Barry Tubb
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Running time: 94 mins
DVD Aspect Ratios: 1.77:1

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DVD Features:

Feature-Length Commentary With Director Les Mayfield, Co-Writer John Rogers and Editor Michael Tronick

Behind-The-Scenes Featurettes: The Making Of American Outlaws, Creating The Old West, How To Be An Outlaw and Costuming The Cowboys

Deleted Scenes

Storyboards

Production Stills

Cast & Crew Biographies & Film Highlights

Publicity Gallery

Theatrical Trailers

Artwork

Director-Approved Transfer

DVD-ROM Features:

Screenplay Viewer with Storyboards

The Original Theatrical Web Site

Web Links!

International rating:

Europe: 12
Australia: M

DVD International release dates:
North America: Feb 3, 04

VHS International release dates:
Europe: Jun 3, 03