Originally written 3/22/16
The original buddy flick has not aged well. Perhaps
this movie was funnier and more charming in 1969, but today it is dry and
hokey. The antihero characters are more crusty than loveable, so it makes it
hard to sympathize with them or stay engaged in their misadventures.
Technically speaking, the film is fine. The cinematography is pretty, and I am
a sucker for wild west scenery. The pace is snappy and keeps the film from
being wholly dull.
But the buddy banter feels fake, due in part to the
unconvincing chemistry between the leads. Paul Newman and Robert Redford were
seemingly put together in a movie because they were both handsome. Although to
be fair, Paul Newman has enough dashing looks and charisma to outweigh his
generic roguish character. Maybe the charming rogue was not as prevalent an
archetype in 1969, but today he is forgettable. There is also the ill-fitting
Herb Alpert-esque score. I am open to unusual score/soundtrack choices, but
bossa nova lounge music and cowboys do not mix. And lest we forget the
comically out of place Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head sequence.
There are a few scenes that do work. The opening
scene in the saloon, the duel with cowboy Lurch, and the unique travelling
sequence that consists of a montage of sepia photographs. On the whole, the
movie is just okay. Other movies have improved on the buddy dynamic since.
(Even then, Bonnie & Clyde did the antihero thing much better only a year
prior). It is not a bad film exactly, just extremely dated.
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