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IMDb > The Left Handed Gun (1958)
The Left Handed Gun
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The Left Handed Gun (1958) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
6.5/10   1,156 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 72% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Leslie Stevens (screenplay)
Gore Vidal (play)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Left Handed Gun on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
26 September 1958 (France) more
Tagline:
This is William Bonney, a juvenile "tough" from the back-alleys of New York... a teenager wanted dead or alive throughout the West. This is the screen's first real story of the strange teen-age desperado known to legend as "Billy the Kid"... more
Plot:
After his employer is murdered by rival cattlemen, a troubled and uneducated young cowboy vows revenge on the murderers, full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
NewsDesk:
(3 articles)
Director Penn Hospitalised With Pneumonia
 (From WENN. 14 July 2009, 12:11 PM, PDT)

Talkin' Westerns with A.C. Lyles
 (From The Hollywood Interview. 14 May 2009, 4:29 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
Penn gives you a glimpse of things to come in his first film more (21 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Paul Newman ... Billy The Kid
Lita Milan ... Celsa
John Dehner ... Pat Garrett
Hurd Hatfield ... Moultrie
James Congdon ... Charlie Boudre

James Best ... Tom Folliard
Colin Keith-Johnston ... Tunstall
John Dierkes ... McSween
Robert Anderson ... Hill (as Bob Anderson)
Wally Brown ... Deputy Moon
Ainslie Pryor ... Joe Grant
Martin Garralaga ... Saval
Denver Pyle ... Ollinger
Paul Smith ... Smith
Nestor Paiva ... Pete Maxwell
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Runtime:
102 min
Country:
Language:
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
James Dean was signed to play Billy the Kid in this picture but the role was given to Paul Newman after Dean's death. It was the second role Newman inherited from Dean (who had also been signed to star in Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956)). more
Goofs:
Factual errors: The film is about western outlaw Billy the Kid, who was in fact right-handed. more
Quotes:
Pat Garrett: You see I work up a sweat - to mind my own business. more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in A Decade Under the Influence (2003) more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
4 out of 7 people found the following comment useful.
Penn gives you a glimpse of things to come in his first film, 17 August 2000
6/10
Author: Deacon from Damascus, MD

The director of Bonnie & Clyde and Little Big Man is off to a promising start with The Left Handed Gun, his first film. The film stars a young Paul Newman as Billy the Kid. Billy, working as a ranch hand, swears revenge on the four men who ambushed and killed his boss.

That's about it for plot. Newman plays Billy well, portraying a man bent on his mission. One senses that he means well, but his short temper and dark past always get the best of him, even during his friend's, Pat Garrett (John Dehner in a nice performance), wedding.

Unfortunately, Newman suffers from a weak supporting cast and little character development. I found it hard to believe that Billy could develop such a strong bond with his boss in such a short time (although the movie doesn't exactly specify how long). With the possible exception of Garrett, the remaining players are there to fill up the screen.

In short, I wasn't disappointed with this film, but if you want to view a great Western about a man driven by revenge, definitely see John Wayne in The Searchers.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Left Handed Gun (1958)
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If James Dean was alive to make this... dysfunky
Young Guns? TOMASBBloodhound
Significance of the Hurd Hatfield character Moultrie mlraymond
miscast but still good teejay6682
ayrshire..england Dicky_Hart
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