The Last Days of Frank and Jesse James (1986)

This movie looks at the last years (not days, as implied in the title) of famous outlaws, Frank and Jesse James. The film opens in 1877 with the brothers trying to settle down after 15 ... See full summary »

Director:

William A. Graham

Writer:

William Stratton

Stars:

Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Marcia Cross

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Johnny Cash	...	Frank James
Kris Kristofferson	...	Jesse James
Marcia Cross	...	Sarah Hite
Gail Youngs	...	Anna
David Allan Coe	...	Whiskeyhead
Andy Stahl	...	Liddil
June Carter Cash	...	Mother James
Ed Bruce	...	Maj. Edwards
Darrell Wilks	...	Bob Ford
Meg Gibson	...	Zee (as Margaret Gibson)
James Sinclair
Cherie Elledge-Grapes	...	Martha Bolton
Peter Bradshaw
Earl Poole Ball	...	Squire Earthman
Jack Barlow	...	Uncle George Hite

Storyline

This movie looks at the last years (not days, as implied in the title) of famous outlaws, Frank and Jesse James. The film opens in 1877 with the brothers trying to settle down after 15 years of thievery. Frank is shown to be a book-loving and family-oriented man, while brother Jesse is a money-hungry womanizer. The movie follows their lives through Jesse's death at the hands of the "rotten little coward" Bob Ford and Frank's death in 1892.

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Plot Keywords:

outlaw | opening action scene | bank robbery | trial | nonlinear timeline | 

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Genres:

Western

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 February 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

Die letzten Tage von Frank und Jesse James

Filming Locations:

Tennessee Valley Railroad, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Joseph Cates Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film features three of the four members of the country music super-group "The Highwaymen": Johnny Cash, 'Kris Kristofferson', and Willie Nelson. The only one not featured was Waylon Jennings.

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Goofs

When Frank is in Colorado across from and watching Ford's bar, a drunk is thrown out of the bar. Frank stands up with no hat on. After the camera angle changed, he is wearing a hat, and then on the next camera change his hat is off.

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Quotes

Frank James: Nothing in his life became him like the leaving it.

User Reviews

Watch this movie!

This is the most authentic Jesse James movie ever made. The narrator, Ed Bruce, was excellent as the famous Missouri newspaper editor, John Newman Edwards,who made Jesse James famous in his own time by writing newspaper articles about him and lionizing him in his 1877 book Noted Guerrillas. Whenever, I give a talk about General Jo Shelby's famous Confederate Iron Brigade, I tell the audience this is the only time General Shelby has ever been portrayed in a movie and use the movie's DVD case as a prop. Willie Nelson did a great job playing ex-Confederate Joseph O. Shelby. The care shown in this movie for historical accuracy deserves recognition and I encourage anyone with an interest in the James brothers to watch it.