The Long Riders (1980)

The origins, exploits and the ultimate fate of the Jesse James gang is told in a sympathetic portrayal of the bank robbers made up of brothers who begin their legendary bank raids because of revenge.

Director:

Walter Hill

Writers:

Bill Bryden, Steven Smith (as Steven Phillip Smith)

Stars:

David Carradine, Stacy Keach, Dennis Quaid

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David Carradine	...	Cole Younger
Keith Carradine	...	Jim Younger
Robert Carradine	...	Bob Younger
James Keach	...	Jesse James
Stacy Keach	...	Frank James
Dennis Quaid	...	Ed Miller
Randy Quaid	...	Clell Miller
Kevin Brophy	...	John Younger
Harry Carey Jr.	...	George Arthur
Christopher Guest	...	Charlie Ford
Nicholas Guest	...	Bob Ford
Shelby Leverington	...	Annie Ralston
Felice Orlandi	...	Mr. Carl Reddick
Pamela Reed	...	Belle Shirley Starr
James Remar	...	Sam Starr

Storyline

The origins, exploits and the ultimate fate of the Jesse James gang is told in a sympathetic portrayal of the bank robbers made up of brothers who begin their legendary bank raids because of revenge.

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Plot Keywords:

bank | revenge | breasts | famous score | last man standing | 

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Taglines:

"All the world likes an outlaw. For some damn reason they remember 'em." - Jesse James

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Genres:

Biography | Crime | Western

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Swedish

Release Date:

16 May 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cabalgata infernal

Filming Locations:

Texas State Railroad, Rusk, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$23,000,000, 30 June 1981

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Artists, Huka Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In magazine ads promoting casting and production of "The Long Riders" photos of the acting Bottoms brothers (Joseph, Timothy and Sam) in period costume were included. Though not cast, presumbly the Bottoms were apparently screen tested and considered.

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Goofs

Belle fires her Derringer pistol and breaks a glass at the bar but the mirror behind it doesn't even crack.

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Quotes

Cole Younger: First getting shot, then getting married - bad habits.

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Alternate Versions

UK video and DVD versions were cut by 4 secs by the BBFC to edit a horse-fall. Although the BBFC's website states that the 1986 video version was cut by 1 minute 35 secs, this seems to be erroneous.

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Connections

Featured in The Northfield Minnesota Raid: Anatomy of a Scene (2013)

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Soundtracks

I'm a Good Old Rebel
(uncredited)
Music traditional ("Lily of the West")
Lyrics by Innes Randolph
Played and Sung by a guitarist

User Reviews

Hill almost elevates cinema violence into an art form...

As Sam Peckinpah's 'The Getaway,' Walter Hill's 'The Long Riders' almost elevates cinema violence into an art form…

Visually, 'The Long Riders' contains much that is stunning, even mesmerizing: the green Missouri scenic landscapes; the train robbery sequence; the stagecoach heist; the crossing of a wild river; but there is no question that it is the scene of the gang's disastrous foray into Northfield, Minnesota - that highlight this film… These specific episodes give 'The Long Riders' its rhythm, power, spectacle, and excitement…

With his slow motion 'terror shootout,' Hill seems to impress his viewers by showing them an inventive montage of high-level gory violence… But Hill's most wonderful sequences are those that were the most reserved: the wonderful moment when Frank is cutting the hardest wood with a forest ax and his brother Jesse, walking with his fiancée, attempting to settle down and raise a family…

Hill may have a reputation for being a tough guy, but his best screen moments (in "Hard Times", "The Warriors", "Streets of Fire") are the ones in which he allows his romantic tendencies to slip through, when he gives his characters the dignity that means so much to them… Hill tries to debunk the American myth that Western gunfighters were "heroes," and to show these embittered guys for the 'rough men that they really were.'

Hill's real intention is to present us with a gang of four families of brothers, and get us to accept them on their own terms, in their own brutal world… The men of 'The Long Riders' are at their most dastardly at the beginning of the film when Ed Miller (Dennis Quaid) indiscriminately shoots an innocent clerk, but for the rest of the film - one by one - Hill reveals their better, more 'human' sides… We further get to appreciate them as we compare them to the awful men around them; next to the Pinkertons killing a simple-minded 15 year old boy, they come out best, the 'good guys.'

To Hill, good and bad aren't on opposite sides of the coin; they share the edge…