American Outlaws

The guerrilla leader the Frank and Younger Brothers ride with, 'Captain Malcolm' is a fictional character. The Brothers actually rode with notorious leaders like 'Bloody Bill' Anderson and William Quantrill. Anderson carried out the Lawrence Massacre in Kansas where upwards of 150-200 unarmed men and boys were executed and over 100 buildings burned. Twenty-four uniformed, but unarmed, Union soldiers were also captured in Centralia, Missouri by Anderson and his men. All but one were executed and their bodies mutilated. A mounted Union force, led by Major A. V.E. Johnston, gave chase. Anderson and Johnston's forces squared off in a open field. The guerrillas quickly overran the Union force. Over 100 Union soldiers were gunned down and many of the wounded executed, including Major Johnston. William Quantrill also participated in the Lawrence Massacre. Later he and his group overran a company of Union soldiers and civilians in the Baxter Springs Massacre where over 100 men were killed, many as they were trying to surrender. There are conflicting accounts as to the level of involvement the James and Younger brothers had in these massacres. Frank James stated that Jesse did kill Major Johnston in battle..

Throughout the film, Frank James is seen carrying out impressive long-range trick-shots with his Henry rifle. In actuality, one of the downsides of the Henry rifle was its dismal accuracy, as well as its short range compared to the more widely available rifle-muskets. Even modern reproductions are not recommended for hitting man-sized targets past 200 yards.

On the American release DVD there are 2 scenes that were cut from the original movie. One is a fight between Jesse and Frank at a bar. The other is Jesse "paying" for a girl for Jim Younger.

Featured in OWV Updates: Multimedia Update (12/06/2016) (2016)