The Legend of Butch & Sundance (2006) David Clayton Rogers, Ryan Browning, Rachelle Lefevre, Blake Gibbons Movie Review

The Legend of Butch & Sundance (2006)   3/53/53/53/53/5


Ryan Browning and David Clayton Rogers in The Legend of Butch & Sundance (2006)

Sadly Not Legendary

After doing time Butch Parker (David Clayton Rogers) receives a pardon when he promises he won't commit another crime in Wyoming although it doesn't stop him from joining with his relative Mike Cassidy's (Michael Biehn) gang in another state who hit various places guarded by the Pinkerton Agency men. It is there that Butch ends up meeting Sundance Kid (Ryan Browning) and where he ends up becoming the boss of the Wild Bunch when Mike ends up killed. With the outlaws notorious exploits making life harder and harder friends Butch & Sundance decide to fake their death and with girlfriend Etta (Rachelle Lefevre) head down to Mexico.

Well I guess if you are not a fan of Redford & Newman's "Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid" you might enjoy "The Legend of Butch & Sundance" but trust me when I say that if you cherish that earlier tale of the notorious outlaws this one is going to be a struggle. To give it credit it tries to build some back story to how Butch and Sundance came to be, it also tries to establish some character depth with Butch being the thinker and Sundance a wild one but there is no atmosphere. Oh there is what seems to pass for atmosphere in modern movies where we get some lightning and thunder just at the right time but it is all too clinical.

But being clinical with crisp imagery and characters that even when they are suppose to be grubby look clean will appeal to a certain audience. That audience is the TV movie loving crowd who generally like their entertainment to last no more than 90 minutes and be easy to follow. And if that was the intention then "The Legend of Butch & Sundance" has to be seen as a success as it delivers the well know tale with enough variation so that it isn't a straight retelling.

What this all boils down to is that "The Legend of Butch & Sundance" is going to entertain those who like westerns and the easy to watch nature of TV movies. But for those who are just fans of westerns are likely going to find this forgettable and weak because of that attention on being easy to follow and easy on the eye.


LATEST REVIEWS