Another Wednesday, Another Western!
Young Guns is not great movie, but there is a lot to like about 1988 Western. It has, what was considered at the time to be, a strong cast and the movie is fun.
John Tunstall (played by Terence Stamp) is a rancher in New Mexico, who hires young troublemakers to live and work on his property, and he acts as a sort of father-figure. this group consists of Doc Scurlock (played by Kiefer Sutherland), Jose Chavez (played by Lou Diamond Phillips), Richard Brewer (played by Charlie Sheen), Steve Stephens (played by Dermot Mulroney), Charlie Bowdre (played by Casey Siemaszko) and newcomer William Bonney (played by Emilio Estevez) who later in the film will be dubbed "Billy the Kid".
Pretty early on in the film Tunstall is murdered by the men of his competitor Lawrence Murphy (played by the legendary Jack Palance). Shortly after Tunstall's death a lawyer/friend of his, Alex McSween, manages to get the group deputized and gives them warrants for the arrest of Murphy's henchmen. The group calls themselves 'The Regulators' and it isn't long before Billy's hot-headed nature causes problems. After he kills a couple guys rather than arresting them, Billy and the team are stripped of their badges and become fugitives themselves. It's around this point in the film when Billy adopts the name "Billy the Kid" given to him by a local newspaper.
The gang eventually becomes infamous and pretty soon the U.S. Army is out for them. But, they can't run forever and, as in so many Westerns, the film ends in a big shootout.
As stated at the beginning, it's not a great Western. There are a few scenes that could've been cut out completely, but for the most part it's entertaining.
I give it a 3 out of 5.
Have a suggestion for a 'Western Wednesday' Review?
Leave it in the comments below, and be sure to check out some of my previous 'Western Wednesday' entries.
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