Ahem, now we get to the real meat and potatoes (and a little gravy). This masterpiece was made by the late great Sam Peckinpah and it’s one of my all-time favourite films.
Pat Garret and Billy the Kid has a long and troubled history, with various different version knocking around, more and more footage appears in longer and longer versions as time marches on. See the longest version available.
The best cast a western ever had, the best music a western ever had and a director as hell bent on self-destruction more so, than the heroes of the film he was making. Sam was always a dangerous man, and he was so damn talented when he was at his best.
Shot through with rage, regrets, bullets and whiskey, this is one of the best films about male friendship, and changing times. It’s also very sharp about the women who were married to these men.
‘Us old boys shouldn’t be doing this to each other’. The trailer is below.
So, 94 films to go!
Matthew Cooper has written for Emmerdale, Eastenders, Hollyoaks and Family Affairs. He was winner of the first ever Lloyds Bank Channel Four Film Challenge and the Oscar Moore Screenplay Prize. His first short film starred a then unknown Ewan McGregor and was picked up by Channel Four when Matthew was 19 years old. He’s been a script writer for hire and filmmaker for hire for over 20 years.