The Outlaw

1943 "Tall.... Terrific.... and Trouble!"
5.4| 1h56m| NR| en| More Info
Released: 05 February 1943 Released
Producted By: RKO Radio Pictures
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Info

Newly appointed sheriff Pat Garrett is pleased when his old friend Doc Holliday arrives in Lincoln, New Mexico on the stage. Doc is trailing his stolen horse, and it is discovered in the possession of Billy the Kid. In a surprising turnaround, Billy and Doc become friends. This causes the friendship between Doc and Pat to cool. The odd relationship between Doc and Billy grows stranger when Doc hides Billy at his girl Rio's place after Billy is shot.

Genre

Drama, Western

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Director

Howard Hughes

Production Companies

RKO Radio Pictures

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The Outlaw Audience Reviews

Perry Kate Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!
ReaderKenka Let's be realistic.
Crwthod A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.
ThedevilChoose When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.
utgard14 A western that was pretty notorious when it was released but seems tame by today's standards. It's at least partly directed by Howard Hawks, although Howard Hughes gets the sole screen credit as director. The movie was filmed in 1941 but sat on the shelf for two years due to all the hullabaloo over Jane Russell's cleavage. The story concerns gunfighter Doc Holliday (Walter Huston), outlaw Billy the Kid (Jack Buetel), and lawman Pat Garrett (Thomas Mitchell). Basically it goes like this: Pat and Doc are friends. Then Billy shows up and Doc takes a liking to him, which Pat doesn't like. Then Doc's girlfriend Rio (Jane Russell) takes a liking to Billy, which Doc doesn't like. So then the four of them are all circling each other and liking or not liking each other as the plot calls for. Historically speaking it's pretty laughable but it's a movie not a documentary so I give it a wide berth on factual accuracy.Walter Huston and Thomas Mitchell are both screen legends. They've done better than this but they still do good work here, elevating an otherwise pedestrian movie to something watchable. Busty Jane Russell makes her screen debut here. She's gorgeous, of course, but the role requires little else of her. Also, despite her being the primary selling point for this movie for over half a century, she's not the star. Jack Buetel also makes his screen debut but nobody remembers him for anything other than this. He didn't do another movie until the '50s and then some TV work for a decade before retiring. He's the weakest actor in this cast for sure. Vets Huston and Mitchell seem to be propping him up in every scene he has with them. It's really hard to dislike any movie with cinematography by the great Gregg Toland. His work is probably the best thing about this. Well, that and Russell's bosom. It's a slow and talky movie, which is made all the worse by the film's length and the bad dialogue. The script is terrible but there are some pretty unintentionally funny exchanges between the characters. Try not to laugh during a certain character's funeral scene. Also this movie features some of the worst misuse of music I've ever had the misfortune of experiencing. The music is obtrusive and seems to punctuate every scene, whether it's an action scene or comedy or romantic or whatever -- it just never stops! So do I recommend it? Well, obviously it's a must-see if you're a fan of Russell, Huston, or the two Howards. I suppose any good film buff should also see it for the history behind it as well as the talent involved. But no I wouldn't recommend it to any casual viewer just interested in seeing an entertaining movie. Judged objectively this is pretty bad. But there is worth in it for certain viewers, like myself, who are a fan of older films...and also a fan of bazoombas.
johnmuir76 Quite a fun movie - rather silly in the tradition of "Bringing Up Baby", but a delightful gem for people who have a sense of humor. This movie is less about action and more about gunmen playing a constant mental game of wits trying to fool and outsmart each other. Fastest hands or not, you quickly see that it's Billy's wits that keep him alive, and Jack Buetel does a fantastic job of portraying a Billy the Kid that-could-have-been. It's also a buddy movie with friendship and camaraderie: the central conflict comes about when Doc Holiday takes to Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett feels cast aside, and it's interesting to watch the changing dynamics and friendship and respect even among those trying to kill each other.
tigersharkp40 My oh my, I've seen some butt ugly films in 67 years but I must say that this piece of junk was the worst. A two hour monstrosity that took me a half a day to plow through. I picked this film up at a thrift store for 50 cents and now I know why. I thought it would be a classic, but I should have known better when I saw Howard Hughes on the box. The dialog was idiotic at best and the story was totally absurd and boring to tears. The three male main characters came right out of a bath house for sure. Sorry I had to give this abortion a 1 as I had no choice of a zero. Thank God for Jane Russells magnificent breasts.....all was not lost.
delandsmokin this movie really surprised me. nothing from this era of American movies was like this i've ever seen. you can not think of this as bad acting as some reviewers will say. you have to think of this as "true" acting: they are acting the way people act in real life. not the way we are used to seeing them on camera. this "kid" is like every hardass street punk with a horrible childhood i ever met. you can see the emotional depravity in his gaze on the other characters. his unflinching at being grazed across the hand and shot through the ears; as hard as a hardass can be. crying inside but not letting these people the satisfaction of knowing it. us just waiting for him to retaliate but him having the satisfaction of putting Doc through the heartache. the sexual tension and innuendos between jane and jack are more like modern movies than something from this era. i bet many people left disgusted and went and complained to their pastor they were "demonized" by this movie. many others probably wondered why other films didn't come so close to reality. not gay in any way. 'f' the homos just wishing it was.