The Wild Bunch, was very violent for Its time. Most people in 1969 hated It just because of Its violence. This has to be my favorite peckinpah film. The storyline and the characters go together so well. well what do you think?
This must be Peckinpah’s most well known film, and is famous for it’s scenes of slow-motion violence.
I haven’t seen it in a very long time, so I’m not really sure what I think of it.
But Peckinpah’s vision of the wild west is clearly a very long way from earlier Hollywood cinema.
Yeah his vision was more of a " The end of the west " type of vision
Peckinpah is one of my favorite directors so don’t think i’m bad mouthing his work, cause i’m not,but i this idea that all westerns before him were "white hats vs black hats"is exagerated and has become gospel.If you’ve seen the searchers,the gunfighter,bend of the river,the man who shot liberty valance and other “pre-peckinpah” westerns you will find plenty of angst,darkness and flawed heroes.Heck Anthony Mann’s whole western canon is film noir set in the west.So yes Sam set a new standard for violence but the gray was already there.
I think “The wild bunch” is an excellent film but i do find it a little overrated.
True, the opening and ending battles are superb with their over the top violence but inbetween i don’t think that much was going on and found it a little slow.
For me Peckinpah’s best film is “Bring me the head of Alfredo Garcia”, Warren Oates performance in it is awesome!
For me Peckinpah's best film is "Bring me the head of Alfredo Garcia", Warren Oates performance in it is awesome!
Warren Oates is great whenever he has a good dramatic role. It’s too bad that he had so many small comedic roles towards the end of his career.
‘The wild bunch’ is one of my favorite non-spag western ! No doubt !!!
[attachment older than 600 days, deleted by admin]
I saw an earlier western by Peckinpah some years ago “Ride the high country” -62, with Randolph Scott.
It was a typical romantic Hollywood-western.
It had nothing to do with Peckinpahs later films, indicating that he too became extremely influenced by the spaghetti-boom.
[quote=“Silvanito, post:8, topic:358”]I saw an earlier western by Peckinpah some years ago “Ride the high country” -62, with Randolph Scott.
It was a typical romantic Hollywood-western.
It had nothing to do with Peckinpahs later films, indicating that he too became extremely influenced by the spaghetti-boom.[/quote]Actually, some of the themes of Ride The High Country can be found in The Wild Bunch, Ballad Of Cable Hogue, Junior Bonner, Pat Garret… and …Alfredo Garcia. In one way or another, they’re all about a certain kind of man, who wants to ‘enter his house justified’, as one of the characters in Ride The High Country put it, but who finds out that his time has come and gone, and that his way of living can no longer be sustained. Civilization and modernization have crept up on him while he wasn’t paying attention and now he can’t move freely anymore.
I watched this movie for the first time a few days ago. I liked it, although not as much as other westerns I’ve seen, spaghetti or otherwise. I really liked the last scene where the remaining four walked through the fort and confronted the General…that was well done. Apparently that was a spur of the moment decision to shoot that way by Peckinpah and it turned out really well.
I gave it 3 out of 5 stars, but it’s still a good movie in my book…I’ll be looking for more Peckinpah movies to rent now!
What I really enjoyed about The Wild Bunch was it shows how the west is changing(the automobiles). Also you see how uncaring and brutal these men are but when they see one of there own being hurt they try to save him knowing they might die trying.
I recommend seeing Bring me the head of alfredo garcia although its not a western. Also you got to check out Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid.
Now, this is one of the great masterpieces of the western, maybe also of film history.
It’s also the most complex and one of the most unusual westerns ever, and the funny thing is that on the surface it seems not to be more than a dumb and bloody, albeit slightly strange adventure movie, not unlike many others. But it is.
And it’s brillantly directed, everytime on the edge of risking to spoil the whole thing.
If you understand The Wild Bunch the film could be an emotinally overwhelming experience, otherwise the viewer is left with helplessness, is left with cold looking technical brillance.
Also the film works only in it’s uncut version, take some scenes out in the 1st half and the whole end loses it’s emotional power. And these end is not only the mass shootout, it begins with the brothel scene (the Let’s go. - Why not? dialogue) when all the loose ends, the unsolved conflicts, the lurking, but not outspoken themes of the film stream together and are building up to the orgiastic, never before seen climax. Outstanding even in our days.
And the Wild Bunch is thematically and stylistically completely different from any SW.
Instead the film combines and developes the themes and motifs of Peckinpah’s previous westerns Ride the High Country and Major Dundee and brings them in a definitive form.
Like nearly all of Peckinpah’s movies The Wild Bunch is a film about dying, not about killing.
[quote=“stanton, post:12, topic:358”]Also the film works only in it’s uncut version, take some scenes out in the 1st half and the whole end loses it’s emotional power. And these end is not only the mass shootout, it begins with the brothel scene (the Let’s go. - Why not? dialogue) when all the loose ends, the unsolved conflicts, the lurking, but not outspoken themes of the film stream together and are building up to the orgiastic, never before seen climax. Outstanding even in our days.[/quote]I believe that’s very true. I have only seen cut version (and in bad quality fullscreen) and it didn’t impress me that much. I should get the uncut version.
THE WILD BUNCH is actually my third favourite Peckinpah movie, my favourite is BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA followed by THE GETAWAY. 
Bring me the head of alfredo garcia is brillant…“Hell I never been anywhere I want to go back to thats for damn sure”
Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid is another masterpiece.
This is definitely Sam’s best work. He never did anything to this standard before or after making this. This was his make or break film, because the studio had had it with his prima-donna attitude. I think the added pressure made him do tighter, more professional work. The restored flashbacks do nothing for me, except drag the film a little with info I already deduced. But the movie is still one of the strongest westerns of all time(2nd in my top ten) and a dream cast and a great Jerry Fielding score. As far as dragging in the middle, the train hijacking, the stare down with the Mexican troops and the Gorch brothers attempting a gunfight with Angel, are some of the best scenes. This beat out OUTIW on my list, because of the action.
The restored flashbacks (amongst every other scene before) are essential to make the brilliant end work in it’s whole complexity.
With every cut scene the film suffers in terms of quality.
The german version was 126 min long, and had reduced the film to a well made (but odd) adventure film.
[quote=“stanton, post:18, topic:358”]The restored flashbacks (amongst every other scene before) are essential to make the brilliant end work in it’s whole complexity.
With every cut scene the film suffers in terms of quality.
The german version was 126 min long, and had reduced the film to a well made (but odd) adventure film.[/quote]Restoring the scene of Crazy Lee was redundant, because we’d already seen it earlier. Men usually have a falling out over money or women, so to me, the scenes were unnecessary. I had already figured out, it was one or the other. Since Deke Thornton didn’t have anything directly to do with the gangs demise, it was a moot point.
Great violent western. “The Walk” is quite possibly one the most iconic scenes in any western - US or European.