Wild Bill . Austin Chronicle . 01-25-99

Wild Bill

DIRECTED BY: Walter Hill

REVIEWED: 01-25-99

The popularity of the Western genre in filmmaking seemed to die with the disappearance of the images of John Wayne, Gary Cooper, and Steve McQueen wading through the savage, dusty plains of 19th-century America. Of course, there are a few recent exceptions. Namely, Eastwood's Unforgiven, Costner's Dances With Wolves, and the little-known Wild Bill, Walter Hill's look at the final, twisted days of buffalo hunter and Western lawman James Butler Hickock. The film opens with a violent montage of Hickock's post-Civil War days, his thirst for whiskey and women and his enforcement of the strict principle of "never touching another man's hat." Bridges, who seems predestined for this role, plays Hickock with a larger-than-life intensity, a trait that was said to have been part of the historical figure's persona. The film's narrative opens in the lawless town of Deadwood, South Dakota, just as Hickock arrives with his traveling companion and the film's narrator Charley Prince (Hurt). Given the notoriety he has gained during his violent jaunts around the young, unbridled West, Hickock has been nicknamed Wild Bill. He has acquired quite a following, including an indecorous ex-lover named Calamity Jane (Barkin) and a quiet, gutless kid named Jack McCall (soundly played by Arquette in his pre-Scream days), who is set on killing the famed gunslinger. The film moves quickly, using the device of flashbacks caused by the opium Hickock has taken to help with his glaucoma, and finally to the unraveling of the complex psychological relationship between McCall and Hickock. Hill, who is better known for his work in action films like 48 Hrs. and Last Man Standing, gives this historical tale the feel of a classic Western. Cinematographer Lloyd Ahern captures this darker side of the West beautifully through a mix of saturated sepia shades and bright, striking colors. It is not surprising to me that Wild Bill was panned by many critics around the nation considering that it is not a factually accurate piece. That may be true, but Hill constructed the film from the Western lore of Hickock's turbulent life and when the legend deviates from fact, print the legend.

--Eli Kooris

Capsule Reviews
Wild Bill

Other Films by Walter Hill
Last Man Standing

Film Vault Suggested Links
Four for Texas
Pursued
Django

Rate this Film
If you don't want to vote on a film yet, and would like to know how others voted, leave the rating selection as "Vote Here" and then click the Cast Vote button.