Bill Il Sanguinario

During the 1930s-50s, there were tons of westerns which brought actual living characters from the old west to the big screen. The problem, however, is that about 90% of what you see in these films has very little to do with the real life exploits of these minor characters. In many cases, sociopathic jerks like Jesse James, Butch Cassidy and Billy the Kid are elevated to almost heroic status...while in real life they were simply murderers and thieves...the type you really want in prison, not marrying your sister!

This film is Audie Murphy's chance to play one of these highly fictionalized real life people. He was not a bad choice, as Murphy was still young and short...and so playing a guy dubbed 'the Kid' was a good fit. He's good in it and the movie is entertaining.

The story follows the events, somewhat, from the so-called 'Lincoln County War'...a series of fights between wealthy ranchers in the New Mexico Territory. Mostly, it was one thug shooting another...no glory and if they could shoot you in the back, so much the better. But because they want to make Billy more likeable, the shooting unarmed folks and the like are eliminated and each of the MANY murders he commits seems reasonably justified.

Overall, a decent film but one you'd best see as fiction and not the real old west in any way. And, oddly, if you want to see Billy the Kid's grave, there are TWO of them in New Mexico today...something that confuses me!

An excellent but non-too-accurate story, given strong production, and featuring Audie Murphy, in his first starring role. Murphy's a bit wooden, but he delivers. Entertaining.

The Kid from Texas (AKA: Texas Kid, Outlaw) is directed by Kurt Neumann and written by Robert Hardy Andrews and Karl Kamb. It stars Audie Murphy, Gale Storm, Albert Dekker, Shepperd Strudwick and Will Geer. Music is by Milton Schwarzwald and cinematography by Charles Van Enger.

11th July 1879, Lincoln County, and a young man born of the name William Henry McCarty Junior is about to write his name into the annals of infamy...

"I'll get every man who had a hand in this killing if it's the last thing I do"

It's a "B" feature in production terms and it's a hodge-podge of historical facts, but in the trajectory of Western movies it's a rather important piece. It also happens to be great entertainment for the Western fan.

It would be the film to launch Audie Murphy on the road to Western iconography, whilst simultaneously becoming a valid early addition for cinematic representations of the Billy the Kid legend. Historically the core basis of the film is accurate, though the chronology is all over the place. There's also a bizarre decision to use different character names for McSween, Tunstall and Dolan, three of the major players in the Lincoln County War.

However, the portrayals of the principal real life people is surprisingly well balanced, there's no attempts at romanticising the issues, no side picking, because both sides are equally driven and culpable for the carnage and misery that would play out during this time in Western history.

As an Oater on entertainment terms it delivers wholesale, there's some staid acting, not least from Murphy, who you can see is feeling his way into how he should react in front of a camera. Yet there's a magnetic charm to Murphy that would serve him well in this specialist genre field. It also helps to have a very reliable supporting cast backing him up, be it the wonderfully named Gale Storm's beauty, or Dekker and Geer being acting professionalism personified, there's a lot to enjoy here on the thespian production front.

The requisite amount of action is in full effect, as are key moments in the real story that provide some great scenes; such as the infamous jail break, while the colour photography is most pleasant. Ultimately it's a revenge story for the "B" Western loving crowd, where the villains are slippery and the anti-hero a damaged dandy. Sometimes you gotta peer through the gloss to get the facts, but what fun that proves to be. Yee- haw. 7/10

Despite the disclaimer contained in the opening narration, you can be pretty sure that the mouth-breathing moron revealed in photographs of the original William Bonney bear little relation to Audie Murphy - whose pretty good looks if anything are even more unsettling than the original - in this handsome Universal oater.

Young Billy sets his hat at a comely young Gale Storm, married to upper echelon crook Albert Dekker, who we're expected to believe once trained to be a minister and carries a bible; but is not above administering her the occasional smack in the kisser.

Naturally (SPOILER COMING:) it all ends badly for our Billy. Although not in the fashion that it actually ended for him.

Brought up on the wrong side of the tracks, William Bonney (aka Billy the Kid) is taken in by a kind rancher, Jameson, who is targeted by rival landowners who have key people in their pockets. When Mr Jameson is murdered Billy seeks revenge and, along with other men, is sworn in to bring the men to justice. However when some arrests turn into killings, Billy is cut off from the law and becomes a criminal in the eyes of the law. As his reputation grows the law put Sheriff Pat Garrett onto his trail.

Having seen a few Audie Murphy westerns recently I was interested to try and see a few more to get a flavour of who he was as an actor. I watched this film unaware (aside from the clue in the title) that it was another telling of the story of Billy the Kid. As such it is an inherently weak film – especially with time, as we have all seen elements of this story told in a variety of different ways. This recognisable story means that it is too familiar for such a basic film to work with, rather it ends up being duller and feeling rather plodding as a result. This isn't helped by the fact that this film could have had any story in it and it still would have been delivered as any other B-movie western would have been. The script doesn't add anything to the basic story and, if you know the story then there is nothing really different here to justify watching it. The action is the usual fare and will please those expecting a B-movie western but nothing more.

The cast is also run of the mill and just what you would expect. Murphy looks good and is reliable but he is far from being a good actor and he delivers the same performance I have seen him give in films that are all the same if you turn the sound down. The support cast are also par for the course and nobody really excels themselves; only Billy's new employer (Alexander) is an interesting character and gives a few good moments for Dekker to work with.

Overall this is a very ordinary film that will be passable entertainment for those looking for a basic B-movie western that just fits in with genre tradition rather than trying to do anything special or different. The story is too familiar to really hold the interest and the script, performances, action and direction are all just about par for the course for this type of thing.