Wild Rovers is written and directed by Blake Edwards. It stars William Holden, Ryan O'Neal, Karl Malden, Joe Don Baker, Tom Skeritt and James Olsen. Music is scored by Jerry Goldsmith and the Panavision/Metrocolor cinematography is by Philip Lathrop.

It's a Western that not only was butchered by cretinous execs at MGM, but has also proved to be divisive among the Western faithful - those that have seen the now thankfully available un-butchered version that is. Wild Rovers is one of those Oaters that is very much concerned with the changing of the West, where cowboys start to find themselves out of place with their era. Think Monte Walsh/Will Penny/Ride The High Country, with a bit of Wild Bunch/Butch & Sundance thrown in for good measure, and you get where Wild Rovers is at.

Some critics were quick to accuse Edwards of merely copying Western films of past, but that is unfair. For this is a loving homage to those movies, also managing to be its own beast in the process. The tale is simply of two cowpokes, one aged and world weary, the other a young excitable buck, best friends who want more from life, so decide to rob the local bank and flee to Mexico to start afresh. Of course two men and destiny are quite often not the best of bed fellows...

There's an elegiac beauty to Edwards' screenplay, with some of the scripted dialogue lyrical and poetic. And yet even though the harshness of the West, of the life of a cowboy, and the violence that is abound, is deftly pulsing within the story, there's plenty of dashes of humour as well. This is not a perpetually downbeat movie, slow moving? Absolutely, short on ripper action? Also correct. But as the themes of heroism and honour, of friendship and folly, are born out, and the many tender sequences draw you in, a pratfall is never far away.

Technically it's high grade stuff. Holden is superb and he drags O'Neal along with him to avert what could have been a casting disaster. They make a fine and beguiling partnership and both men are turning in some of their best ever work here. The photography of the Arizona locations is outstanding, with Lathrop (Lonely Are the Brave) managing to add some ethereal beauty to the story. Goldsmith knocks out a triffic score, part blunderbuss Western excitement, part intimate pal to all and sundry.

Skip any version that is under two hours, for that is an MGM crime. The MOD DVD comes complete with overture, intermission, entr'acte and exit music, while TCM shows the uncut version but minus the aforementioned roadshow segments. This is not a Western for those looking for a Magnificent Seven style actioner, for as fun as that great movie is, this is an altogether different and mature beast, and it deserves to be better known. 9/10

It's a given that many Westerns made from the Thirties through the Fifties had nothing to do with their titles, but by the Sixties or thereabouts this minor issue was pretty much rectified. Except in the case of this film. "Wild Rovers" is about the last thing I'd use to describe this picture of two cowboy ranch hands that decide to take a short cut regarding their big plan of buying a ranch in Mexico. There's really nothing wild here in the way of action sequences, no galloping posses or drawn out shoot 'em up scenes. There's a segment that sets up the finale when Frank Post (Ryan O'Neal) gets plugged in a saloon shoot out, but even that's marred by the can of red paint that's used to simulate the blood on his shirt. In short, Frank and Ross Bodine (William Holden) are the most casual pair of bank robbers you'll ever run across in any genre, to the point where they actually pay off the bank manager for his trouble.

The problem's not with the cast, though I'll qualify that somewhat. As the aging cowpuncher, Holden's character exhibits a laid back wisdom that comes with his years, and in any other vehicle might have been the kind of mentor a younger would-be bank robbing partner could learn from. But with that partner being Ryan O'Neal, this thing just doesn't work. He just looks out of his element here, having already been typecast to my thinking by roles like Oliver in the prior years' "Love Story". I'll support my argument with that scene where he rolls around in the snow while Bodine breaks the wild stallion.

The rest of the supporting players, though competent, are given roles that are underdeveloped and fail to grow over the course of the story. For example, young Johnny (Tom Skerritt) seems to be the favored son of Walt Buckman (Karl Malden) opposite brother Paul (Joe Don Baker),but their relationship is never given any further explanation. You never really have a clear understanding of Johnny's resolve to bring in Ross and Frank, or his brother's willingness to let the matter go. Victor French as sheriff Bill Jackson was an interesting choice; I don't think I've seen him in a Western before and his sense of duty was admirable in between his drinking and whoring with the gals at Maybell's place.

If you want to put this into perspective, think of Newman and Redford in their hit film made two years earlier. Lots of humor, great action sequences, a lively hit song as part of the soundtrack, and a chemistry between the principals that made the story a classic buddy flick and a great Western. When you consider all that, I think you'd have to come to the conclusion that Ross and Frank are no Butch and Sundance.

I was very surprised when I saw that "Wild Rovers" was written and directed by Blake Edwards. Edwards is more known for his comedies and occasional dramas...not westerns. Was he up to the task? Well, considering what sort of film it is, having a non-western writer/director is actually a very good thing!

Why would I say this? Because "Wild Rovers" is a totally deconstructed view of cowboys. Instead of the usual macho theatrics you see in a western, this one is much more like the lives of REAL cowboys....their dull and somewhat pointless lives. In the film, the guys work hard, get paid little, visit prostitutes, fight because they are bored, puke, and die young...like a real cowboy of the era. There's nothing romanticized about the men in this film and, if anything, they are a bit sad and pitiful.

In the story, two of these drifting cow punchers, Ross and Frank (William Holden and Ryan O'Neal) begin to question their lives and their futures. To escape this, they consider robbing a bank. After all, better to die this way than to die on the job. But if they follow through with their plan, it's pretty certain that it won't be easy and some folks will come gunning for them.

In order to maintain the realistic style of the film, Edwards does not rush the film at all. Instead, it's slow and deliberate. Additionally, the cinematography often helps to convey a sense of loneliness--with wide screen shots of the lonely prairie. It's lovely...but stark. This could make for a dull film (like "Heaven's Gate") but the writer/director seemed to maintain the proper balance of dullness, scope and the story itself.

So is it any good? Well, it's difficult to judge based on the IMDB reviews. They run the gamut...from those hating it, the indifferent as well as those who think it's a masterpiece. As for me, I really appreciated "Wild Rovers" because I used to be an American History teacher...and know Edwards' view of the west is far more realistic than 99% of the movies in this genre. Thoroughly exciting? No...but neither was life in the old west. Overall, very well made and well worth seeing provided you have an open mind and don't demand the usual western cliches and plot twists.