A western with an upbeat sense of humour

Rating: Null/10 (4 December 2018)

A movie starring Paul Newman and young Robert Redford, playing the eponymous outlaws, who operated in Wyoming during the final years of the Old West. They made a legend as the most successful train robbers of all time and as gentlemen who tried to avoid killing as much as possible. Of course the truth is a bit more jaded than this movie would have you believe, but even the real events were quite outlandish and almost like from a pulp novel.
The movie is very much a western, no doubt about that, but for a western it's bit of an odd duck. That's because it actually has a sense of humour without being an outright comedy. Butch and Kid have very upbeat attitude when it comes to life and their chosen career and even during their toughest moments they have time to exchange banter and jokes about them being in trouble. Not that the movie cannot take itself seriously when it is called for, but overall the film has a lighthearted tone for a western. Which is nice, I have to admit.
The score is also odd, to say the least. I'd even dare to call it ill-fitting, but it somehow manages to work. Just don't ask me how.
The best thing about this movie is without a doubt the main duo. They're pure dynamite as actors, especially when sharing a screen. Because the film is based on real events, the actual plot is a bit episodic in nature, which is not an outright flaw, but I can only imagine what the film would have been like if they had taken these two characters and told a more coherent story with them. It would have been something unbelievable.
Still, even as it is, the film is one of the better westerns I've seen in years and definitely worth a watch for all fans of the genre.