All of the actors are equally noteworthy in their own way. The screenplay by Peckinpah and Walon Green contains several moments of brilliance. Other central themes in the screenplay include honor, integrity, companionship, and in the end, redemption. The Wild Bunch set the cinematic world on its ear by opening with a violent shoot-out which could easily serve as an excellent finale to any film. As the saying goes, this scene has often been imitated but never equaled.
Technical credits are superb throughout.
Lucien Ballard's cinematography coupled with the editing of Lou Lombardo create some classic results. The wardrobe supervised by Gordon Dawson does an excellent job of capturing the look and feel of the time. Jerry Fielding provides a beautiful score, as well. The film has been critiqued and analyzed to great length by many film critics, historians, and fans like myself. If you haven't seen it, by all means do.