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The Wild Bunch (1969)

R  |   |  Action, Adventure, Western  |  18 June 1969 (USA)
8.0
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Ratings: 8.0/10 from 59,732 users  
Reviews: 285 user | 139 critic

An aging group of outlaws look for one last big score as the "traditional" American West is disappearing around them.

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Writers:

(screenplay), (screenplay), 2 more credits »
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Title: The Wild Bunch (1969)

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Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 4 nominations. See more awards »

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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Jaime Sánchez ...
Angel (as Jaime Sanchez)
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Mapache (as Emilio Fernandez)
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T.C
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...
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Paul Harper ...
Ross
Jorge Russek ...
Zamorra
Edit

Storyline

In the Wild Bunch the movie opens with a group of aging outlaw's final score, a bank robbery. The event concludes with a violent and overtly bloody shootout that would generally mark the finale of a movie. This is correct in that it marks the finale of an era, for the characters and the world they live in. They simply can no longer keep up, the times are changing, technology advancing, and they're style of life is getting left behind in the dust that they spent so long galloping through. They abandon their careers for the simpler life of retirement. They enjoy this time, they live their fantasies. During this time the law is always on their tracks, bounty hunters. The further into their fantasy they get, the closer their demise seems to get. When one of their own is captured they are faced with the choice of escape or what is certainly a suicide mission to attempt and free their fallen behind comrade. For them it is not a choice. They all die in what can only be described as a ... Written by VilanTrub@gmail.com

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

Unchanged men in a changing land. Out of step, out of place and desperately out of time. See more »


Certificate:

R | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
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Details

Country:

Language:

| |

Release Date:

18 June 1969 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

La pandilla salvaje  »

Filming Locations:

 »

Box Office

Budget:

$6,244,087 (estimated)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

(director's cut)

Sound Mix:

(70 mm prints)| (1995 re-release)| (1995 re-release)| (35 mm prints)| (1995 re-release)

Color:

(Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1
See  »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

Lou Lombardo showed Sam Peckinpah how he had edited a death scene for Felony Squad (1966). He had triple-printed a death scene which made it last much longer, using slow motion and different angles. Said Lombardo, "That impressed [producer Phil Feldman] and Sam, too. He said, 'That's how we're going to do 'The Wild Bunch'--but not all of it'." See more »

Goofs

The American soldiers in the movie wear a pattern of shirt which buttons all the way up the front. During this period of time, U.S. Army shirts were pullovers and buttoned part way down the front. The shirt depicted in the film is similar, but was not adopted until later. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
[indistinct voices]
Rev. Wainscoat: Do not drink wine or strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, least ye shall die. Look not though upon the wine when it is red, and when it bringeth his color in the cup, when it moveth itself aright at the last, it biteth like a serpent and stingeth like an adder. Now folks, that's from the Good Book, but in this here town it's five cents a glass. Five cents a glass, now does anyone think that that is a price of a drink?
See more »


Soundtracks

Polly Wolly Doodle
(uncredited)
Traditional
Sung by the bounty hunters as they leave Agua Verde
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

See more (Spoiler Alert!) »

User Reviews

 
The definitive end of the west Western
3 October 2004 | by (North Yorkshire, England) – See all my reviews

An incredible performance by Bill Holden is the high point of this sensational, landmark film. Holden made a whole career out of laid-back, easy-going, what-the-hell sort of characters but here, at his zenith, he departs from type and plays a character so mean and so embittered that in some ways he even out-Bronsons Bronson himself.

The Wild Bunch is a group of disillusioned outlaws who are out of time and they know it. When Sykes says that they've got one of those things (a car) up north that can fly, they gloomily accept that this new-fangled 20th Century is not for them.

It is a movie all about values and about a man's loyalty to his companions. Holden brilliantly declares that if you cannot stand by a man who rides with you, you are like some kind of animal. In the end, that is all these hunted men have: their loyalty to each other.

And so they band together for one last walk to try and rescue their doomed Mexican comrade. The bloodbath that follows is an eloquent summary of their lives. They who live by the gun.....

Superb performances by Holden in particular and also by O'Brien, Ryan, Borgnine, Oates and Johnson. Peckinpah's finest hour. Definitely ten out of ten.


103 of 136 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

Message Boards

Recent Posts
Great stuff... thoughts after seeing uncut version beavertoof
Why did Robert Ryan look at William Holden's gun at the end of the movie old-skool101
Did They Decide To Die Fighting On Purpose? BLTKrebes
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Dutch... jcorzan
Theater Showing, July 8, 2015 in Palm Springs PSJazzFan
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