[5]
William Holden and Ryan O’Neal co-star as Montana ranch hands who rob a bank and flee to Mexico in this leisurely-paced ‘hangout’ western from writer/director Blake Edwards (Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Victor/Victoria). Holden plays the elder cowboy who wonders how he’ll get along in his old age, while O’Neal’s younger character is anxious to skip working his whole life for pittance. O’Neal suggests they leave their employment with the ranch owner (Karl Malden) and rob the local bank. Holden reluctantly agrees, and the plan goes well until Malden sends his two sons (Tom Skerritt and Joe Don Baker) after them on the trail to Mexico.
Wild Rovers is loosely plotted and spends most of its runtime on quieter, escapist scenes of Holden and O’Neal enjoying the more romantic aspects of ‘the old West’ — starting a bar fight, gambling, sleeping with whores, camping out, catching a wild horse, and enjoying the majestic American West from their saddles. Audiences who want to spend time in that atmosphere are more likely to enjoy Wild Rovers. Despite solid turns from Holden and O’Neal, neither the story nor the characters are quite engrossing enough to capture a more general audience — though viewers who stick it through may find themselves more absorbed by the film as it progresses. The friendship between the two leads remains understated until the final act, when it becomes clear one or both of them may not make it all the way to Mexico. The film’s darker moments feel a bit inauthentic — like an attempt to cash in on the popular trend of cinematic violence started by Bonnie and Clyde and The Wild Bunch.
With Victor French, Moses Gunn, James Olson, and an always-welcome Jerry Goldsmith score.