The Wild Bunch
Directed by	Sam Peckinpah
Written by	Story: Walon Green Roy N. Sickner Screenplay: Sam Peckinpah Walon Green
Starring	William Holden Ernest Borgnine Robert Ryan Edmond O'Brien Warren Oates Ben Johnson
Music by	Jerry Fielding
Cinematography	Lucien Ballard
Distributed by	Warner Bros.-Seven Arts
Release date(s)	July 18, 1969
Running time	Original European: 145 Min (1969) Director's Cut Original USA: 143 min. (1969) Shortened USA: 135 min. (1969) 145 Min (1995) Director's Cut
Language	English
IMDb profile

The Wild Bunch is a controversial 1969 Western film directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Ryan, Edmond O'Brien, Warren Oates, Jaime Sánchez, Ben Johnson, Strother Martin, L.Q. Jones, Bo Hopkins and Dub Taylor.^[1] The film details an aging gang of outlaws on the Texas/Mexico border in 1913 attempting to survive a rapidly approaching modern world. The film is notorious for its extreme violence during an opening bank robbery sequence and a concluding battle between the outlaws and the Mexican army. Front row left to right: Harry A. Longabaugh, alias the Sundance Kid, Ben Kilpatrick, alias the Tall Texan, Robert Leroy Parker, alias Butch Cassidy; Standing- Will Carver, alias News Carver & Harvey Logan, alias Kid Curry; Fort Worth, Texas, 1901. ... The Wild Bunch was a group of outlaws based in Indian Territory that committed robberies, hold ups and killed lawmen during the 1890s. ... Image File history File linksMetadata The_Wild_Bunch. ... David Samuel Sam Peckinpah (February 21, 1925 – December 28, 1984) was an American film director who achieved iconic status following the release of his 1969 Western epic The Wild Bunch. ... Walon Green (b. ... David Samuel Sam Peckinpah (February 21, 1925 – December 28, 1984) was an American film director who achieved iconic status following the release of his 1969 Western epic The Wild Bunch. ... William Holden (April 17, 1918 – ca. ... Ernest Borgnine (born Ermes Effron Borgnino in Hamden, Connecticut on January 24, 1917[1][2] ) is a Golden Globe, BAFTA and Academy Award winning American actor. ... Robert Ryan (November 11, 1909 – July 11, 1973) was an Irish-American Oscar and Bafta award-nominated actor born in Chicago, Illinois. ... Edmond OBrien (September 10, 1915–May 9, 1985) was an American film actor who is perhaps best remembered for his role in D.O.A.. Born in New York, New York, OBrien made his film debut in 1938, and gradually built a career as a highly regarded supporting... Warren Oates (July 5, 1928 – April 3, 1982) was an American character actor best known for his performances in several films directed by Sam Peckinpah including The Wild Bunch (1969) and Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974). ... Ben Johnson Jr. ... Jerry Fielding (born June 17, 1922 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) was an American radio, film and television composer, conductor, and musical director. ... Lucien Ballard (6 May 1908 - 1 October 1988) was an American cinematographer and director of photography. ... Warner Bros. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... is the 199th day of the year (200th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1969 (Stargate SG-1) episode. ... A directors cut is a specially edited version of a film, and less often TV series, music video, commercials or video games, that is supposed to represent the directors own approved edit. ... A directors cut is a specially edited version of a film, and less often TV series, music video, commercials or video games, that is supposed to represent the directors own approved edit. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Also: 1969 (Stargate SG-1) episode. ... Justus D. Barnes, from The Great Train Robbery The Western is one of the classic American literary and film genres. ... David Samuel Sam Peckinpah (February 21, 1925 – December 28, 1984) was an American film director who achieved iconic status following the release of his 1969 Western epic The Wild Bunch. ... William Holden (April 17, 1918 – ca. ... Ernest Borgnine (born Ermes Effron Borgnino in Hamden, Connecticut on January 24, 1917[1][2] ) is a Golden Globe, BAFTA and Academy Award winning American actor. ... Robert Ryan (November 11, 1909 – July 11, 1973) was an Irish-American Oscar and Bafta award-nominated actor born in Chicago, Illinois. ... Edmond OBrien (September 10, 1915–May 9, 1985) was an American film actor who is perhaps best remembered for his role in D.O.A.. Born in New York, New York, OBrien made his film debut in 1938, and gradually built a career as a highly regarded supporting... Warren Oates (July 5, 1928 – April 3, 1982) was an American character actor best known for his performances in several films directed by Sam Peckinpah including The Wild Bunch (1969) and Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974). ... Jaime Sánchez Fernández (born 20 March 1973 in Madrid) is a football player who came on in the 82nd minute of Real Madrids Champions League victory over Juventus on 20 May 1998. ... Ben Johnson Jr. ... Strother Martin, (March 26, 1919 – August 1, 1980) was an American character actor in numerous films and television programs. ... L.Q. Jones (born August 19, 1927 in Beaumont, Texas) is an American character actor and film director, best-known for his work in the films of Sam Peckinpah. ... Bo Hopkins (born February 2, 1942 in Greenville, South Carolina) is an American actor. ... Dub Taylor (February 26, 1907 - October 3, 1994) was a prolific American character actor who worked extensively in Westerns. ...

The screenplay, written by Walon Green, Roy N. Sickner and Sam Peckinpah, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, while the musical score by Jerry Fielding was nominated for Original Music Score. Peckinpah was nominated for Outstanding Directorial Achievement by the Directors Guild of America. Lucien Ballard won the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Cinematography.^[2] Walon Green (b. ... Although he never won an Oscar for any of his movie performances, the comedian Bob Hope received two honorary Oscars for his contributions to cinema. ... The Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay is the Academy Award for the best script not based upon previously published material. ... Jerry Fielding (born June 17, 1922 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) was an American radio, film and television composer, conductor, and musical director. ... As defined by Rule Sixteen of the Academy Awards Rules, the Academy Award for Original Music Score is presented to the best substantial body of music in the form of dramatic underscoring written specifically for the film by the submitting composer. ... Director Guild of America building on Sunset Boulevard. ... Lucien Ballard (6 May 1908 - 1 October 1988) was an American cinematographer and director of photography. ... The National Society of Film Critics or NSFC is an American film critic organization. ...

The Wild Bunch is also noted for its intricately edited action sequences utilizing slow motion and normal motion shots from multiple camera angles, a revolutionary technique that would eventually become commonplace in motion pictures (and Peckinpah's future films). Similar work with slow motion had previously been utilized in Seven Samurai (1954), Bonnie and Clyde (1967) and in French New Wave films of the era, but the massive technical virtuosity of The Wild Bunch would inspire directors for years to come when depicting film action and violence. Slow motion is an effect resulting from running film through a movie camera at faster-than-normal speed. ... For other uses, see Seven Samurai (disambiguation). ... Bonnie and Clyde (1967) is a film about Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, bank robbers who roamed the central United States during the Great Depression. ... François Truffauts New Wave film Jules et Jim The New Wave (French: la Nouvelle Vague) was a blanket term coined by critics for a group of French filmmakers of the late 1950s and 1960s, influenced (in part) by Italian Neorealism. ...

In 1999 the film was deemed "culturally significant" by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry. The film would be ranked No. 80 on the American Film Institute's top 100 list of the greatest American films ever made and No. 69 as the most thrilling.^[3] This article is about the year. ... Construction of the Thomas Jefferson Building, from July 8, 1888 to May 15, 1894. ... The National Film Registry is the registry of films selected by the United States National Film Preservation Board for preservation in the Library of Congress. ... The first of the AFI 100 Years. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The 100 most heart-pounding American films as described by the AFI on the evening of June 12, 2001. ...

Plot

The film takes place on the Texas/Mexico border in 1913 during the height of the Mexican Revolution. A gang of veteran outlaws, known as the "Wild Bunch," rides into the fictional town of San Rafael, Texas. Disguised as American soldiers, they are led by Pike Bishop (William Holden), and include Dutch Engstrom (Ernest Borgnine), Lyle and Tector Gorch (Warren Oates and Ben Johnson), Angel (Jaime Sanchez) and Crazy Lee (Bo Hopkins), among others. They initially ride past a group of children torturing a pair of scorpions by putting them on a hill of red ants, a famously violent image symbolizing the film's theme and actions. The gang enters the railroad company office to begin its robbery. On the roof of a hotel across the street, a ragtag posse of bounty hunters led by Deke Thornton (Robert Ryan) is waiting in ambush. The posse is spotted by the gang, and they use an unexpected parade by the local temperance union to assist in their escape. Year 1913 (MCMXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... This article is about the Mexican Revolution of 1910. ... Official language(s) No official language See languages of Texas Capital Austin Largest city Houston Largest metro area Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington Area  Ranked 2nd  - Total 261,797 sq mi (678,051 km²)  - Width 773 miles (1,244 km)  - Length 790 miles (1,270 km)  - % water 2. ... For other uses, see Bounty hunter (disambiguation). ... A cartoon from Australia ca. ...

A vicious gunfight breaks out, with members of the gang, the posse and the parade killed in the chaotic crossfire. Surviving gang members escape to a small neighboring village where another member, the elderly Freddie Sykes (Edmond O'Brien), is waiting with fresh horses. The ambush was organized by the railroad company, and the stolen money turns out to be nothing more than worthless bags of steel washers. It is discovered that Deke, a former member of the gang, has been released from prison in exchange for tracking down his old comrades.

Pike and his weary men ride into Mexico to rest at Angel's native village. Pike learns from the town elder, Don Jose (Chano Urueta), that the village has been attacked by Mapache (Emilio Fernández), a corrupt Mexican general working for the government. The gang decides to ride to Mapache's headquarters to trade horses. As they visit the General, Angel sees his former girlfriend Teresa. It is obvious she has become Mapache's lover, and a furious Angel shoots and kills her. Pike defuses the situation by offering to work with Mapache and his German advisers. They decide to steal a U.S. gun shipment for the price of $10,000 in gold. Angel, frustrated with the agreement, insists in private that he be allowed to take one case of stolen rifles to his village for protection against Mapache. Pike and Dutch reluctantly agree. El Indio Fernández (born Emilio Fernández Romo March 26, 1904 Mineral del Hondo, Coahuila – August 6, 1986) was a Mexican actor, screenwriter and director of the Cinema of Mexico. ...

The Wild Bunch holds up the train carrying the gun shipment, but Deke and his posse are secretly on board. They frantically pursue the gang to a bridge crossing the Rio Grande. Deke and his men, on the verge of capturing the Bunch, are dumped into the river when dynamite wired to the bridge explodes. Residents of Angel's village later surround the Bunch and take the case of rifles promised to them.

Pike devises a cautious plan to deliver the remaining rifles and machine gun to Mapache, with individual gang members dropping off cases at separate times. When Angel and Dutch arrive with the final shipment, Mapache has Angel arrested, having learned of the case of stolen rifles. Surrounded by Mapache's soldiers, Dutch rides off leaving Angel behind. The discouraged gang, disturbed by Angel's arrest, regroups at a canyon outside of town to await Sykes' return with their pack horses. From a distance, they see Deke and his men shoot Sykes, who retreats into the rocks of a nearby hill. Assuming Sykes to be dead, Pike and the three remaining gang members, Dutch, Lyle and Tector, decide to return to Mapache's compound to avoid Deke's posse. As they arrive, they see Angel being tortured by the soldiers.

After a night of drinking alcohol, Pike awakens and makes a fateful decision. Overcome with remorse about the fate of Angel, he says to Lyle and Tector, "Let's go." After a moment of silence, Lyle replies, "Why not." Dutch, sitting near the horses, smiles at Pike as he realizes they are going to retrieve Angel from Mapache. The four gang members load their shotguns and sidearms and in the famous "long walk," march through town in unison to Mapache's headquarters. They demand Angel's release. A drunken Mapache personally kills Angel before them. Pike and his men instantly shoot Mapache dead. The stunned soldiers stand in uneasy silence and the Bunch realizes, to their amazement, they can walk away unharmed if they so choose. Instead, they instigate an epic gunfight with Mapache's men. During the battle, they take control of a machine gun, killing hundreds of soldiers. Lyle and Tector are eventually killed. Pike is finally gunned down by a Mexican boy who shoots him in the back and Dutch falls while rushing to his side.

As the smoke from the battle clears, Deke arrives to find the bodies of his former comrades surrounded by hundreds of dead soldiers. Saddened by the death of his friends, he pulls Pike's gun from its holster and walks away. His posse takes the deceased members of the Bunch and leaves the village to collect the bounty. Deke remains, unsure of what to do. He hears gunshots in the distance. Moments later, a wounded Sykes and men from Angel's village ride up after having killed the posse members. He smiles at Deke and offers him a chance to participate in the revolution and stay in Mexico. Deke and Sykes begin laughing and ride away together.

Casting

Peckinpah considered many actors for the lead role of Pike Bishop. The part was originally written for Lee Marvin, but he declined because he thought it was too similar to his role in The Professionals (1966) and because he was offered a large sum to appear in Paint Your Wagon (1969). James Stewart, Gregory Peck and Charlton Heston (the lead in Peckinpah's Major Dundee) were considered before William Holden was cast.^[4][5] Lee Marvin (February 19, 1924 – August 29, 1987) was an Academy Award-winning American film actor. ... The Professionals is a 1966 Western movie directed by Richard Brooks. ... Paint Your Wagon is a 1951 Broadway musical comedy, with book and lyrics by Alan J. Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe, set in a mining camp in Gold Rush-era California. ... For other persons named James Stewart, see James Stewart (disambiguation). ... Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003) was an Academy Award-winning American film actor. ... This article contains a trivia section. ... Major Dundee was a 1965 Western film written by Harry Julian Fink and directed by Sam Peckinpah. ...

The part of Deke Thornton was originally offered to Brian Keith, who had worked with Peckinpah on The Westerner (1960) and The Deadly Companions (1961). Keith, committed to the popular TV series Family Affair, declined the role. Also considered were Richard Harris (another Major Dundee veteran), Arthur Kennedy, Henry Fonda, Ben Johnson (who was later cast as Tector Gorch) and Van Heflin. Robert Ryan would be cast based on his performance in The Dirty Dozen.^[6] Brian Keith (November 14, 1921 – June 24, 1997) was an American stage, film and television actor. ... The Westerner is a 1940 film with Walter Brennan. ... The Deadly Companions was a Western film released in 1961. ... A television program is the content of television broadcasting. ... // Family Affair Family Affair was a situation comedy television series that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966 to September 9, 1971. ... For other persons named Richard Harris, see Richard Harris (disambiguation). ... Arthur Kennedy (February 17, 1914 _ January 5, 1990) was an American actor. ... Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was a highly acclaimed Academy Award-winning American film and stage actor, best known for his roles as plain-speaking idealists. ... Ben Johnson Jr. ... Van Heflin (December 13, 1910 – July 23, 1971) was an Academy Award-winning American film and theater actor. ... For the rap group, see D12. ...

Mario Adorf, who also appeared in Dundee, was considered for the part of Mapache, but the role ultimately went to Emilio Fernandez, the Mexican film director and actor who was a close friend of Peckinpah's.^[7] Mario Adorf (born September 8, 1930) is a Swiss film actor, best known for his role in the 1978 film, The Tin Drum. ... El Indio Fernández (born Emilio Fernández Romo March 26, 1904 Mineral del Hondo, Coahuila – August 6, 1986) was a Mexican actor, screenwriter and director of the Cinema of Mexico. ...

Among those considered to play Dutch Engstrom were Steve McQueen, George Peppard, Jim Brown, Alex Cord, Robert Culp, Sammy Davis, Jr., Charles Bronson and Richard Jaeckel. Ernest Borgnine was eventually cast in the role, also based on his performance in The Dirty Dozen.^[8] Steve McQueen (March 24, 1930 – November 7, 1980) was an Academy Award-nominated American movie actor, nicknamed The King of Cool.[1] He was one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s due to a popular anti-hero persona. ... George Peppard, Jr. ... Jim Brown (born February 17, 1936) is an American former professional football player who has also made his mark as an actor and social activist. ... Alex Cord is an American actor who is perhaps best known for portraying the role of Archangel on the television series Airwolf. ... Robert Martin Culp (born August 16, 1930 in Oakland, California), and a 1947 graduate of Berkeley High School, is an American actor, best known for his work on television. ... This article is about the entertainer. ... For other persons named Charles Bronson, see Charles Bronson (disambiguation). ... Richard Jaeckel Richard Hanley Jaeckel (October 10, 1926 - June 14, 1997) was an American actor. ...

Robert Blake was the original choice to play Angel, but he demanded too much money following the success of In Cold Blood (1967). Peckinpah had seen Jaime Sanchez in the Broadway production of Sidney Lumet's The Pawnbroker and was so impressed that he demanded Sanchez be cast as Angel.^[9] Robert Blake on the cover of the Baretta Season 1 DVD set. ... The 1967 film In Cold Blood was based on Capotes novel of the same name. ... Jaime Sánchez Fernández (born 20 March 1973 in Madrid) is a football player who came on in the 82nd minute of Real Madrids Champions League victory over Juventus on 20 May 1998. ... For other uses of Broadway, see Broadway. ... Portrait of Sidney Lumet, May 7, 1939. ... The Pawnbroker is a novel by Edward Lewis Wallant which tells the story of a concentration camp survivor who suffers flashbacks of his past Nazi imprisonment as he tries to cope with his daily life. ...

Production

In 1967, Warner Bros.-Seven Arts producers Kenneth Hyman and Phil Feldman were interested in having Sam Peckinpah rewrite and direct an adventure film called The Diamond Story. A professional outcast due to the production difficulties of his previous film Major Dundee (1965) and his firing from the set of The Cincinnati Kid (1965), Peckinpah's stock had improved following his critically acclaimed work on the television film Noon Wine (1966). An alternative screenplay available at the studio was The Wild Bunch, written by Roy Sickner and Walon Green. At the time, William Goldman's screenplay Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid had recently been purchased by 20th Century Fox. It was quickly decided that The Wild Bunch, which had several similarities to Goldman's work, would be produced in order to beat Butch Cassidy to the theaters.^{[10][11][12][13]} Warner Bros. ... Major Dundee was a 1965 Western film written by Harry Julian Fink and directed by Sam Peckinpah. ... The Cincinnati Kid is a 1965 movie directed by Norman Jewison. ... Noon Wine is a novella written by American author Katherine Anne Porter in 1937. ... Walon Green (b. ... William Goldman (born August 12, 1931) is an American novelist, playwright and two-time Academy Award-winning screenwriter. ... Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is a 1969 Western film that tells the story of bank robber Butch Cassidy (played by Paul Newman) and his partner The Sundance Kid (played by Robert Redford). ... Twentieth (20th) Century Fox Film Corporation (known from 1935 to 1985 as Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation) is one of the six major American film studios. ...

By the fall of 1967, Peckinpah was rewriting the screenplay and preparing for production. Filmed on location in Mexico, Peckinpah's epic work was inspired by his hunger to return to films, the violence seen in Arthur Penn's Bonnie and Clyde, America's growing frustration with the Vietnam War and what he perceived to be the utter lack of reality seen in Westerns up to that time. He set out to make a film which portrayed not only the vicious violence of the period, but the crude men attempting to survive the era. Multiple scenes attempted in Major Dundee, including slow motion action sequences (inspired by Akira Kurosawa's work in Seven Samurai), characters leaving a village as if in a funeral procession and the use of inexperienced locals as extras, would be perfected in The Wild Bunch.^[14] Arthur Penn (born September 27, 1922 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is a film director of thoughtful films that dont always find an audience. ... Bonnie and Clyde (1967) is a film about Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, bank robbers who roamed the central United States during the Great Depression. ... Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Kurosawa redirects here. ... For other uses, see Seven Samurai (disambiguation). ...

The film was shot in the anamorphic wide screen process. Peckinpah and his cinematographer, Lucien Ballard, also made use of a wide angle camera lens, one that allowed for objects and people in both the background and foreground to remain in sharp focus. The effect is best seen in the shots where the Bunch make their "long walk" to Mapache's headquarters to free Angel. As they walk forward, a constant flow of people pass between them and the camera, yet are as sharply focused as the Bunch. The editing of the film is notable in that shots from multiple angles would be spliced together in rapid succession, often at different speeds, placing greater emphasis on the chaotic nature of the action and the gunfights. Anamorphic widescreen is a cinematography and photography technique for capturing a widescreen picture on standard 35 mm film, or other visual recording media with a non-widescreen native aspect ratio. ... Lucien Ballard (6 May 1908 - 1 October 1988) was an American cinematographer and director of photography. ...

Lou Lombardo, having previously worked with Peckinpah on Noon Wine, was personally hired by the director to edit The Wild Bunch. Peckinpah had wanted an editor who would be loyal to him. Lombardo's youth was also a plus, as he wanted an editor who wasn't bound by traditional conventions. One of Lombardo's first contributions was to show Peckinpah an episode of the TV series Felony Squad he edited in 1967. The episode, entitled "My Mommy Got Lost," included a slow motion sequence where Joe Don Baker is shot by the police. The scene mixed slow motion with normal speed. Peckinpah was reportedly thrilled and told Lombardo, "Let's try some of that when we get down to Mexico!" The director would film the major shootouts with six cameras, all operating a different film rates including 24 frames per second, 30 frames per second, 60 frames per second, 90 frames per second and 120 frames per second. When the scenes were eventually cut together, the action would shift from slow to fast to slower still, giving time an elastic quality never before seen in motion pictures up to that time. Felony Squad was a half-hour television crime drama originally broadcast on the ABC network from September 12, 1966 to January 31, 1969, a span encompassing 73 episodes. ... Joe Don Baker (born February 12, 1936) is an American film actor perhaps best known for his role as sheriff Buford Pusser in the American film classic Walking Tall. ...

By the time filming wrapped, Peckinpah had shot 333,000 feet of film with 1,288 camera setups. Lombardo and Peckinpah remained in Mexico for six months editing the picture. After initial cuts, the opening gunfight sequence ran 21 minutes. Cutting frames from specific scenes and intercutting others, they were able to fine-cut the opening bank robbery down to five minutes. The creative montage became the model for the rest of the film and would forever change the way movies would be made.

In 1993, Warner Brothers resubmitted the film to the MPAA ratings board prior to an expected rerelease. To the studio's surprise, the originally R-rated film was given an NC-17 rating, delaying the release until the decision was appealed.^[15] The controversy was due to 10 extra minutes added to the film. Technically, these were not official additions in that these scenes (almost entirely nonviolent) were present when the movie was originally released. Warner Brothers had simply trimmed some footage to decrease the running time to ensure additional daily screenings.^[16] Today, almost all of the versions of The Wild Bunch include the missing scenes. Warner Brothers released a newly restored version of The Wild Bunch in a two-disc special edition on January 10, 2006. This edition includes an audio commentary by Peckinpah scholars, two documentaries concerning the making of the film and never-before-seen outtakes. Warner Bros. ... The MPAA film rating system is a system used in the United States and territories and instituted by the Motion Picture Association of America to rate a movie based on its content. ...

Themes

Critics of The Wild Bunch made note of the film's underlying theme that depicted the symbolic end of the era of the outlaw gunfighter. The characer Pike Bishop says in the screenplay, "We've got to start thinking beyond our guns. Those days are closing fast." The Bunch lives by an anachronistic code that has no place in a rapidly approaching modern society. At one point, the gang inspects General Mapache's latest purchase, a new automobile, an invention that marked the beginning of the end of horse travel. This symbol, representing modern society, was also utilized in Peckinpah's films Ride the High Country (1962) and The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970). Ride the High Country is a noted 1962 western film. ... The Ballad of Cable Hogue is a 1970 motion picture directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring Jason Robards, Stella Stevens and David Warner. ...

The film's on-screen violence was heavily criticized by reviewers of the time, and it continues to remain controversial to this day. Peckinpah noted that it was meant as an allegory for the violence of the Vietnam War, which had been broadcast nightly on television news programs. He was also attempting to show the type of violence commonplace during the historic western period, rebelling against television westerns and films from previous decades glamorizing gunfighting and murder. "The point of the film," he would later say, " is to take this facade of movie violence and open it up, get people involved in it so that they are starting to go in the Hollywood television predictable reaction syndrome, and then twist it so that it's not fun anymore, just a wave of sickness in the gut...It's ugly, brutalizing and bloody awful. It's not fun and games and cowboys and Indians. It's a terrible, ugly thing. And yet there's a certain response that you get from it, an excitement because we're all violent people." Peckinpah said he used violence as a means to achieve catharsis, believing his audience would be purged of violence by witnessing it explicitly on screen. He later admitted that this idea was mistaken, and that audiences had come to enjoy the violence in his films rather than be horrified by it, something that deeply troubled him later in his career. Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000...

Another prevalent theme of the film is that of betrayal. Many of the characters suffer with the knowledge that at some point, they betrayed a friend and left them to their fate, thus violating their own code when it suits them. Such frustration leads to the film's violent conclusion as the remaining members of the gang find yet another violation, in this case the abandonment of Angel, intolerable. Pike Bishop remembers his violations several times during the film, most notably when he deserts Deke Thornton (in flashback) when the law catches up to them and when he deserts Crazy Lee following the opening bank robbery (who is left behind at the railroad office, ostensibly to guard the hostages).

Variant versions

There have been several versions released:

• The original European release from 1969 which is 145 min. long, this version had an intermission at the request of the distributor; it came immediately before the train robbery sequence.
• The original American release from 1969 which is 143 min. long.
• The second American release from 1969, edited to allow more show times, 135 min. long.
• The 1995 re-release version which is 145 min. long. It is identical to the original European release minus the intermission, as the intermission was not intended to be part of the original film. This version is currently available on home video and is labeled "The Original Director's Cut" in most markets.

An intermission or interval is a break between two performances or sessions, in events such as a theatrical play, opera or musical concert. ... The home video business rents and sells videocassettes and DVDs to the public. ...

References

1. ^ Internet Movie Database, The Wild Bunch. imdb.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-16.
2. ^ Internet Movie Database, Awards for The Wild Bunch. imdb.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-16.
3. ^ American Film Institute. afi.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-13.
4. ^ Internet Movie Database, Trivia for The Wild Bunch. imdb.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-16.
5. ^ Weddle, David (1994). "If They Move...Kill 'Em!". Grove Press, 319. ISBN 0-8021-3776-8. 
6. ^ Weddle, David (1994). "If They Move...Kill 'Em!". Grove Press, 320. ISBN 0-8021-3776-8. 
7. ^ Internet Movie Database, Trivia for The Wild Bunch. imdb.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-16.
8. ^ Weddle, David (1994). "If They Move...Kill 'Em!". Grove Press, 320. ISBN 0-8021-3776-8. 
9. ^ Weddle, David (1994). "If They Move...Kill 'Em!". Grove Press, 321. ISBN 0-8021-3776-8. 
10. ^ Carroll, E. Jean (March 1982), "Last of the Desperadoes: Dueling with Sam Peckinpah", Rocky Mountain Magazine
11. ^ Weddle, David (1994). "If They Move...Kill 'Em!". Grove Press, 257-263. ISBN 0-8021-3776-8. 
12. ^ Simmons, Garner (1982). Peckinpah, A Portrait in Montage. University of Texas Press, 73-81. ISBN 0-292-76493-6. 
13. ^ Weddle, David (1994). "If They Move...Kill 'Em!". Grove Press, 307-309. ISBN 0-8021-3776-8. 
14. ^ Weddle, David (1994). "If They Move...Kill 'Em!". Grove Press, 310-331. ISBN 0-8021-3776-8. 
15. ^ Entertainment Weekly. ew.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-13.
16. ^ San Francisco Chronicle. sfgate.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-13.

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 320th day of the year (321st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 320th day of the year (321st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 320th day of the year (321st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... David Weddle is an American writer, best known for writing episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Battlestar Galactica with Bradley Thompson. ... David Weddle is an American writer, best known for writing episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Battlestar Galactica with Bradley Thompson. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 320th day of the year (321st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... David Weddle is an American writer, best known for writing episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Battlestar Galactica with Bradley Thompson. ... David Weddle is an American writer, best known for writing episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Battlestar Galactica with Bradley Thompson. ... David Weddle is an American writer, best known for writing episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Battlestar Galactica with Bradley Thompson. ... David Weddle is an American writer, best known for writing episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Battlestar Galactica with Bradley Thompson. ... David Weddle is an American writer, best known for writing episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Battlestar Galactica with Bradley Thompson. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

See also

• List of films recut by studio
• Sam Peckinpah

According to the Auteur Theory, the prevalent framework of modern film criticism, a film director is most responsible for the creative aspects of a film. ... David Samuel Sam Peckinpah (February 21, 1925 – December 28, 1984) was an American film director who achieved iconic status following the release of his 1969 Western epic The Wild Bunch. ...

External links

• The Wild Bunch at the Internet Movie Database
• The Wild Bunch at Filmsite.org
• Roger Ebert review, The Wild Bunch

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

The Wild Bunch