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gemfyreSo. On the weekend I watched the Young Guns movies. When I was 12/13 these movies/Billy the Kid were my current obsession. I knew the soundtrack by Jon Bon Jovi by heart and even went as far as to order in to the library and read Pat Garrett and Ash Upson's excruciatingly boring book, "The Authentic Life of Billy The Kid".
But I never really got what it was about. Now I'm 18 years older and wiser. This time around I understood the corruption that spawned the Lincoln County Cattle War. The fact that it was all meant to be neat and tidy, the J.P. deputised the Regulators, the Regulators would arrest the men that killed John Tunstall and justice would be seen. Of course Billy was trigger happy and also knew that justice would never be served in such a corrupt system, so he started dealing his own justice and simply shooting people, which got them ALL in a world of trouble.
Billy is made a hero by the common people of course, and it quickly goes to his head. Here's a man expecting (and getting!) undying loyalty from the men who ride with him (even Doc, who constantly calls him out and grumbles about it and is disgusted by his own actions, is always there when Billy needs backup), while in the meantime he's constantly lying to them and getting them killed. It's hardly honourable. It also amuses me how he mentions how horrible and scary the lynch mobs were, but lynching is essentially what he was doing to the Murphy/Dolan boys initially.
This time around I felt a lot more sympathy for Patty Garrett. He was the one who DID break away from Billy's whirlwind. He planned to just settle down and make a respectable man of himself. What he didn't bank on was the govenor throwing $1000 at him (A LOT of money in those days) to bring in his old friend. This would allow him to easily fulfil his goal of opening an eating house and settling down. He probably also figured he'd be able to talk Billy into retreating to old Mexico, safely out of his jurisdiction. The arrival of a posse to "help" put a spanner in those works, but in the end Billy was the problem. Billy thrived on his fame so much that he refused to leave New Mexico, even after promising he would many times. And if Pat let him go then HE'D be in a world of trouble. He had no choice, as he says.
Certain events in the first movie also make it clear that a sequel was never initially planned. They killed off Charlie Bowdre in the first movie, but in reality he was shot later (at Stinking Springs). In the second movie they show this shoot-out, but have Doc die instead (the real Doc and Chavez never rode with Billy again after the Cattle War but settled down and lived to ripe old ages). In the first movie Pat is made to look like he almost set them up to all be at the McSween house when Murphy's men put it under siege. Probably so he seems like a bit of a bad guy when they tell you at the end that Pat Garrett shot and killed Billy the Kid. In reality, Alex McSween himself called the Regulators back to Lincoln.
And Tommy. Little Tom O'Folliard was one of my favourite characters when I was 13. He was young and cute, of course I'd like him. Thing is, in reality his character has barely any depth. And the REAL Tom O'Folliard was one year older than Billy and a close friend who rode with him the whole time, not just some random vagrant off the street. Even Pat is misportrayed for dramatic purposes. He was never an outlaw himself, just another in the line of sherriff's, only he actually managed to get the Kid when we had evaded everyone else. Ah well, Hollywood.
I put the soundtrack on again in my car and wow, Santa Fe still gives me chills like it used to. That song is one of those that held the honour of being "my favourite song of all time" at one stage.
But I never really got what it was about. Now I'm 18 years older and wiser. This time around I understood the corruption that spawned the Lincoln County Cattle War. The fact that it was all meant to be neat and tidy, the J.P. deputised the Regulators, the Regulators would arrest the men that killed John Tunstall and justice would be seen. Of course Billy was trigger happy and also knew that justice would never be served in such a corrupt system, so he started dealing his own justice and simply shooting people, which got them ALL in a world of trouble.
Billy is made a hero by the common people of course, and it quickly goes to his head. Here's a man expecting (and getting!) undying loyalty from the men who ride with him (even Doc, who constantly calls him out and grumbles about it and is disgusted by his own actions, is always there when Billy needs backup), while in the meantime he's constantly lying to them and getting them killed. It's hardly honourable. It also amuses me how he mentions how horrible and scary the lynch mobs were, but lynching is essentially what he was doing to the Murphy/Dolan boys initially.
This time around I felt a lot more sympathy for Patty Garrett. He was the one who DID break away from Billy's whirlwind. He planned to just settle down and make a respectable man of himself. What he didn't bank on was the govenor throwing $1000 at him (A LOT of money in those days) to bring in his old friend. This would allow him to easily fulfil his goal of opening an eating house and settling down. He probably also figured he'd be able to talk Billy into retreating to old Mexico, safely out of his jurisdiction. The arrival of a posse to "help" put a spanner in those works, but in the end Billy was the problem. Billy thrived on his fame so much that he refused to leave New Mexico, even after promising he would many times. And if Pat let him go then HE'D be in a world of trouble. He had no choice, as he says.
Certain events in the first movie also make it clear that a sequel was never initially planned. They killed off Charlie Bowdre in the first movie, but in reality he was shot later (at Stinking Springs). In the second movie they show this shoot-out, but have Doc die instead (the real Doc and Chavez never rode with Billy again after the Cattle War but settled down and lived to ripe old ages). In the first movie Pat is made to look like he almost set them up to all be at the McSween house when Murphy's men put it under siege. Probably so he seems like a bit of a bad guy when they tell you at the end that Pat Garrett shot and killed Billy the Kid. In reality, Alex McSween himself called the Regulators back to Lincoln.
And Tommy. Little Tom O'Folliard was one of my favourite characters when I was 13. He was young and cute, of course I'd like him. Thing is, in reality his character has barely any depth. And the REAL Tom O'Folliard was one year older than Billy and a close friend who rode with him the whole time, not just some random vagrant off the street. Even Pat is misportrayed for dramatic purposes. He was never an outlaw himself, just another in the line of sherriff's, only he actually managed to get the Kid when we had evaded everyone else. Ah well, Hollywood.
I put the soundtrack on again in my car and wow, Santa Fe still gives me chills like it used to. That song is one of those that held the honour of being "my favourite song of all time" at one stage.
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Date: 2010-06-01 05:02 am (UTC)"Hello Bob!" *bang* "Goodbye Bob!" was actually said.
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Date: 2010-06-01 05:05 am (UTC)"When Irish Eyes Are Smiling" which is sung in the first one wasn't written for another few decades.