Rating: 
Summary: Long Riders
Review:
About once a generation a western appears that boldly announces it's telling history "as it really was" and generally reenergizes the genre. THE LONG RIDERS did that in 1980, although it got its history as wrong as did the earlier ones. Belle Starr is offered here as a notorious prostitute and lover of David Carridine's Cole Younger. Starr was never a prostitute, although she was an outlaw who gained posthumous notoriety when her exploits were exploited by an eastern writer. She didn't marry Sam Starr until Cole Younger was serving his second year in prison for his role in the Northfield robbery, so the film's mano-a-mano showdown scene between Younger and Sam Starr is pure hooey. On the other hand, Cole Younger DID receive 11 gunshot wounds during the botched bank robbery - a number, I guess, no movie would ever feel the need to exaggerate.
None of this is meant to find fault with THE LONG RIDERS. If I want to learn history I'll read a book. Movies are meant to deliver the emotional impact of the story in a manner accessible to the widest number of people. Rather than telling it like it is, these corner turning filmmakers deconstruct myths and rebuild them in terms more acceptable to modern audiences. The Pinkerton agents are treated more gently than might be expected and the James Gang is portrayed as just about what they were before the publicists got to them - not a modern day bunch of Robin Hoods, but a group of tough men who found robbery amenable and profitable.
THE LONG RIDERS is probably best remembered for its inspired casting of real brothers to portray the historical brothers who were members of Jesse James' criminal gang. Bearing fond memories of watching it twenty-five years ago, I was really looking forward to seeing it again two and a-half decades later.
Imagine my disappointment. James Keach, who plays Jesse James, gives one of the most wooden performances I'd ever seen. A smile never crosses his lips, an identifiable emotion never appears on his face. History books tell us the real Jesse James was a devil-may-care, gregarious type, much like Butch Cassidy, while Frank James was the taciturn one.
Beyond the action scenes and especially the final showdown in Northfield I feel THE LONG RIDERS is awfully slow moving and uninvolving.
Rating: 
Summary: A very underrated Western.
Review: "The Long Riders" is indeed a terrific western and the best film version on the James-Younger gang. "The Long Riders" transports the viewer to Missouri in the years after the Civil War when former Confederate guerrillas (the James, Younger, and Miller brothers) continued to rob banks, stagecoaches, and trains much as they had during the War. The famed Pinkerton agency is sent to bring the gang to justice either dead or alive. The film culminates in the gang's disasterous raid on Northfield, Minnesota and ends with Jesse's assasination by the Ford brothers.Walter Hill's film stresses the community and filial ties of the gang that allowed them to be one of the longest lasting and successful criminal gangs in American history. These men had served together in the Civil War and, in some ways, the film shows that for these men the war never ended. However, Walter Hill does not paint these film's protagonists as "good guys"- they're responsible for the deaths of unarmed people and there is no sign that they shared their stolen loot with anyone. In fact, the various gang members are shown squandering their money on prostitutes, gambling, and drink. (The big exception is James Keach's Jesse, who is shown as devoted husband and father, but also comes across as the most ruthless and greedy member of the gang.) Walter Hill did not want anyone to think that these men were Robin Hoods. Walter Hill likes to include homages to other films in his movies and "The Long Riders" is no exception. Several scenes and pieces of dialog in "The Long Riders" are actually from the classic Henry Fonda-Tyrone Power movie, "Jesse James." The entire train robbery scene and the line, "I ain't aiming to do nothing. I'm doing it!" are from that older film. Also, the gang's method of escape from the streets of Northfield was taken from "Jesse James," but it's done on much more grandiose scale in the "The Long Riders." One more thing that "The Long Riders" has in common with "Jesse James" is a Carradine in the cast. In "Jesse James" John Carradine, father of the three Carradine brothers who are together in "The Long Riders," played Bob Ford.
Rating: 
Summary: The Best Western Ever
Review: A superb film. The cast is absolutely magnificent. It may be the best western ever. I highly recommend this film and anxiously await the DVD version.
Rating:
Summary: One of best western ever
Review: After 23 years this continues to rank up there with one of the better realistic westerns. Outside of the Sam Starr and Cole Younger knife fight, everything seems to be historically accurate and even that may be true. I can watch this one over and over again. I also like The Wild Bunch, Once Upon a Time in the West and anything Eastwood. I still think the horses going the window scene and bank robbery itself ranks up there with the watch scene from Good, Bad, Ugly.
Rating:
Summary: Tough, gritty, excellent
Review: Although Walter Hill may take some artistic license here and there, this is not a whitewashed version of these events. It is a pointed, tough, and very bloody depiction of the James-Younger gang, portrayed by four sets of real life actor brothers. The performances are uniformly excellent. Even Robert and Keith Carradine are impressive. Here the outlaws are presented as men of a peculiar honor, thieves and killers yes, but also dedicated family men who kill only upon necissity. Stacy Keach, as Frank James, particularly embodies this quasi-nobility. This film puts one in mind of Phil Kaufman's earlier THE GREAT NORTHFIELD MINNESOTA RAID, but Hill's version is grittier, bloodier, and more memorable.
Rating:
Summary: MANY OF THESE REVIEWS ARE OVER-RATING THIS MOVIE
Review: Based on the reviews here at this amazon site, I felt it sounded like a movie that I could buy and watch again and again. So I went out and paid the money. When I saw the movie, I returned it to the shop and asked if I could swap it for something else. I think the reviews here are over-rating this movie. Some how it paints the picture of brotherly love and how one brother backs another brother. Well that is trashed very early on, as Quaid junior is left on a limb by all including his older brother for messing up the first hit, not much look out for your brother there then. And what about the Guest brothers, they hardly did anything and their names make the cover of the dvd. The final hit that the gang undertakes was a good bit of action, but the one thing that I detest is when the gang fire one shot and kill someone, but when other people fire at the gang it takes about 10 bullets hitting different parts of the body and they still don't die - I hate this, I hate this a lot. It seemed the whole village of about 150 people were firing at our gang of about 7 and in the process took about 150 bullets without dieing - what was going on? After the final hit, half turn them selves in and Cole Younger is sitting there in hospital and he looked like nothing happened, when infact he took 11 bullets - what the hell is going on man. A similar thing happened in the Return of the Magnificent Seven, about half a dozen take on a whole army (it also happened in the first of the Magnificent Seven movies, but that was stylish and I liked it), it just looked absolutely ridiculous, not even a 5 year old would buy that. The score was probably not that good either as I have forgotten it. One of the reviewers reffered to it as one of the top 5 westerns of all time - eh eh, how wrong can you be, it would not even make my top 10 best westerns. If you want to watch a western or buy one and you do not have or seen any of Clint Eastwoods dollar movies then forget the Long Riders. PS: When I returned the Long Riders I swapped it for Once Upon a Time in the West, which was nearly 3 times the price but much much much better.
Rating: 
Summary: Was this thing made for TV?
Review: Got to be a reason I managed to avoid seeing this thing the past 20 years. I would expect more from Walter Hill but this movie falls way short of it's overrated status as "one of the best." As far as the James/Younger sagas goes this is one of the worst IMO. The Keach boys with their 'dead eyes' bring absolutely no energy whatsoever to the part of Jesse and Frank James. The movie suffers from terrible casting more than anything else, but the Keach brothers did own the script. Sort of like buying your own baseball team and inserting yourself in the lineup at shortstop. It's a decent story but it just fails to deliver and you'll have a hard time mustering any sympathy for the 'heroes' of this turkey. However, David Carradine is standout as Cole Younger. His knifefight with James Remar is the clear highlight of the film, followed only by the hilarious dialogue with his 'consort' Belle Starr. Pretty funny stuff. A little too reminiscent of the highly overrated Wild Bunch where the focus on graphic violence and airborne blood wins out over content. Two bullets, one for each of the Keach boys.
Rating:
Summary: An uneven guilty pleasure
Review: I don't know why I am such a sucker for this film. It is too long, uneven, very slow in parts and certainly doesn't provide a happy ending. But it is one of the most honest yet entertaining westerns I have ever seen. The qimmick of using the Keach brothers as Frank and Jesse James and the Carradine brothers as the three members of the Younger family (plus throwing in the Quaid brothers for good measure)works wonderfully well. Always picturesque, frequently violent and bloody, this film evokes the unstable time just after the Civil War when the James and Younger gang were at their height. A terrific contrast is drawn between the James men, who are depicted as dedicated homebodies when not at "work", and the Youngers who are depicted as boisterous hell-raisers. Pamela Reed as Belle Starr is a standout in an already excellent cast. When Cole Younger and her husband square off for a knife fight she just smiles and declares "You boys sure do keep me entertained." The same could be said for this film. It is by far the best Jesse James film ever made, and with its sound track by Rye Cooder, a pleasant experience to revisit every year or so.
Rating:
Summary: STYLISH WESTERN
Review: I SAW THIS MOVIE AT THE AGE OF 15 ON THE BIG SCREEN WITH STEREO SOUND AND IT WAS TRULY AN EXPERIENCE.
THIS REALLY ISNT A MOVIE SUITED TO THE SMALL SCREEN AS ITS EXPLOSIVE IMPACT IS CERTINELY COMPROMISED BY WATCHING IT ON THE TUBE. BUT SHORT OF A RE RELEASE I GUESS VIDEO WILL HAVE TO DO.
THE FIRST THING THAT STRIKES THE VIEWER IS THE RUSTIC, WINING ALMOST EERY SOUNTRACK BEAUTFULLY DONE.
THE FACT THAT VARIOUS ACTING BROTHERS PLAY VARIOUS OUTLAW BROTHERS IS AN EXTREMLY UNIQUE AND REALISTICLY NOVEL APPROACH.
BROTHERS LOOK LIKE BROTHERS, SOUND LIKE BROTHERS. I DISAGREE WITH ANOTHER REVIEW OF THIS FILM. I THINK THE CASTING WAS PERFECT AND VERY EFFECTIVE.
AS AN AMETEUR HISTORIAN OF THE OLD WEST, I THINK THE STORYLINE FOLLOWS FACT ABOUT AS WELL AS ANY DRAMATIC REENACTMENT IS GOING TOO.
AND THEN THE DIRECTION IS EXPERTLY DONE BY WALTER HILL WHO MUST BE A PECKINPAH APPRENTICE. THE CLIMACTIC FINALLY OF THE FILM IS THE GANGS BOTCHED BANK ROBBERY IN NORTHFIELD MINNESOTA WHERE YANKEE SQUAREHEADS SHOOT THE GROUP TO RIBBONS. THE SLOW MOTION WAS NOTHING NEW BUT SLOW SOUND WAS. YOU CAN HERE THE ZIPPING OF THE MISSILES JUST PRIOR TO THEIR SPLATTERING IMPACT INTO FLESH.
IF YOU READ THE ACTUAL ACCOUNTING YOU WILL FIND THE MOVIE PLAYS TRUE RIGHT DOWN TO ONE OF THE YOUNGERS GETTING SHOT THROUGH THE JAW.
THE STUNT WORK WAS NOTHING SHORT OF EXCEPTIONAL AND THE EDITOR DESERVES RAVES TOO.
THERE IS A LITTLE BRIEF NUDITY THAT COULD HAVE BEEN LEFT OUT AS IT DOESNT WORK IN A WESTERN, BUT THATS ABOUT MY ONLY COMPLAINT.
THE MUSIC IS WELL WORTH THE PRICE OF ADMISSION BY ITSELF.
TURN THE LIGHTS OFF, LIMIT DISTRACTIONS AND CRANK THE VOLUME. THATS THE ONLY WAY TO WATCH THIS SHOW.
OVERALL IT IS ONE STYLISH WESTERN DESTINED TO BE A TRUE CULT CLASSIC.
Rating:
Summary: Long Riders Is Long On Music, But Not On Plot
Review: I saw this movie for the first time a couple of days ago. What hit me about the movie was the amount of music played in the movie. The movie is fair. Not a movie you would want to repeat several times in your lifetime. Maybe watch once and then move on. The cinematography is fine. It seemed to lack grit. I found it difficult to believe David Carradine as Cole Younger. Frank Keach was good as Jesse James, but brother Stacy Keach was passable as Frank James. I think a better rendition of the story of Jesse James and the Younger brothers was in the movie "The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid" made in 1972 as a television film (I believe). Cliff Robertson as Cole Younger and Robert Duvall as Jesse James seemed to be better renditions. The Long Riders is well made, but it seems to be missing something. Just rent it.....and if you really like the movie.....definitely buy it. Investigate the 1972 version with Duvall. Passable to good acting in the Long Riders.
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