Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.5

The Kid Blu-ray Movie Review

Law & Order: American Wild West.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 24, 2019

Lovers of (relatively) contemporary film may have a soft spot in their hearts for Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, whatever its perceived flaws or whatever “extracurricular” knowledge of its contentious production and post-production history may be brought to bear on any viewing experience. That 1973 kinda sorta Sam Peckinpah film (hence the “contention”) is only one of several cinematic treatments of elements of what might charitably be called by this point the “legend” of Billy the Kid. As early as 1911, a silent version of Billy the Kid was evidently in nickelodeons (or whatever the venue may have been), and that same title was later used for a 1930 film with John Mack Brown as Billy and Wallace Beery as Pat Garrett, and then again for a 1941 opus with Robert Taylor as Billy and Brian Donlevy as Pat Garrett, kind of strangely renamed Jim Sheridan in that version. Billy the Kid has been utilized as a title one more time (so far) in the interim, for a 1989 made for television outing written by none other than Gore Vidal and starring Val Kilmer as Billy and Duncan Regehr as Pat Garrett.

While not overtly referencing the character in their titles, a number of other films, both well remembered and pretty completely forgotten, have dotted the landscape through the years, many in at least some ways documenting the unlikely friendship and ultimate conflict between Billy and Garrett. World War II hero Audie Murphy perhaps surprisingly starred as Billy in what was Wikipedia lists as Murphy’s first Technicolor feature, The Kid from Texas, a 1950 feature that evidently only featured Garrett (Frank Wilcox) as a supporting character. Paul Newman stepped into the role of Billy eight years after Murphy in the Arthur Penn directed The Left Handed Gun, which featured John Dehner as Garrett. For those who think of even 1973 films as being “classic” Hollywood, both 1988’s Young Guns and (perhaps especially) 1990’s Young Guns II also address these historical characters (with Emilio Estevez as Billy and Patrick Wayne as Garrett in the first film and William Petersen as Garrett in the second). Which brings us to the last of the “major” films featuring Billy and Garrett, albeit in what are almost tangential roles in an outing that sought instead to exploit the pulchritudinous charms of its female star, Jane Russell, namely The Outlaw (Jack Buetel was BIlly and Thomas Mitchell was Garrett, if anyone was paying attention). Kind of interestingly, given a certain plot point in The Kid, Russell’s name in that film was Rio, and that perhaps not so coincidentally is also the name of a young boy (portrayed by Jake Schur) who in The Kid, like the female of the same name in the Howard Hughes production, comes into contact with two of the most iconic characters of America’s western history.

As anyone who has seen any of the above films may be only too aware, there’s a perhaps unavoidable aspect of “fictionalization” that comes into play when making a movie, whether that be in supposed character traits of real life individuals, or even events that are dramatized in order to make some ostensible point. In the case of The Kid, however, it’s arguably the mashup of historical personages with fictional characters that both gives the film its edge but also provides potential obstacles of believability. “The kid” of the film’s title is obviously meant to evoke not just one William Bonney (Dane DeHaan, looking like a somewhat haggard Brad Pitt in this film), but Rio himself. The film in fact opens with Rio and his sister Sara (Leila George) in the throes of some major family dysfunction which ends with two dead parents, and one very angry uncle to the kids, Grant Cutler (Chris Pratt). Suffice it to say Rio and Sara are on the lam to escape potential vengeance at the hands of Grant, which is when they “meet cute” first with Billy and his gang, and then soon enough after with Pat Garrett (Ethan Hawke), who is on the hunt for his old friend and nemesis.

The intermingling of real historical and fictional characters becomes arguably less believable once Grant reenters the fray and Sara becomes a damsel in distress. Seeing both Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett through Rio’s young eyes is the film’s saving grace, and gives the story (story credit goes to director Vincent D’Onofrio and Andrew Lanham, with Lanham providing the actual screenplay) a rather distinctive perspective. That said, the film perhaps resides too firmly in pretty well worn Western tropes (wagon wheel ruts?) to ever totally deliver on its premise. That said, there are some really appealing performances here, with Hawke a wonderfully grizzled and somewhat put upon Garrett, and DeHaan an equally appealing and not especially villainous Billy. Schur anchors the film very well as young Rio, though George has little to do as Sara other than look frightened. D’Onofrio captures some extremely picturesque western vistas that probably unavoidably evoke the work of John Ford.

The Kid Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Kid is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. Once again the IMDb doesn't provide much technical data on the shoot, but the film's closing credits roll list the ever popular Alexa, and I'm once again assuming things were finished at a 2K DI. Aside from what I have by now often called "digital murk" in some low light situations (notably the last third or so of the film), this is an often quite striking looking presentation that boasts a nicely burnished, natural looking palette (very little grading, which I personally found refreshing), and generally excellent detail levels. D'Onofrio and cinematographer Matthew J. Lloyd do a nice job of alternating between scenic wide vistas and some extreme close-ups of various characters, giving some visual variety along the way. Fine detail is quite good when lighting conditions allow. As usual in some of the nighttime or dimly lit environments, fine detail levels understandably falter. I noticed no compression anomalies of any note.

The Kid Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Kid features a nicely energetic DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix that provides pretty consistent engagement of the surround channels courtesy of a variety of effects and/or foley work. Both hand to hand combat and gunfire erupt in the film, and there is typically very smart directionality to some of these particular effects. The score by Latham and Shelby Gaines may strike some as being at least occasionally on the eccentric side, but it, too, wafts through the side and rear channels quite invitingly. Dialogue is always presented cleanly and clearly on this problem free track.

The Kid Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Making The Kid (1080p; 9:26) is a standard issue EPK, though it's kind of fun to see Vincent D'Onofrio in a ten gallon (five gallon, maybe?) hat in his interviews.

The Kid Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Despite a somewhat uneven mix of "real life" and fiction, I personally enjoyed The Kid quite a bit. Hawke and DeHaan's takes on their iconic characters ring true, and the rest of the cast is often extremely colorful and enjoyable. The story is a bit artificial from the get go, and becomes more so as it progresses, which may be the major stumbling block for some viewers. Technical merits are first rate, and with caveats noted, The Kid comes Recommended.