The Highwaymen

Everyone knows the tale of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. Two of the most notorious outlaws of the 20th century. Their murder and robbery spree all across the central and south central states of the USA made them a sensation during the great depression of the 1930's. Newspapers spread stories of their evil deeds and the public lapped it all up, not seeing them as villains at all but as heroes who took on the banking institutions that had made so many ordinary people homeless during that huge recession. Ya. it's safe to say Bonnie and Clyde were well known. But what about the men who took them down in the end? 

Ma Ferguson (Kathy Bates), the first woman to govern Texas is under severe pressure from the law to stop Bonnie and Clyde in their tracks. Their crime spree has effected the state after a prison break leaves several prison guards dead and it's an embarrassment to her administration. Her solution is to reach into the past and dig up a man called Frank Hamer (Kevin Costner) to deal with the whole mess. Frank was a Texas Ranger who retired when his unit was disbanded after being seen as old fashioned. He's given the unofficial job of hunting down the pair and exterminating them with extreme prejudice. It's too much of a job for one man and he hires Benjamin Gault (Woody Harrelson), his former partner to help him out. The depression has taken a fierce toll on Gault and he jumps at the chance. A lot of time has passed though since they worked together and the two old men aren't as sprightly as they used to be.

At 132 minutes The Highwaymen is a tad too long. That's the only bad thing I have to say about this movie. Other than that I really liked it. It's a slowburning but gripping look at that time in American history when the Wild West was leaving the building and modernity was taking over. The mythical age was ending and reality had come knocking in the shape of crushing poverty and mindless violence. Violence that necessitated the creation of the FBI, an institution that made the Texas Rangers look archaic. The Rangers were the last gasp of an era that made legends. The general populace was hungry for that age of legends and so made Bonnie & Clyde into their own antiheroes. The Rangers took out those antiheroes with such overkill that it put that era to bed for good.

That's one of the things I liked about this. It's a postscript and a full stop in one. A look at two men out of time called back into action and the toll of the violence they carry with them. The film makes no bones about the effect that violence has on a person both physically and psychologically. There's nothing glorious about young bodies ripped asunder by hails of gunfire and there's no good memories involved either. Costner's Hamer somehow can carry the weight of it all but Harrelson's Gault is ruined by it. He's a drink sodden mess haunted by a massacre he once took part in, in the name of justice. "Manos Arribas, you sons of bitches." A scene where he looses his demons is a cracker. He's a great actor who never gets enough credit for it.

It's not all darkness thankfully. Hamer paying off neighbourhood kids so they won't blab about his out of practice shooting skills is a lovely moment as is a scene in a speakeasy bathroom where we get a glimpse of the wildcard Gault was before life ruined him. The interplay between Costner and Harrelson is a joy too. There's plenty of gentle humour to be mined as they both realise their aging bodies are letting them down but their still sharp minds and experience put them head and shoulders over everyone else in investigative stakes. They work well together and it's hard to believe that it's the first time these two old(ish) pro's have shared the screen. Story aside I'd have happily watched them driving around and bickering for ages.

Don't go into this expecting anything like the 1967 take on Bonnie & Clyde. You won't get it. There's no rose tinted glasses here, no romanticising of the old story. The outlaw duo barely even appear onscreen apart from one very pivotal moment. It's worth watching though. A western set in the era that ended the old west. It might be a bit too slow for some but two excellent performances from Kevin Costner and Woody Harrelson will see you through. 

On Netfix right now.