The Good Guys and the Bad Guys (1969)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Burt Kennedy

Writers:

Ronald M. Cohen (written by) and
Dennis Shryack (written by)

Release Date:

3 November 1969 (Sweden)

Genre:

Comedy | Western

Plot:

Marshal Flagg, an aging lawman about to be retired, hears that his old nemesis, the outlaw McKaye, is back in the area and planning a robbery...

Plot Keywords:

Outlaw | Antonyms In Title

Cast

Robert Mitchum	...	Flagg
George Kennedy	...	McKay
Martin Balsam	...	Mayor Wilker
David Carradine	...	Waco
Tina Louise	...	Carmel
Douglas Fowley	...	Grundy (as Douglas V. Fowley)
Lois Nettleton	...	Mary
John Davis Chandler	...	Deuce
John Carradine	...	Ticker
Marie Windsor	...	Polly
Dick Peabody	...	Boyle
Kathleen Freeman	...	Mrs. Stone (Mother)
Jimmy Murphy	...	Buckshot
Garrett Lewis	...	Hawkins
Nick Dennis	...	Engineer No. 2

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

West Germany:12 (nf) | Canada:PG (video rating) | Finland:K-12 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | USA:M (original rating) | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Chama, New Mexico, USA

Company:

Ronden

Trivia:

Director Trademark: [Burt Kennedy] ["Fight!"]At the beginning of the fight scene, someone (in this case, an uncredited Richard Farnsworth) looks directly at the camera and yells, "Fight!"

Soundtrack:

Ballad of Marshal Flagg, The

A lot of fun!

This Robert Mitchum/George Kennedy film was a lot of fun for me, because until this, I hadn't seen Mitchum in too many comedies/ spoofs. El Dorado had it's funny moments, but it's wasn't a comedy, really. Without spoiling the story, Mitchum plays an aging sheriff hustled into early retirement by the stereotypical gas bag of a mayor, and Kennedy plays an aging outlaw on the verge of being ousted by his own gang. Interestingly, Kennedy's character also illustrates the interesting concept that even outlaws of one generation lived by a code, i.e. don't shoot a man in the back, and as Kennedy's character says at one point, "I don't go for unnecessary killing. Mitchum's character also has his principles, a man who always "keeps his word" - used to hilarious effect at the end.

The chemistry between Mitchum and Kennedy is great, and the action is hysterical, especially the chase scene with a train heading to a rendezvous with the crooks in town. If you're in for a light-hearted, entertaining family movie, I'd definitely recommend "The Good Guys and the Bad Guys."