Young Billy Young

The film is based on Will Henry novel titled ¨Who rides with Wyatt Earp¨ , it is starred by Deputy Ben Kane (Robert Mitchum) , before working as a policeman in Wichita (Kansas) and as town marshal assistant of Dodge City (Kansas) , he served other towns like well being narrated in this film . Earp was a man of cool courage and gunfighting skill , he was hired as a shotgun by the authorities and became the town marshal . Here is developed his friendship with a young gunman called Billy (Robert Walker Jr.) who results to be actually Johnny Ringo , a subsequent enemy and along with Clanton-McLaury faction resulted on 26 October 1881 the explosive showdown known as ¨the Gunfight at the OK Corral¨ .

This exciting picture contains sensational main actor casting and a character-full supporting cast . Robert Mitchum as brave sheriff , although affected for previous death , is astounding , his character has a backbone of bitterness somewhere deep inside . Robert Mitchum said he intended to retire from acting when this movie finished filming in late 1968 , but in the following year he agreed to star in Ryan's daughter (1970). Despite being top billed Robert Mitchum does not turn up until 19 minutes into the film . Robert Walker as impetuous gunman is cool , he makes a similar role to Ricky Nelson in ¨Rio Bravo¨ . Angie Dickinson repeats her usual character as Saloon call-girl . Paul Fix as stagecoach driver makes a role likeness to Walter Brennan . The film was well directed by Burt Kennedy . An eighty per cent of this American director's movies have been Western , bad , good and indifferent in equal proportions . He made delightful and tremendously agreeable Westerns (Support you local Sheriff , Support your local gunfighter) but also realized objectionable ,duds , muddled and disastrous Westerns , though his greatest success was as screenwriter of the splendid series Boetticher-Scott in the late 50s (Tall T , Ride lonesome , Comanche station) . This motion picture will appeal to Robert Mitchum and Angie Dickinson fans.

I'm quite surprised none of the reviews mentioned that this film is a full remake of another Mitchum film from 1955 "Man With The Gun".. Same exact story with very minor changes and same problem : not much action while waiting for the final showdown which by the way was much better handled in "Man With The Gun".

But any movie with Robert Mitchum or Angie Dickinson is worth seeing.

And here you have them both.

Robert Mitchum plays a sheriff in a town dominated by evil bosses and their gangs. When MItchum arrests the son of the boss-man for murder, the gang is determined the sheriff won't live to punish the punk. As for his deputy (Robert Walker Jr.--who, inexplicably, gets the film named after his character), he's rather ambivalent--unsure whether to help or just get out of the way. Can they stand up against the combined forces of evil and survive (what do you think?!)? "Young Billy Young" is an enjoyable western. However, the plot is incredibly familiar--too familiar. Robert Mitchum himself (who stars in "Young Billy Young") appeared in "El Dorado" (a remake of "Rio Bravo")--which is pretty similar to such films as "High Noon" and "Last Train From Gun Hill". All these films (and many more) are like "YBY" because they, too, are stories about honest sheriffs who refuse to knuckle under to gangs who run old western towns. Because of this familiarity, the film just cannot rise above mediocrity even if it did star Mitchum.

In addition to Mitchum, the film stars two sons of famous actors--Robert Walker Jr. and David Carridine. They are competent but no more in the film. Its strengths are its acting by Mitchum as well as the nice relationship he has with Angie Dickenson (who was ALSO in Rio Bravo!). Negatives are Mitchum singing the opening song (uggh!) and the ridiculously easy way the two young guns kill off the Mexican general near the beginning of the film. The ending is also a bit abrupt.

Fans of the movie TOMBSTONE and other Wyatt Earp movies may be interested to know that this movie was very loosely based on Will Henry's WHO RIDES WITH Wyatt, a heavily fictionalized novel about Wyatt Earp's war with the Cowboy gang and his feud with Cowboy-sympathizing sheriff John Behan. In the novel, the "Billy Young" character is actually Johnny Ringo, who--in a completely fictional subplot--is at first protected, befriended and mentored by Wyatt (as Billy is by Kane in this movie), until Ringo gets more and more deeply involved with Curly Bill and the Clantons and Wyatt has to come after him. The novel is grim and dark, with an admirable but not very likable Wyatt. The movie is entertaining fluff, with a storyline that has less and less to do with the novel and the real Wyatt Earp as it goes along. Surprisingly, a good bit of the dialogue of the novel is retained, at least in the early scenes with Kane, and the script even retains the Earp-Behan-Lily triangle. The Behan character is even called "John Behan," and gets a surprising comeuppance from a surprising source. David Carradine is his usual watchable self as a more likable version of Ike Clanton.

"Young" Billy Young(Walker) is on the run after having killed a ruthless Mexican general. He runs into sheriff Mitchum, who "makes him an offer he can't refuse", i.e. to become his deputy. The young man is reluctant at first, but with bad guy Fred Boone on his way to town, he realizes that his help will be more than welcome.

However, if you think that the story centres on any of these events, you are wrong. It's a bit of everything and always too little of it, if you know what I mean. For example,you hear the characters talk every now and then about the bad guy Fred Boone. However, you won't get to see him until the final gunfight, which is over before you know it. Perhaps, the film is most interesting for fans of Robert Mitchum. He has a great part as the aging sheriff and obviously has a lot of fun playing it too. In fact, he must be one of the most enjoyable characters I have ever seen in an old western.(better than most John Wayne parts)

The acting is actually overall quite good. Angie Dickinson too has a nice part as a local "dancer". The story isn't too bad either, except then for the fact that it seems awfully shortened. The film as a whole lasts only a mere 89 minutes and that's just too short for the potential it has in it. So: not bad, but not better than 6/10.