La banda di Jesse James

Interesting movie has something of the rueful eccentricity of a Peckinpah movie, although it's told on a much more modest scale. The movie has a sense of transition, with expressions of wonderment at the new steam engine vehicles and even at the game of baseball - there's a sense of gun culture being pushed out and marginalized, although the town's crooked banker illustrates that the new age isn't going to be free of corruption. The structure also has an appealing oddity, illustrated by the band of pursuers on the train, monitored through the entire movie, only to turn up at the end after it's too late. Duvall is occasionally almost Apostle-like as Jesse James and Robertson gives one of his most flavoured performances as Cole Younger. The movie seems very much like a tentative first work and explores themes and ideas in a fundamentally very modest way, but the overall mood is quirky and distinctive and the trim ninety minutes running time makes it an appealing digression.

Honor among thieves is carried to the extreme in "The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid". Showing compassion for victims of corrupt banks, with swift retribution, the gang is still fighting the Civil War in Minnesota. Gradually being overwhelmed by progress, these outlaws look quite out of place. The story is told in a linear fashion, with no annoying flashbacks. Robertson and Duvall are surrounded by a believable supporting cast, that looks the part. My only objection is a couple scenes go on entirely too long, and the film would actually be better off without the interminable baseball scene. Worth seeing for the performances and authentic feel of the movie. - MERK

There are some very interesting moments in this movie. The performance by Cliff Robertson is indeed very good, and I think the movie raises some interesting points in its portrayal of the James/Younger gang as a metaphor for the final death rattle of the old south against the modernizing north. However, this movie can't seem to decide between a comedic tone or an ironic and cynical one. I would say it succeeds in its more serious moments, but the comedic sections are very contrived.

I went to college in Northfield, and I was glad to see my alma mater represented in the film (before its name was changed to Carleton). I became pretty familiar with this raid after attending Northfield's annual "Defeat of Jesse James Days" festivities four times. Surprisingly, the actual raid itself is portrayed fairly accurately, with the proper body count and roughly similar series of events, although some details are different. I liked the irony the filmmakers added with the incident of Cole Younger fixing the rifle that was later used to snipe at his gang members. Oh yeah, and you gotta love those snow capped mountains that surround Northfield (yeah, right), and the whorehouse full of buxom Scandanavians!

The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid is written and directed by Philip Kaufman and stars Cliff Robertson, Robert Duvall, Luke Askew and R.G. Armstrong. It's a Technicolor production with Bruce Surtees the cinematographer and music is scored by Dave Grusin. Plot is based around the James-Younger gang's infamous attempt at robbing the "biggest bank west of Mississippi" in Northfield, Minnesota, September 7th, 1876.

The Western done cinéma vérité by Philip Kaufman, very much leaning towards the "mud and rags" Oaters that were filing in post Sam Peckinpah's Wild Bunch. Jesse James has provided the inspiration for a whole host of movies, with many of them having different interpretations on the man, the myth and his life. Kaufman dismantles the myth aspect and cloaks it in a sort of satirical grimness, flecking it with moments of crudeness whilst paying attention to history (the usual liberties aside) and the changing climate of the time. However, with Kaufman's affection for comic book characters also comes the odd blending of tones, rendering the film an acquired taste. The narrative is strong, with the added bonus of the story continuing after the robbery, and Duvall gives Jesse James an energetic and bonkers makeover. But a safe recommendation to Western fans it is not.

I liked it enough, but not enough in that I could watch it again, but it would come as no surprise to me if it was some Western purists' favourite Western. Roll the dice and take a chance, really. 6/10

There are a few western staples in 'The Great Northfield, Minnesota Raid': the last mission, the friendly whorehouse; but compared with most films of this type, it's a plausible and honest portrait of the life of a criminal gang, and set in the relatively lush lands of the near west instead of the dry high plains further west. In fact, it's based on the story of a real gang, one that featured the legendary Jesse James, and it's refreshing to see this character demystified: he doesn't even take top billing. However, the plot never quite comes to life, and perhaps more could have been made of the gang's origins in the aftermath of the civil war. But like Altman's superior 'McCabe and Mrs. Miller', made at around the same time, the film deserves credit for telling its own tale, instead of merely re-hashing the clichés of the genre.