Review of Wild Bill

Introduction

The story of James Butler Hickok aka "Wild Bill" (Jeff Bridges), and you`ll also meet a few more famous names from the wild west along the way, including Martha Jane Cannary aka "Calamity Jane" (Ellen Barkin) and "Buffalo Bill" Cody (Keith Carradine). Hickok`s story goes something along the lines of "became famous for his gun handling, became a Sheriff in Texas, and then joined the gold rush in Dakota and died there."

The film covers his final years, mostly spent drinking and smoking opium...

Video

A 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer is on offer, and it`s mostly free from dirt, dust and blemishes. The monochrome sections look fine, and most of the colour sections are also good, although there is some grain in quite a few shots.

It certainly has that stereotypical wild west look, although the mood is quite a bit darker than some of the more cheery westerns that you might have seen.

Audio

A DD5.1 soundtrack greets us. There are also other European tracks as with many MGM catalogue titles. It all sounds ok, but it doesn`t really utilise the capabilities of DD5.1, as it mostly sits on the centre channel, sometimes straying onto the front left and right, and sometimes giving the odd sound in the rear speakers.

The story is narrated by the excellent John Hurt.

Features

Just a trailer.

Conclusion

There`s a lot of made up stuff in here, mixed in with the odd fact. It`s more of a story featuring Wild Bill rather than a historical account of his life and times. And at the end of the day it`s just not a very interesting film. I`ve never been one for westerns or stories from the wild west, and this just reinforces that view. A story that you just don`t care about, with nasty characters that you don`t really feel very much for.

The disc is not too bad, with good picture and sound, but no extras as with most MGM catalogue titles.

For fans of the film only.