Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid
released 1969
www.ink2quill.com

“Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid” is an American, action, adventure, historical fiction, western, bank heist film produced by Paul Monash, John Foreman and the late, great Paul Newman. It was written by William Goldman and directed by George Roy Hill. It stars some of the greatest in the Hollywood pantheon including Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Katharine Ross, Strother Martin, Henry Jones, Jeff Corey, George Furth, Cloris Leachman, Ted Cassidy, Kenneth Mars, Donnelly Rhodes, Jody Gilbert, Timothy Scott, Don Keefer, Charles Dierkop, Pancho Cordova, Nelson Olmsted, Paul Bryar, Sam Elliott, Charles Akins, Eric Sinclair, Jose Torvay, Ken Drake, Jill Hall, Jose Chavez and many others.

Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid IMDb webpage

“Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid” is an American classic western about an event that took place during the Wild West era of American history. When cowboys committed bank robberies, train robberies and gunslingers allegedly had pistol duels in the streets, often outside of taverns, allegedly. The story takes place in the Wyoming of the 1890s with a group of outlaws known as The Hole In The Wall Gang who go around robbing trains and banks. The story takes an unexpected turn when they decide to rob a train. What seems at first to be a simple train robbery gets a lot more complicated when the bank whose loot was on the train being robbed is ready for them. The law is ready for the bank robbers and pursues them without let.

This is as much a train robbery film in the Wild West as it is the story of a great friendship between Butch Cassidy, played by Paul Newman, and The Sundance Kid, played by Robert Redford, two of Hollywood’s greats. I also believe that they were fine human beings off screen. This is a story element that cannot be overstated and possibly cannot be faked. Those two played in several films together so I really want to believe that they had a great friendship off screen also. I spoke with someone who was shooting a commercial for a NYC attraction and she told me that both actors in the commercial were married in real life and that portrayed a great chemistry on screen. Great chemistry is an often overlooked story element that can really boost a script and this film is one of the best examples of this.

This is one of the most well known, well liked in the Western genre. The main characters of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid are likeable robbers who aren’t jaded, greedy or cruel. Their lives look like one fun adventure after another. For fans of the Western genre this is truly a treat. You have the gun fights, the train robberies, the chases, the love interests and all the other little things you barely notice but are great. I really got the impression that this film project was also a labor of love for its creators. I know that I would have loved to work on this project.

Another element that people don’t mention but is ubiquitous in Hollywood is the importance of looks for both men and women. It still is true today but back in the 1960s this fact was much worse. I’ve heard it said the Paul Newman and Robert Redford were considered the most handsome actors of their day. And Katharine Ross was also stunningly beautiful although less famous. This is an important thing to mention because although Paul Newman and Robert Redford were some of the best actors in the world of their day another important thing that helped them on their road to success were their looks. This means that so many talented people did not get a chance to share their craft and skill with the world because they were not called handsome or beautiful enough. This form of discrimination also applies to people of different ethnicities, heights, skin colors etc. For example, back then if you were Asian or of African descent the doors of opportunity were closed no matter how talented you were, and that is a shame. Today. Times are a changing and all the different categories of people are finding their voices, audiences, fans and markets. And that is so nice to see.

So, check out “Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid” because it is well worth your time and remains today one of the best films Hollywood has ever made. It’s timeless.

John Ink2Quill

I2Q Blogs / Visual 1969 / 2025 / action / classic / heist / ink2quill / john / newman / quill / redford / ross / western /