This week I watched a movie on Billy the Kid. I actually found The Left Handed Gun on Netflix.

The movie caught my attention in the very beginning with the song. I went on YouTube to try to find the name of the song, but to my surprise, there are many songs about Billy the Kid. The song was the opposite of what I think when I hear Billy. The song describes Billy as being a “gentle” boy that never meant wrong and that he should be treated gently. When I hear Billy the Kid, my first impression is outlaw that killed 21 men. In the beginning, Billy is also portrayed as being quite which is also the opposite of the way that he is portrayed  in many stories. In the sources that I have read, Billy has been made out to be outspoken.

In 05:06 of the movie, Billy’s first crime is introduced. The man said that Billy stabbed a drunk because he said “a word against his mind” and it killed the drunk. The crime was committed while Billy was 11 in El Paso. There is also a part at 00:8:41 where Billy is talking to a man about Spanish and the man asked Billy if he learned Spanish while he was in Kansas City and Billy tells him that he lives in the South. I don’t know if this is suggesting that Billy was from Kansas City or if that was one of the places that he lived, but none of the sources that I have read have mentioned anything about Billy being in Kansas City.

At 9:40, Billy is portrayed as being illeterate. This also goes against many of the sources that I have read about Billy. All of the sources that mentioned Billy’s education said that Billy could read and that he would read often. The movie still showed Billy as having an interest in books, but he was never able to read throughout the movie. Billy’s loyalty is also portrayed very well in this movie. Billy had not been with Tunstall for a while, but he races to his side after he gets shot. He volunteers for the men to put the body on his horse and he promises to seek revenge for his death.

When the movie moves along and we start seeing the more open side of Billy, his character seems very childish. There is a scene at 00:18:50, after Tunstall’s funeral, where Billy starts dancing around and it’s almost like watching a kid dance. When he starts talking to Tom and Charlie about his plan to seek revenge, he turns serious again. His childishness is shown again at 00:41:47 when him and his friends start getting excited over ther party, girls, and getting drunk. While at the party, he encounters Grant and comes close to a draw. After that incident, he leaves the party and he seems to become almost delusional.

I feel like this movie does shows Garrett’s and Billy’s relationship more in depth than any other sources I have seen. They are good friends until Billy shoots Hill at Garrett’s wedding and that is when Billy decides to accept the offer to become the sherriff. At 1:11:10, Billy shows a side that you really don’t see during  the movie, which is a mature side. He lets Tom leave and he offers him more catridges for his gun, advice about when to travel, and helps him unto his horse. However, at 1:13:05, he starts showing his delusional side again when he is talking to himself about Tom leaving him and Charlie.

This movie also shows that Garrett starts doubting his decision about bringing Billy in after the hanging sentence was passed. It aslo shows how Billy is friendly with his guards like many sources mentions. There is a lot of controversy about how Billy actually died, but in this version, Garrett shoots Billy while he is unarmed.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 12th, 2011 at 1:21 am and is filed under Charli. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.