‘American Outlaws’ Is Robust Retelling of Familiar Legend

“American Outlaws” begins in the thick of a Civil War skirmish, as a large contingent of Union soldiers opens fire on a group of young men, who, in an astonishing display of bravura and daring, trounce their adversaries like David defeating Goliath.

This introduction to none other than Jesse James (Colin Farrell), his Shakespeare-quoting brother, Frank (Gabriel Macht), and their cousins Cole (Scott Caan), Jim (Gregory Smith) and Bob (Will McCormack) Younger establishes their mythical status and sets the tone for this rousing, action-filled western. This is a solid, satisfying mainstream entertainment of broad appeal, not a documentary. And with this in mind, it’s easy to go along with writers Roderick Taylor and John Rogers’ version of one of the most oft-told tales of the Old West.

The writers excel at establishing sympathy from the get-go for the James and Younger boys and their followers, and tell their story with clarity, striking a consistent balance between comedy and inherent tragedy. Director Les Mayfield follows through in robust fashion and elicits crisply defined, career-boosting portrayals from his youthful cast. In particular, Farrell’s commanding, charismatic Jesse reaffirms the strong impression the Irish actor made in Joel Schumacher’s “Tigerland.”

The trouncing of the Yankees occurs a day after Lee’s surrender, an ironic foreshadowing of what awaits Jesse and his fellow Liberty, Mo., farmers. They barely have a chance to enjoy their homecoming than they discover themselves thrown into another war, this time against ruthless railroad tycoon Thaddeus Rains (Harris Yulin), who expects them to sell their farms to him for $2 an acre.

Stupidly, Rains’ minion, Rollin Parker (Terry O’Quinn), has his men burn down the James home. That costs the life of hearty God-fearing Ma James (Kathy Bates), galvanizing the James and the Younger brothers’ resistance, their skills honed by four years in battle. However, Rains has in his employ pioneer detective Allen Pinkerton (Timothy Dalton), Jesse’s formidable true adversary. Yulin and Dalton play their villains with relish--a just-right light touch.

In short order, the former Confederate soldiers are transformed into bank-robbing outlaws and, in turn, folk heroes because Frank James was smart enough to insist that they share the loot with the needy. They’re the Robin Hoods of the Old West, robbing the rich to give to the poor. In the meantime, Jesse keeps his eye on the essential business at hand, which is to defeat Rains.

As the James-Younger saga unfolds, Jesse inevitably experiences a loss of innocence, receiving a strong dose of reality when he discovers what it means to take on a railroad and in coping with the hotheaded Cole Younger, who lacks the self-control and brains to be a co-leader of the gang. Jesse even manages to work in a shy courting of the spunky daughter (Ali Larter) of a Liberty doctor (Ronny Cox).

Don’t look for the reflectiveness and personal quality of the classic westerns in “American Outlaws.” Rather, it’s a handsome and skillful retelling of a legend that imaginatively draws on conventions of both the western and the gangster movie to create an energetic yet thoughtful contemporary action-adventure.

MPAA-rated: PG-13, for western violence. Times-rated: violence standard for the genre; strong but not excessive.

‘American Outlaws’

Colin Farrell: Jesse James

Scott Caan: Cole Younger

Ali Larter: Zee Mimms

Gabriel Macht: Frank James

A Warner Bros. presentation of a Morgan Creek production. Director Les Mayfield. Producer Bill Gerber. Executive producer Jonathan A. Zimbert. Screenplay by Roderick Taylor and John Rogers; from a story by Taylor. Cinematography Russell Boyd. Editor Michael Tronick. Music Trevor Rabin. Costumes Luke Reichle. Production designers Cary White and John Frick. Set designers Ronn Basquette and Thomas H. Pall. Set decorator Barbara Haberecht. Running time: 1 hour, 25 minutes.

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In general release.