Bad Company (1972)

Wonderful character development!

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

Released in 1972, "Bad Company" is an atypical Western about a young man from a Christian family (Barry Brown) who leaves home in Ohio and goes West to flee the Civil War draft. In Kansas he foolishly falls-in with the wrong crowd, led by Jeff Bridges, and things go from bad to worse. You know what the proverb says: "Bad company corrupts good character." This is a raw and realistic Western that shows the awful truth about naïve people in strange places and how easy it is to get on the wrong track. It's outstanding on every level.Star Barry Brown committed suicide in 1978, five years after the film was released. He came from a dysfunctional family and said, "The only time I'm not unhappy is when I'm acting." His sister committed suicide 20 years after his death.The film was shot in Kansas and runs 93 minutes.GRADE: A

A young man dodging the Civil War draft falls in with a group of runaways heading west. This is a Western in name only. It has little of the elements that one associates with the genre. Making his directorial debut, future Oscar winner Benton does little to enliven this comedy-drama. The script is too rambling to hold one's interest. The characters are not compelling enough to care what happens to them. The attempts at humor are somewhat forced. The shift between comedy and brutal violence is jarring. Bridges does OK in what was his first starring role. It is sad watching Brown, a talented actor who committed suicide six year later at the age of 27.

I'm a huge fan of Jeff Bridges. Great all around actor who is a pleasure to watch and the Big Lebowski is an all time favorite of mine.But the movie is still just not worth it. Its just a rambling, meandering story with little story spine and a lack of any true drama. If you are on the edge of your seat it will probably be from dozing rather than from any gripping sort of suspense or interest. I believe it was given kudos by some critics for being a different type of western: more gritty, real, less glamorized and all that. Honestly, just because a film does something different, doesn't mean it was good entertainment and that's the most important criteria for a good movie.So, if you want to then watch it but you can definitely do better.

They unabashedly emulate and hold up western, and adult, behavior, for all to see and as boys they have a lot to learn, and as moviegoers, so do we. In this perfect film the boys hold up a mirror to the world, and our preconceived notions, about the west, what it is to be a man, and in doing so, truly show us the way as they try to find their's. They practically play at cowboys for us, until the real big bad world comes along and smashes in, with violence, a stark world around them and for us the viewers, our ideas about our past. And this is where the real story is. The lead actor Barry Brown as Drew Dixon brought this film to what most consider it's art-like appeal. His performance is haunting, beautiful, and unforgettable. Without him, there's no film, in my opinion. His foil is aggravating, oafish, Jeff Bridges who a fan of his, will appreciate, as he gets the boys time and time again into trouble none of them asked for. Young John Savage is there, rightly brilliant as usual, playing an evil snake in the grass. None of the characters are without pathos, redeeming factors, and a likability. The entire cast, named and unmentioned here, are perfectly cast and no bit routines are allowed, each with private identities enriching the story. This movie leaves me haunted and it is still the finest, and best of it's kind.