Fictionalizing the exploits of Jesse James has been a pastime of the entertainment industry for almost 145 years, and now it's Generation Y's turn, with scruffy baby-face Colin Farrell (Tigerland) in the romanticized lead, robbing banks to hurt Yankee railroad barons that done killed his ma because she wouldn't sell her land. While there's an undeniable spark of charm and a few snappy lines of dialogue here, American Outlaws is so choppy and uncreative that it plays more like an ESPN highlights reel than an actual film. A gleefully glowering Timothy Dalton wastes screen time as the bad guy, sitting in a railroad office and endlessly imparting strategy for the capture of our heroes, as opposed to actually hunting and confronting them. Meanwhile, the James Gang is stuck in a stock-footage montage of bank hold-ups and brothel scenes. Paint-by-numbers director Les Mayfield (Blue Streak) can't even get through a shootout without tiresome modern action flick clichés head-butting their way into the picture. Co-starring Scott Caan, Ali Larter, Gabriel Macht and Kathy Bates ("Ma"), this oater ain't a necessary purchase. (R. Blackwelder)
American Outlaws
Warner, 94 min., PG-13, VHS: $109.99, DVD: $19.98, Dec. 4 Volume 16, Issue 6
American Outlaws
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