Wild Bill (1995, dir. Walter Hill)

Wild Bill (1995, dir. Walter Hill)

What Is It?: A post-modern semi-spoof of Westerns -- but still with the engaging conventions of a traditional Western -- that was wildly misunderstood when it was released.

What About It?: Coming as it did in the wake of Unforgiven -- a traditional Western dressed up in revisionist Western garb -- most audiences wanted more of the same. Where Unforgiven had realist violence married with a satisfying narrative, Wild Bill has a surreal quality with a strong comic streak that's pretty funny if you know Westerns at all. Hill directs with a sure hand, extracting colorful performances without veering into parody. The opiate dream sequences took the Lost Classic out of the film when they happened, but we think that's small potatoes. The playful series of set pieces opening the film are both great cinema and truly amusing. In addition, this film will appeal to fans of Deadwood, as it tells the tale of Wild Bill echoed in the season one arc of that show. In fact, Hill directed the pilot of the show and was chosen for the gig due to David Milch's admiration of this movie.

Why Should I See It?: Hill makes compelling, self-referential genre pictures. It seems surprising sometimes that he doesn't have more of a following among film lovers like, say, De Palma does. Both directors crib from their predecessors and both love film deeply and can't help themselves from commenting on the movies they're making, during the narrative. Wild Bill is no different. That, and it's a rollicking post-modern good time.

What Else Is It Like?: Dead Man, The Ballad of Little Jo, Little Big Man.

When Is It Showing ON DEMAND Until?: 4/26/07

Watch It ON DEMAND on Comcast Cable.

-- ddt/pdx

What's New This Week That's Worth Watching (To One Degree Or Another)?: The Sugarland Express, Alien Nation, The Snow Walker, Things Change, Showgirls (!), In the Company of Men, Benny & Joon, The Brinks Job.