Bad Company (1972)

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  May 24, 2012

  bhobbs1985

  Bad Company was an awesome glimpse into one of Jeff Bridges earlier roles.
  
  What I loved about this movie it the fact that it was filmed in 1972 giving it true western feel and realistic approach (likely because it wasn't filmed as much in Hollywood Studios as truly out in the o... read morepen), but more so was, it was filmed before we lived in a overly sensitive society where as the movie was able to be completely gritty with the times using terms and outlooks to be as authentic as it truly would have been if you were actually watching these men in the 1860s.
  
  The plot itself was a well done following of an Ohio Boy who started out as a good Christian Hillbilly who deserted before he was drafted into the Union Army; partially because of the sacrifices his family had already gave (his older brother). It truly captures the essence of the time and how many well-behaved individuals were changed into ruthless out-laws solely based on the ruthless era in which they lived.

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• 
  
  November 14, 2009

  flixsterman

  I first saw this one in 1972 and enjoyed it very much. Now, some 36 years later, I can honestly say that it's stood the test of time. It's a film that's shot mostly, if not entirely, on location so it never has that "studio" feel about it. It's gritty, it's unpolished, and it'... read mores wonderfully understated. You don't have to like westerns in order to enjoy and appreciate this one.

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• 
  
  April 27, 2012

  fb25827189

  BAD COMPANY is a character study about how a good "Christian" boy, slowly becomes an outlaw. Of course he is aided on his life-altering journey, by the very untrustworthy and charismatic, Jake Rumsey (Jeff Bridges).
  This is not your regular run-of-the-mill Western. The main char... read moreacters draw a fine-line between good and bad, and the harsh realities of living during these tumultuous times. Are portrayed very realistically, almost too much so.
  A great little gem that features a whole slew of great character actors. This is also an early look at a young Mr. Bridges, whose great acting prowess was evident, even back in 1972.

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• 
  
  January 16, 2008

  broadwaymo

  Having already lost one son to the War of Northern Aggression, a pious Ohio family sends their remaining son, Drew, west in an effort to avoid his conscription. While waiting to join a wagon train, Drew inadvertently becomes a member in a gang of ne'er-do-wells lead by loudmouth ... read morebraggart, Jake Rumsey, as they strike out on their own, "living off the land" as they cross the plains. Barry Brown and a young Jeff Bridges do well in their leading roles with fine support from familiar faces: John Savage, Geoffrey Lewis, Ed Lauter, Charles Tyner, Jerry Houser and David Huddleston.

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  March 7, 2011

  dukeakasmudge

  It looked like good ol fun until Boog the youngest member of the gang got his head blown off after stealing a pie then things got serious.A great & classic Western that even if your not a fan of Westerns, It's worth checking out

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  May 17, 2010

  zardoz3

  ?Bad Company? qualifies as a modest, offbeat, revisionist western. No, this unconventional oater about youth in revolt with Jeff Bridges and Barry Brown doesn?t celebrate the golden opportunities that awaited settlers out west as the typical John Ford horse opera might herald. ... read moreInstead, everybody complains about the lack of hospitality and the terrible ordeals that the pioneers weathered on the rugged frontier. Our protagonists are a Union Army draft dodger from Ohio on the lam and an ill-bred ruffian who preys on the unsuspecting. ?Bonnie and Clyde? scenarist Robert Benton teams up again with co-scribe David Newman, but Benton is calling the shots now rather than somebody else. Benton depicts crime on the prairie as neither glamorous nor simple. Moreover, he presents violence as impersonal, arbitrary, and without a shred of sentiment. For example, a young thief steals a pie cooling off on the window ledge of a farm house. As he scampers out with the pie, the back of the head erupts with a splash of blood as a bullet hurls him headlong into the dirt. Benton stages an impressive hanging scene without the usual ostentation. A small group gathers around the man to be hanged. They seat him on the horse, and a deputy leads the horse away without warning so that the criminal sways briefly with a kick or two. Everything about the hanging takes place in such a matter-of-fact way that the punishment itself lacks any impact. Altogether, ?Bad Company? deals in irony, and our two anti-heroic leads dabble with little success in crime until the last scene when they emerge as bank robbers. In a sense, the end is the beginning for them as criminals. Most of the action occurs in the wilderness, and the wilderness here is drab, overgrown with foliage, and never scenic. Mountains don?t crouch ominously on the horizons. Despite the lackluster setting, Benton?s low-budget oater is blessed by the cinematography of ?Godfather? lenser Gordon Willis. Willis imparts a sense of muted beauty to this Spartan tale. ?Bad Company? isn?t a traditional western and only one important character sports a Stetson. Nobody looks like the usual cowboy, though the sets have a western flavor.
  
  As ?Bad Company? unfolds, the Union Army is rounding up young men who have tried to avoid enlisting in the military. An Ohio youth, Drew Dixon (Barry Brown of ?Halls of Anger?) evades the Union troopers when they search his house and then his parents pack his belongs, give him some dough, and send him on to Fort Jefferson where he plans to catch a wagon train west to Virginia City. When he arrives in Fort Jefferson, Drew falls in with the unprepossessing likes of roguish Jake Rumsey (Jeff Bridges of ?Rancho Deluxe?) who leads him down a side alley and clubs him. Drew has a wad of cash stashed in his shoe, but Jake walks off with less than ten dollars. Later, Drew looks for a Methodist woman. Jakes? cohorts rob her, but he returns her purse and breaks into her house without realizing that Drew is waiting for her return. Drew and Jake tangle in a knock-down, drag-out brawl and Jake is so impressed with Drew?s tenacity that he takes a liking to him. The Methodist woman returns to her home and screams at the sight of destruction, prompting Jake and Drew to exit before they are caught on the premises. Whereas Jake is a cheerful thief, Drew tries to stick to the straight and narrow. For example, Jake and his gang coerce Drew into proving his mettle by robbing a storekeeper. Drew takes money from his shoe and smashes up his fist to prove that he dealt with resistance from the storekeeper. Jake and company take him in as one of their own. They are all teenagers and they dress like the children of settlers. Nobody wears traditional western gear.
  
  The theme of the West as a land of woes rather than promise is played out in two important scenes. Benton has an amusing incident happen when the boys encounter a farmer with his wife on a wagon in the middle of the prairie. The farmer warns them the nothing good can come of the west. They tried to till the land, but Mother Nature threw one obstacle after another in their way. Finally, the farmer, Zeb (Ted Gehring of ?The Thomas Crown Affair?) strikes a bargain with the boys that they can have intercourse with his wife, Min (Monika Henreid of ?The Omega Man?), for eight dollars. Of course, Jake is the first one to mount her and he finishes up in lightning fast time. Zeb comments about Jake?s celerity, and Jake is proud that he came so rapidly, not realizing the onus attached to swift sex. Later, our heroes are caught off-guard by an older gang of outlaws led by Big Joe (David Huddleston of ?McQ?) who laments the day that he went west. Big Joe and his minions rob the boys, but they leave them their horses. Inevitably, Jake?s gang begins to fragment, especially after the encounter with Big Joe and his outlaws. They dine with a farmer who keeps them covered with a shotgun. At one point, they steal chickens from another farm and one of them dies stealing a pie. Before long, Jake and Drew are set afoot when their friends betray them. Jake and Drew turn on each other and Drew joins a posse led by a marshal (Jim Davis of ?The Honkers?) and he catches up with Jake, but he cannot stand to see Jake swing.
  
  ?Bad Company? is an above-average movie, probably more sophisticated than it needed to be. Newman and Benton has written an interesting tale of initiation, but the stakes here are pretty low and the filmmakers are more prone to poking fun?subtle fun?at the genre than delivering slam-bang shoots. The big shoot-out between our heroes and Big Joe?s gang is realistically handled, but nothing truly stands out about the action. The cast is superb and Bridges manages to conjure up a little charisma. Ed Lauter and Geoffrey Lewis make an impression as two of Big Joe?s henchmen.

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• Jean Allison as Dixon's Mother
• Jeff Bridges as Jake Rumsey
• Claudia Bryar as Mrs. Clum
• Damon Cofer as Jim Bob Logan
• Jim Davis as Marshall
• Ted Gehring as Zeb
• Raymond Guth as Jackson
• Monika Henreid as Min
• Jerry Houser as Arthur Simms

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• Where does this line come from? "Never lie, steal, cheat, or drink. But if you must lie, lie in the arms of the one you love. If you must steal, steal away from bad company. If you must cheat, cheat death. And if you must drink, drink in the moments that take your breath away."  Answer »
• The Quote "never lie, steal, cheat, or drink, but if you must lie, lie in the arms of the one you love, if you must steal, steal away from bad company, if you must cheat, cheat death, and if you must drink, drink in the moments that take your breath away.  Answer »
• In which Chris Rock movie, did two actors (one played Hannibal and the other played a victim of Buckskin Bill), attend a wedding TOGETHER?  Answer »
• Which of these has Johnny Depp not stared in?  Answer »

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