The Kid review

[Westside Steve]

The kid
Lionsgate
R.               100 min

Here’s one that’s worth a little extra trouble, not a whole lot but I had to drive to the Valley View Cinemark who often have some films that don’t play in wide distribution. Why you may ask? Well in the first place I really like westerns and there aren’t many of them these days. Second it starts Ethan Hawke who’s a pretty good actor but usually flies just under the radar. His presence is not a guarantee of a great film, as a matter of fact even despite the short-lived Oscar buzz, I hated FIRST REFORMED, but that’s another story. Third, I was curious to see what Vincent D’Onofrio we do behind the camera.
Well the kid here is William Bonney AKA Billy the Kid (Dane DeHaan) and this is a semi-biographical tale about him and his friend / nemesis Pat Garrett. (Hawke) How much is real and how much is artistic content who knows? I’m guessing the fictional part concerns the main story of the actual protagonist here, another kid, Rio,  (Jake Schurr) who has run away from home with his sister Sara, (Leila George) after killing his drunk and abusive father.  Things are looking perilous for the siblings as a nasty uncle is out to seek revenge for his ne'er do well brother. The kids find an abandoned cabin in which to hide out. Well not quite abandoned as presently it’s also in use by a band of outlaws led by the notorious Billy the Kid. The good news is that Billy takes a liking to the youngsters and sort of takes them under his wing. The bad news is that it’s not long before Pat Garrett and a handful of lawmen capture the entire bunch. Unwilling to confess patricide to the authorities  Rio and Sara make up a story about a relative who will take them in when they get to New Mexico. That just happens to be where Pat is taking Billy to stand trial and presumably hang.
So what we have is kind of a perverse buddy flick / Thriller as the company travels along getting in and out of various dangerous situations together. It’s not really an action-packed journey but there are plenty of exciting moments along with a satisfying but somewhat bittersweet ending. Besides Hawk, DeHaan is an unexpected bright spot as Billy, even though we’ve never seen the kid except for old photographs, he looks pretty much like them and is completely believable. Schull is a fine little actor as well, and we should be seeing more of him in upcoming films. D’Onofrio exhibits a steady hand directing the story through are rough and gritty landscape. Certainly worth the ride.
B+
WSS