History Film / TheWildBunch

Pike Bishop (Holden) is the leader of a gang of aging outlaws in the TwilightOfTheOldWest. At the beginning of the film, they rob a railroad office (the page quote is uttered here). However, Pike's former partner Deke Thornton (Ryan) has been deputized to capture him, and his posse of bounty hunters ambushes the gang in a bloody shootout. The surviving members of the gang--Pike, Dutch Engstrom (Borgnine), the Gorch brothers Lyle (Creator/WarrenOates) and Tector (Ben Johnson), and Angel (Jaime Sánchez)--escape to Mexico, where join up with old-timer Freddie Sykes (Edmond O'Brien) and accept a deal to procure guns for the corrupt General Mapache (Emilio Fernández), whose men are fighting off [[UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution Pancho Villa's revolutionary forces]]. Meanwhile, Deke, who still admires Pike but has been given an ultimatum to either capture (or kill) the gang or go to prison, follows them. Things end up getting violent.

* ThoseTwoBadGuys: T.C. and Coffer.
* ThoseTwoGuys: The Gorch Brothers.

Pike Bishop (Holden) is the leader of a gang of aging outlaws in the TwilightOfTheOldWest. At the beginning of the film, they rob a railroad office (the page quote is uttered here). However, Pike's former partner Deke Thornton (Ryan) has been deputized to capture him, and his posse of bounty-hunters ambushes the gang in a bloody shootout. The surviving members of the gang--Pike, Dutch Engstrom (Borgnine), the Gorch brothers Lyle (Creator/WarrenOates) and Tector (Ben Johnson), and Angel (Jaime Sánchez)--escape to Mexico, where join up with old-timer Freddie Sykes (Edmond O'Brien) and accept a deal to procure guns for the corrupt General Mapache (Emilio Fernández), whose men are fighting off [[UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution Pancho Villa's revolutionary forces]]. Meanwhile, Deke, who still admires Pike but has been given an ultimatum to either capture (or kill) the gang or go to prison, follows them. Things end up getting violent.

Pike Bishop (Holden) is the leader of a gang of aging outlaws in the TwilightOfTheOldWest. At the beginning of the film, they rob a bank (the page quote is uttered here). Pike's former partner Deke Thornton (Ryan) has been hired to capture him, and the robbery ends in a bloody shootout. The surviving members of the gang--Pike, Dutch Engstrom (Borgnine), the Gorch brothers Lyle (Creator/WarrenOates) and Tector (Ben Johnson), and Angel (Jaime Sánchez)--join up with old-timer Freddie Sykes (Edmond O'Brien) and escape to Mexico, where they get mixed up in UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution and accept a deal to procure guns for the corrupt General Mapache (Emilio Fernández). Meanwhile, Deke, who still admires Pike but has been given an ultimatum to either capture the gang or go to prison, follows them. Things end up getting violent.

Shockingly violent, gorgeously photographed, brutally cynical, it is perhaps the ultimate {{deconstruction}} of TheWestern, and a true classic of 20th Century filmmaking. Did we mention it's pretty violent too?

Pike Bishop (Holden) is the leader of a gang of aging outlaws in the TwilightOfTheOldWest. At the beginning of the film, they rob a bank (the page quote is uttered here). Pike's former partner Deke Thornton (Ryan) has been hired to capture him, and the robbery ends in a bloody shootout. The surviving members of the gang--Pike, Dutch (Borgnine), the Gorch brothers Lyle (Creator/WarrenOates) and Tector (Ben Johnson), plus Angel (Jaime Sánchez)--escape to Mexico, where they get mixed up in UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution and accept a deal to procure guns for a corrupt general named Mapache (Emilio Fernández). Meanwhile, Deke, who still admires Pike but has been given an ultimatum to either capture the gang or go to prison, follows them. Things end up getting violent.

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: The movie's vague as to its specific setting beyond the Mexican Revolution. While General Victoriano Huerta, the dictator of Mexico from 1913-1914, is established as ruling the country, characters also reference UsefulNotes/WorldWarI and General Pershing massing American troops along the Mexican border,[[note]]Which occurred following Pancho Villa's Columbus raid in April 1916[[/note]] which would indicate a later setting of 1916-1917.

* MohsScaleOfViolenceHardness: It scores an 8.

* BadassMoustache: Pike, Lyle, Deke and Mapache sport them.

* ImproperlyPlacedFirearms: The film takes place in 1914, yet Coffer's Springfield M1903A3 rifle is of the UsefulNotes/WorldWarII variant.

* IGaveMyWord: Deconstructed; when the gang is attacked by Deke Thornton's men, Pike defends Thornton, saying that he gave his word (to the railroad company that hired him). One of the gang members, Dutch angrily says that isn't what counts; what counts is who you give it to. William Holden's character has this memorable quote:

** The last one is, at the same time, [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments really funny]] and at the same time [[TearJerker heartbreaking]].

* ViolenceIsDisturbing: In sharp contrast with the BloodlessCarnage of other Westerns of the time, this film is not shy about showing how ugly and disturbing violence really is. [[WouldHitAGirl Women]] and [[WouldHurtAChild children]] are ''not'' spared, heads are shown [[YourHeadASplode bursting open like ripe watermelons]] when being hit by stray projectiles (this came out in ''1969'', remember) and there is no nobility in bloodshed.

* FamousLastWords: "How'd you like to kiss my sister's black cat's ass?"

''The Wild Bunch'' is a classic 1969 Western directed by Creator/SamPeckinpah and starring Creator/WilliamHolden, Creator/ErnestBorgnine and Creator/RobertRyan. It was quite controversial because of its violence.

Pike Bishop (Creator/WilliamHolden) is the leader of a gang of aging outlaws in the TwilightOfTheOldWest. At the beginning of the film, they rob a bank (the page quote is uttered here). Pike's former partner Deke Thornton (Ryan) has been hired to capture him, and the robbery ends in a bloody shootout. The surviving members of the gang--Pike, Dutch (Borgnine), the Gorch brothers Lyle (Creator/WarrenOates) and Tector (Ben Johnson), plus Angel (Jaime Sánchez)--escape to Mexico, where they get mixed up in UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution and accept a deal to procure guns for a corrupt general named Mapache (Emilio Fernández). Meanwhile, Deke, who still admires Pike but has been given an ultimatum to either capture the gang or go to prison, follows them. Things end up getting violent.

Pike Bishop (Creator/WilliamHolden) is the leader of a gang of aging outlaws in the TwilightOfTheOldWest. At the beginning of the film, they rob a bank (the page quote is uttered here). Pike's former partner Deke Thornton (Ryan) has been hired to capture him, and the robbery ends in a bloody shootout. The surviving members of the gang--Pike, Dutch (Borgnine), the Gorch brothers Lyle (Warren Oates) and Tector (Ben Johnson), plus Angel (Jaime Sánchez)--escape to Mexico, where they get mixed up in UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution and accept a deal to procure guns for a corrupt general named Mapache (Emilio Fernández). Meanwhile, Deke, who still admires Pike but has been given an ultimatum to either capture the gang or go to prison, follows them. Things end up getting violent.

''The Wild Bunch'' is a classic 1969 western directed by Creator/SamPeckinpah and starring Creator/WilliamHolden, Creator/ErnestBorgnine and Creator/RobertRyan. It was quite controversial because of its violence.

* AxCrazy: Sykes's grandson doesn't make the best impression for the few minutes that he's alive.

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wildbunch4_2636.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:300:''"Suddenly, a new West has emerged. Suddenly, it was sundown for nine men. Suddenly, their day was over. Suddenly, the sky was bathed in blood."'']]

* SelfPlagiarism: Multiple scenes attempted in ''Film/MajorDundee'', including slow-motion action sequences, characters leaving a village as if in a funeral procession and the use of inexperienced locals as extras, would become fully realized here.

* BlastOut: The ending. A literal MexicanStandOff between The Bunch and The Mexican Army ends with everybody (women, children, livestock, etc.) getting killed in a hail of bullets, [[MoreDakka complete with a heavy machine gun blazing]].

* CatchPhrase: Pike's is "Let's go."

* ShoutOut:
** Several to ''Film/TheTreasureOfTheSierraMadre'', especially the character of Sykes and the raucuous laughter at the film's end; the opening scene provides some dark references to ''Film/MyDarlingClementine'' (where Pike helps an old lady across the street, and the temperance union singing "Shall We Gather at the River?"); also, where Mapache's army surrounds the Bunch after the train robbery, resembling a scene from Creator/RobertAldrich's ''Film/VeraCruz''.
** The whole film can be seen as Peckinpah as engaging in specific {{Deconstruction}} of Creator/JohnFord's mythic, epic version of TheWestern. Many of the landscape shots are very Fordian, and the use of music and festive scenes in-between the dramatic scenes was a favorite Ford touch. Several of the cast members (Creator/WilliamHolden, Edmond O'Brien, Ben Johnson, Strother Martin) had been in Ford's films as well. But the violence and nihilism are in stark contrast to Ford. Peckinpah himself felt that Ford's Westerns were flawed, with too much sentimentalism, and championed Creator/GeorgeStevens as the preeminent Western director.

** TheLeader - Pike Bishop.
** TheLancer - Dutch Englestrom.
** TheSmartGuy - Lyle Gorch.
** TheBigGuy - Tector Gorch.
** TheChick - Angel.

Pike Bishop (Creator/WilliamHolden) is the leader of a gang of aging outlaws in the twilight of TheWildWest. At the beginning of the film, they rob a bank (the page quote is uttered here). Pike's former partner Deke Thornton (Ryan) has been hired to capture him, and the robbery ends in a bloody shootout. The surviving members of the gang--Pike, Dutch (Borgnine), the Gorch brothers Lyle (Warren Oates) and Tector (Ben Johnson), plus Angel (Jaime Sánchez)--escape to Mexico, where they get mixed up in UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution and accept a deal to procure guns for a corrupt general named Mapache (Emilio Fernández). Meanwhile, Deke, who still admires Pike but has been given an ultimatum to either capture the gang or go to prison, follows them. Things end up getting violent.