History Film / TheAssassinationOfJesseJamesByTheCowardRobertFord

* BillingDisplacement:
** Whether Jesse James or Robert Ford is the "main character" of the film is debatable, considering the amount of screen time and thematic weight each character receives. Though Ford's life extends through the entire film, James is given more weight while he's around. In spite of whatever argument you might make, Brad Pitt's star power, combined with Jesse James', ensure that James is always considered the lead role.
** Although Mary-Louise Parker and Zooey Deschanel are billed near the top, neither one has more than a brief cameo.

* IJustWantToBeSpecial: Bob desperately wishes he could be like Jesse and the gun slingers he grew up idolising is repeatedly reminded that he doesn't measure up to any of Them.

''The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford'' is a 2007 American western film, and the second film directed by Andrew Dominick, best known for ''{{Chopper}}''. It is based on the 1983 book by Ron Hansen of the same name. Punk rocker Nick Cave provides the soundtrack and appears in a minor role. The film tells the story of the final days of Jesse James (BradPitt) as he descends into aimless ennui and murderous paranoia, as well as the rise and fall of Robert Ford (Casey Affleck), a sycophantic fanboy of James's desperate to make a name for himself.

The film is a {{Deconstruction}} of the James myth, as a man normally portrayed in Hollywood as a romantic ''RobinHood''-esque AntiHero is here [[ShownTheirWork (much more accurately)]] shown as a cold, dangerous, paranoid, AxCrazy lunatic. Meanwhile, the normally vilified Robert Ford starts off with an unsettling hero-worship towards James, but gradually becomes disillusioned with - and eventually terrified of - the infamous outlaw.

* TheCameo: NickCave

* DawsonCasting: A strange case. Frank James, Jesse's older brother, is 38. It's implied that his life as a bandit has been hard on his looks, so maybe he's supposed to look about 50. He was played by Music/SamShepard, aged 64 at the time. The 32-year-old Casey Affleck also plays Bob from the age of 20, though the film follows him through the rest of his life. Brad Pitt is also nine years older than Jesse was at the time of his death.

* AllStarCast: BradPitt, Casey Affleck, SamRockwell, JeremyRenner, Paul Schneider, Garret Dillahunt, Music/SamShepard, [[Series/{{Weeds}} Mary Louise Parker]] and ZooeyDeschanel

* DawsonCasting: A strange case. Frank James, Jesse's older brother is 38. It's implied that his life as a bandit has been hard on his looks, so maybe he's supposed to look about 50. He was played by Music/SamShepard, aged 64 at the time. The 32-year-old Casey Affleck also plays Bob from the age of 20, though the film follows him through the rest of his life. Brad Pitt is also nine years older than Jesse was at the time of his death.

* BilingualBonus: A passenger says in Danish, "I don't speak English," when robbed on the train in the beginning. He does know to empty his pockets though.

** Whether Jesse James or Robert Ford is the "main character" of the film is debatable, considering the amount of screen time and thematic weight each character receives. Though Ford's life extends through the entire film, James is given more weight while he's around. In spite of whatever argument you might make, Brad Pitt's star power, combined with Jesse James', ensure that James is always considered the lead role, even by the Academy Awards.

* TheCastShowoff: She may have had her most of her role cut but Zooey Deschanel gets a song to compensate.

* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: A subversion. The aim of the movie is to contradict the bias that that the title implies.
* FateWorseThanDeath: For Robert at least before he finally dies. After killing Jesse he has to contend with the contempt of others and his reputation as a coward for 10 years before finally being murdered himself.

* AllStarCast: BradPitt, Casey Affleck, SamRockwell, JeremyRenner, Paul Schneider, Garret Dillahunt, SamShepard, [[Series/{{Weeds}} Mary Louise Parker]] and ZooeyDeschanel

* DawsonCasting: A strange case. Frank James, Jesse's older brother is 38. It's implied that his life as a bandit has been hard on his looks, so maybe he's supposed to look about 50. He was played by SamShepard, aged 64 at the time. The 32-year-old Casey Affleck also plays Bob from the age of 20, though the film follows him through the rest of his life. Brad Pitt is also nine years older than Jesse was at the time of his death.

* {{Yandere}}: Robert again, though more of a hero worship than HoYay.

* TheVillainSucksSong: Subverted by the in-universe example of "The Ballad of Jesse James," a real life song performed by Nick Cave in the film.

* PsychoticLover: Robert again, though more of a hero worship than HoYay.

* EndOfAnAge / TwilightOfTheOldWest: The film takes place in a world very much unlike the world in Robert Ford's dime novels. The James Gang has more or less fizzled out by the time the film begins; in RealLife the James Gang never recovered from the disastrous Northfield, Minnesota raid of 1876, after which everyone except for Frank and Jesse were dead or in prison.

* EndOfAnAge: End of TheWildWest. The film takes place in a world very much unlike the world in Robert Ford's dime novels. The James Gang has more or less fizzled out by the time the film begins; in RealLife the James Gang never recovered from the disastrous Northfield, Minnesota raid of 1876, after which everyone except for Frank and Jesse were dead or in prison.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: We never find out what happened with Robert's romance with Dorothy Evans in the film. She just vanishes after two scenes. We also never learn the fate of Dick Liddil. In real life, he was a KarmaHoudini who became a successful horse owner before dying at 48 of heart trouble. The book, however, details what happens to them.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: We never find out what happened with Robert's romance with Dorothy Evans. She just vanishes after two scenes. We also never learn the fate of Dick Liddil. In real life, he was a KarmaHoudini who became a successful horse owner before dying at 48 of heart trouble.
** The fates of both are described in the book (as are those of just about every character with even a bit of screen time, and some without). Dorothy [[spoiler: married unhappily and eventually committed suicide]].

** The fates of both are described in the book (as are those of just about every character with even a bit of screen time, and some without). Dorothy married unhappily and eventually committed suicide.

** The fates of both are described in the book. (As are those of just about every character with even a bit of screen time, and some without.)

''The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford'' is a 2007 American western film, and the second film directed by Andrew Dominick, best known for ''{{Chopper}}''. It is based on the 1983 book by Ron Hansen of the same name. Punk rocker Nick Cave provides the soundtrack and appears in a minor role. The film tells the story of the final days of Jesse James (BradPitt) as he descends into aimless ennui and murderous paranoia, as well as the rise and fall of Robert Ford (Casey Affleck), a sycophantic fanboy of James' desperate to make a name for himself.

* TheGunslinger: Everyone is too afraid to test James' skill with a pistol. Whenever you're around him, you're at his mercy.

* ShownTheirWork: Praised by historians and James' descendants as more accurate than any other portrayal of him.

* TheWildWest: A bit of a subversion. The film takes place in a world very much unlike the world in Robert Ford's dime novels. The James Gang has more or less fizzled out by the time the film begins. (In RealLife the James Gang never recovered from the disastrous Northfield, Minnesota raid of 1876, after which everyone except for Frank and Jesse were dead or in prison.)

* IJustWantToBeNormal: Jesse just wants to have a simple life with his wife and kids but he has been an outlaw for so long he simply doesn't know how.
* IJustWantToBeSpecial: Bob wants nothing more than to be like the gunslingers he grew up idolising. When he realizes that he cannot become the next Jesse James, he makes his mark by killing the man.

* BeingEvilSucks: Jesse James is weighed down by the burden of his evil actions. It's implied that he allows the Ford brothers to kill him.

The film is a {{Deconstruction}} of the James myth, as a man normally portrayed in Hollywood as a romantic ''RobinHood''-esque AntiHero is here [[ShownTheirWork (much more accurately)]] shown as a cold, dangerous, paranoid, AxCrazy lunatic. Meanwhile, the normally villified Robert Ford starts off with an unsettling hero-worship towards James, but gradually becomes disillusioned with - and eventually terrified of - the infamous outlaw.

Despite being a massive critical hit, the movie bombed at the box office. The film is long, scenes are intentionally drawn out, and it goes out of its way to debunk established popular HollywoodHistory, all of which ran against it. However, the music, cinematography, and especially the perfomances by the two leads (Affleck even got an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting) are held in high regard, and it made the Top Ten Movies of the Year of several critical lists (sometimes even topping them).

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: We never find out what happened with Robert's romance with Dorothy Evans. She just vanishes after two scenes. We also never learn the fate of Dick Liddil. In real life, he was a KarmaHoudini who became a successful horseowner before dying at 48 of heart trouble.