"Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" Film Analysis

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid stars Robert Redford (Sundance), Paul Newman (Butch), and Katharine Ross (Etta). The film begins with the Butch and Sundance’s gang holding up train robberies in the American frontier, also known as the Wild West because it was often outside of the boundaries of the law. Later, the film moves to Bolivia where Butch and Sundance finally meet their tragic end because their luck runs out. John Foreman was the only producer noted in the opening credits.

The beginning of the story line grabs the viewer because it creates enormous tension as a bank robbery, a shootout, a knife fight, and a train robbery all occur in the first 10 minutes or so. Each of these events tells a little bit of the story about the characters and the setting. When Butch reviews the bank’s security measures, it is suggested that he will eventually rob it. Next, the opening sequence introduces Sundance, who is shown to be an expert gun fighter.

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When they return to Butch’s gang, Butch is challenged in a knife fight by a rival. Next, the gang is shown robbing a train. Not only are these events in the story line exciting moments of action, they also tell important aspects of the characters and setting. Butch and Sundance are funny, with sarcasm their primary mode of humor. The gang is shown to be notorious, generating newspaper clippings about their heists. Butch and Sundance are frustrated with their opportunities in the West, and they are considering Bolivia as their next destination.

The use of natural light was quite compelling because it was used in two primary ways throughout the film. First, natural light was used when the sun was at a high position to provide detail about the natural elements of the frontier. The high position of the light detailed splashing water from creeks and rivers, light on aspen trees, and the colors of the desert terrain. This use of light allowed the splendor of natural beauty to be revealed. Second, natural light was used at sunrise, sunset, dusk or dawn periods to provide landscape shots in which Butch and Sundance, and their horses, could be shown in silhouette. Backlighting during sunrise, sunset, dusk, or dawn allowed the sun to enter from the background of the shot. Meanwhile, the use of interior lighting often clashed with the harsh natural light outside, revealing the indoors to be places of human darkness. Perhaps this use of light was intended to show that Butch and Sundance preferred the light of freedom rather than the trappings of civilization.

The dialog was not always properly heard because of the rapid delivery of Butch and Sundance. They also used vernacular and slang phrases that might not be familiar to all audiences. However, the dialogue was typically shown with medium- to close-up shots of the speakers, and their nonverbal cues were quite adequate in conveying the emotional tone and content of the dialogue.

The camera shots, as noted, often used close-up shots to convey the nonverbal cues that signaled emotional content by Newman and Redford. Both of the actors have very expressive eyes, so these shots allowed all of the content of their facial expressions to be conveyed, supporting dialogue or even communicating content that did not require any dialogue. For example, the camera stays at a close-up shot of Sundance through the entire card game scene in which he is accused of cheating and must decide how to get out of the situation. His eyes alone communicate the range of his emotional progress through the scene. He progresses through confidence, disgust, fear, relief, and back to confidence, mostly through facial expression rather than dialogue.

Ultimately, the film provides satisfaction even though it tells a very simple and stereotypical story about outlaws in the Wild West. This satisfaction is the result of the convergence of innovative cinematic techniques and brilliant acting, which are discussed further in the following section.

Conclusions

In Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid, a somewhat stereotypical story of outlaws in the Wild West is made captivating through innovative cinematic techniques, particularly camera work, editing, lighting, sound, and music, yet also due to the brilliant performances of the main actors. Evidence of all of these elements comes in the opening sequence. The sequence uses editing and special effects to transform the image of a bank into a close-up shot of Paul Newman, who plays Butch Cassidy. Editing later in the sequence details the numerous security measures the bank uses to protect its money: a buzzer to signal the alarm, a giant vault with a large steel door, gates over the cashiers, heavy brick walls, and an armed guard. As Butch’s eyes flitter gleefully around the bank, it is evident without the need for any dialogue that these measures will not be enough to deter him, indicating his relentless and conniving nature. This scene illustrates how cinematic techniques and acting performances converge to make a stereotypical story about the Wild West still compelling. But there is much more to this film that captivates the viewer. The montage scenes, which use a peculiar form of a cappella vocal music, allow the passage of time to be conveyed in a manner that uses the full power of cinematic techniques to influence emotion and tell a story. Even though the film is now nearly 50 years old, these innovations make the film quite captivating even for younger audiences.