Billy the Kid (2013) - Once Upon a Time in a Western

Cody McCarver plays bounty hunter Leon Copper, who shows up in Dogma determined to bring in — dead or alive — four outlaws who have been terrorizing small towns in the New Mexico Territory.

Finding Robert Ally proves easy. He’s just waltzed into a Dogma saloon and killed the fastest gun in town. But no one’s quite certain when the other three bandits — Landon, Jarson and Parker — will show up.

Meanwhile, Copper is referred to the Bonney home as a perfect place to rest his head. Turns out the owner is a woman named Katherine, a long ago lover. And she has a young son named William who just happens to be Copper’s son.

William has secretly been taking shooting lessons from Frank Spellings, owner of the Dogma general store. But he promises his mom that he won’t tread into the path of danger. The three outlaws headed toward Dogma might just challenge that promise.

Cody McCarver as Leon Copper in Billy the Kid (2013)

Christopher Bowman as William Bonney in Billy the Kid (2013)

Reviews:

Director Christopher Forbes strikes again, serving up another Western only the most die-hard fans will want to watch. Christopher Bowman turns in an adequate performance as a young Billy the Kid, but he’s not the focus of the film. And most of the other performances are second-rate at best.

As for our four villains — well, they hardly seem very dangerous or dastardly. There’s a silly scene in which Landon, leader of the bunch, heads to a mining camp infirmary looking for new recruits. Hey, isn’t that where you’d go? Oh, and another in which the ghost of a dead partner shows up in an inexplicably large campfire.

The action scenes are pretty badly filmed, too.

Jerry Cheeser as Landon in Billy the Kid (2013)

Richard Kinsey as Parker in Billy the Kid (2013)

Directed by:
Christopher Forbes

Cast:
Cody McCarver … Leon Copper
Christopher Bowman … William Bonney
Kimberly Campbell … Katherine Bonney
Jerry Chesser … Landon
Jason Harbour … Jarson
Richard Kinsey … Parker
Billy Joe Royal … Robert Ally
Taylor-Grace Davis … Jane
Ronald Bumgardner … Frank Spellings
Dave Long … Marshal Jackson

Runtime: 80 min.

Song: “I Just Might Live Forever”
by Cody McCarver

Jason Harbour as Jarson in Billy the Kid (2013)

Billy Joe Royal as Robert Ally in Billy the Kid (2013)

Memorable lines:

Robert Ally: “Listen up. I’m Robert Ally, the first of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse. Dogma is now my town.” Within minutes, Ally is dead.

Robert Ally: “Are you a marshal? I hate marshals.”
Leon Copper: “I hate scum like you.”
Ally: “All right, that’s enough. Either you get out of here, or we’re going to war.”
Copper: “So how about you presenting me this war, and I’ll show you a lesson in death.”

Frank Spellings: “Are you robbing me?”
Parker: “Let’s say I’m doing you a favor. It’s better than being dead.”

Frank Spellings: “You alright, marshal?”
Marshal: “No, dammit, he shot me.”