This is a revisionist look about the known story of the West's greatest bandit. Contemporary-style Western with nice performances and fine direction by Christopher Cain who creates some good action scenes. The Kid is well played ,though sometimes overacting , by Emilio Estevez, he plays as a likable, sympathetic,attractive young and favourite with girls. Colorful and great cinematography by Dean Cundey. Modern and unfitting musical score by Anthony Marinelli. The motion picture will like to Western fans. Followed by a sequel titled 'Young Guns II'(Geoff Murphy,1990) with similar players and concerning about Billy and his band heading toward the Old Mexico and pursued by a posse.

The picture is based partially on actual events. These deeds are the following: Billy(Emilio Estevez) became a cowboy in Lincoln County(New Mexico)for cattleman Tunstall(Terence Stamp) along with a young group(Kiefer Sutherland,Charlie Sheen,Lou Diamond Phillips,Dermot Mulroney,Casey Siemaszko). Tunstall was supported by lawyer McSween(Terry O'Quinn). But Tunstall was murdered by rival cattleman Murphy(Jack Palance) and started the Lincoln County War. Billy seeks revenge for his death and he converted an outlaw and nasty gunfighter with a price on his head. Bonney and his gang pull off a hot pursuit against the enemies. Billy, his band and McSween were besieged but he went out firing his gun and made his escape. The Kid was caught and convicted of killing and sentenced to be hanged ; though shackled foot and hand , he managed to getaway from prison by shooting dead the deputies guarding him. Pat Garret(Patrick Wayne),a former friend, was elected sheriff and set off in pursuit to capture him and on 1881 tracked at Fort Sumner and there shot him dead by surprise. Legend says that Billy murdered 21 men in his 21 years of life but is really thought to be much less.

The main selling-points of Young Guns are the incredibly compelling story of Billy the Kid and its very talented cast- actors like Kiefer Sutherland, Terrence Stamp and Jack Palance promises a lot. While it is a long way from flawless, this viewer did find themselves liking Young Guns a good deal.

Young Guns does have its problems. The hard-rock soundtrack is incredibly jarring, can sound cheap and doesn't fit at all within the film, a lot of the film goes at a fast pace and the music sounded somewhat pedestrian at times. The storytelling does become a little less involving and quite ridiculous in the last third, where it also loses the momentum that the rest of the film has. Pacing is also a touch chaotic in places, and while he does what he can Charlie Sheen is badly wasted, his underwritten role doing little for his talents.

However, Young Guns is a good-looking film, with handsome scenery, evocative costumes and some clever, stylish filming. The dialogue is very witty and funny, the film blisters in the action with a tense and exciting if rather far-fetched somewhat climactic shootout and while it does butcher history the story is compelling and goes at a breakneck pace. While it entertain in the comedy, excites in the action and rouses as a Western, there are some nice dramatic moments, Lou Diamond Phillips' scene where he tells of the slaughter of his family is the film's most heartfelt scene. The relationship between Billy and Doc is also very well done, providing a lot of heart and funny moments. . Christopher Cain's direction is crisp and efficient, his decision to do the action in first-person comes over more than effectively.

Very good cast too, there have been mixed reactions to the performances quality, for me it was one of Young Guns' biggest strengths. There were initial reservations as to whether Emilio Estevez was too modern and too nice for Billy, but he is cool, fun and likable with a touch of sassiness in the role, and is closer in age to most other actors who have portrayed Billy. Kiefer Sutherland has one of the most strongest written characters in the film, and is remarkably poetic in this film, a pleasant change from the usual roles he takes on. Lou Diamond Phillips does overact quite broadly in places, but does mostly act with real soul and poignancy, especially in the aforementioned scene.

Casey Siemaszko is also very affecting, when he overcomes his fear it came over very emotionally. Dermont Mulroney has some good intensity without going overboard, and he is very amusing as well. In lesser roles, Terrence Stamp is a sympathetically and touchingly played and tragic father-type of figure, and Jack Palance is perfectly cast as Murphy (a rather one-dimensional role but Palance does much with it, and is genuinely menacing without trying too hard. Brian Keith is memorable in his short appearance.

Overall, not a flawless film in any shape or form and won't work for everybody but on its own terms it was a very entertaining film. 7/10 Bethany Cox

This retelling of the Billy the Kid saga here and in the succeeding film, Young Guns II, is yet another fictionalized account of the doings in Lincoln County, New Mexico 1878-1879. One fine day we may get an accurate picture of the events.

Here though several young actors some of whom were labeled the Brat Pack and who were coming up roughly around the same time in the Middle Eighties got an opportunity to play some real life western characters. The names of the characters these guys play are real even though the story is highly fictionalized to the extent that not all of them died during the period both films show.

One reason I do like Young Guns is that it does show what is probably the most realistic portrayal of Billy the Kid. Forget Robert Taylor, Johnny Mack Brown, Paul Newman, when you see Emilio Estevez on the screen you are seeing the real Billy, basically a punk who was skilled enough to back up his brag.

Estevez rides with Kiefer Sutherland, Lou Diamond Phillips, Dermot Mulroney, Casey Siemaszko, and brother Charlie Sheen. They are the 'regulators' who ride for John Tunstall the British rancher played here by Terrence Stamp.

It was the relationship between Tunstall and his young regulators that villain L.G. Murphy (Jack Palance) touches on. It's certainly led to speculation that these guys were some kind of a gay harem for Stamp. I certainly am not going to comment one way or the other because we just don't know. What's more cause for the animosity is that old country resentment of the English rulers.

What Young Guns essentially does is take the plot of the John Wayne classic Chisum and tell it from the Tunstall/Regulators point of view. Chisum himself is eliminated from the story, though he appears in Young Guns, II played briefly by James Coburn. So if you've seen that, you know what happens.

The young guys are great and Stamp and Palance provide a good pair of antagonists. Brian Keith is around for a memorable performance as Buckshot Roberts, a well known bounty hunter of the period.

Young Guns is a well done western with good editing at a pace that never drags. It's a modern classic not to be missed.