Gordon Campbell: On The Fall And Rise Of Pat Garrett And Billy The Kid

Good to see that this year, the New Zealand film societies are celebrating what would have been Sam Peckinpah’s 100th birthday with what they are calling “Peckinpah’s West” – a tribute consisting of screenings of The Wild Bunch and Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. That’s where the good part begins and ends. Screening something with the title “Peckinpah’s West” but without including Ride The High Country (the director’s breakthrough film and the swan song of Randolph Scott) seems like a missed opportunity.