Frank and Jesse (also known as Frank & Jesse) is a 1994 American biographical Western film written and directed by Robert Boris and starring Rob Lowe as Jesse James and Bill Paxton as Frank James. Based on the story of Jesse James, the film focuses more on myths of The James Brothers than the real history. It originally aired on HBO.

Frank and Jesse
Original Theatrical Poster
Directed byRobert Boris
Written byRobert Boris
Produced byCassian Elwes
Elliott Kastner
StarringRob Lowe
Bill Paxton
Randy Travis
Dana Wheeler-Nicholson
Luke Askew
Alexis Arquette
William Atherton
CinematographyWalt Lloyd
Music byMark McKenzie
Distributed byTrimark
Release date
  • October 28, 1994 (1994-10-28)
Running time
105 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$ 50,004

Synopsis

edit

Following the American Civil War, the two James brothers, along with the Younger brothers - Cole Younger and Bob Younger, Bob Ford and Charles Ford, Clell Miller, and Arch Clements, begin to feel oppressed by the Chicago railroad investors. They set off on a trail of bank robberies, train heists, and stage holdups while evading the dogged pursuit of Allan Pinkerton and his detective agency.

Cast

edit

Soundtrack

edit
Frank and Jesse
Soundtrack album by
Released1995
Recorded1995
GenreSoundtrack
LabelIntrada Records

The music score was composed by Mark McKenzie and released by Intrada Records.[2]

  • "Frank and Jesse Suite"
  • "Main Title"
  • "Family Moments"
  • "Gentle Spirits"
  • "Tragedy At Home"
  • "Meet the James Gang"
  • "Marauding"
  • "Daring Escape"
  • "Frank's Despair"
  • "The Peace Ranch"
  • "Mountain Top Dance"
  • "The Lord is Callin' You"
  • "Northfield Battle"
  • "I Play Not Marches ..."
  • "Goodbye Jesse"
  • "Justice Will Be Served"

Production

edit

The film is the second collaboration of director/writer Robert Boris with Rob Lowe after Oxford Blues in 1984.[3]

Reception

edit

A negative review in the French magazine Impact magazine wrote, "Made worse by appallingly banal images, mediocre acting and a “vast” soundtrack heard a thousand times before, Robert Boris's film sinks further, vacillating between an epic depiction of the James brothers' legend and a more down-to-earth vision. Between the two, between the celebration of high ideals and sordid violence, it sinks. It sometimes sinks into the ridiculous when the desрегаdоѕ, whose faces the whole Far West knows, authorities included, persist in wearing bags over their heads: were Rob Lowe and Bill Paxton no longer available when the director realized his film was missing a few sequences? Probably. He therefore substituted a few random strangers who call each other by the characters' first names."[4]

References

edit
  1. ^ Frank and Jesse, 1995, Cast and Crew, Internet Movie Database [accessed] April 30, 2011.
  2. ^ Frank & Jesse, 1995, Music Score, IMDB [accessed] April 30, 2011.
  3. ^ Barnes, Guy (February 25, 1994). "James Gang spotted in Arkansas". Variety. Retrieved August 28, 2024.
  4. ^ impact magazine (July 30, 2024). Impact 067.
edit