American Outlaws

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American Outlaws

PG-13

2001

1h 33m

Western

Action

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Popcornmeter

13%

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101 Reviews

67%

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25,000+ Ratings

After the Civil War ends, Confederate soldiers Frank (Gabriel Macht) and Jesse James (Colin Farrell) return home with the three Younger brothers to learn that railroad baron Thaddeus Rains (Harris Yulin) is trying to drive Missouri citizens out of their homes. When both families resist, the James boys' mother (Kathy Bates) is murdered. Furious, the two groups of brothers team up for a series of robberies designed to hurt the railroad. Detective Allan Pinkerton (Timothy Dalton) pursues them.

Critics Consensus

With corny dialogue, revisionist history, anachronistic music, and a generically attractive cast, American Outlaws is a sanitized, teenybopper version of Jesse James.

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

12/21/2010

3/5

Silly western revisits Jesse James.

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Jamie Russell

BBC.com

12/17/2001

2/5

The kind of film that will have you throwing your popcorn at the screen in disgust.

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Rex Reed

Observer

08/31/2001

A big yawn that only reminds us why movie westerns are six feet under and not likely to make a comeback.

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Ken Hanke

Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

06/16/2013

2/5

Let's cast a lot of cute boys as the James/Younger gang. In between hold-ups, they can bicker about who's the cutest and, oh yeah, they can take their shirts off a lot.

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Kit Bowen

Hollywood.com

11/20/2008

2/5

Mark Halverson

Sacramento News & Review

08/07/2008

1/5

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JD H.

@RT34169225 Jun 2

Could see the competition between this movie and YoungGuns. I believe this was Colin's spring board into an amazing career. One of my top 10.

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thiago s

@Thiagostone 05/02/2025

Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, o elenco é fraco, mas ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, a história é fraca, os personagens sao fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes para fazer o filme ser bom.

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Ian R

@RT23899272 04/08/2025

What a load of codswallop. Colin Farrell sucked. Who cast Caan in this? He looks deformed. Genuinely terrible film. Don't waste your time.

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emilie T

@RT58722931 09/20/2024

It's a fun and action-packed Western with a good cast. Colin Farrell does a great job as Jesse James, and the movie has a nice sense of humor. I spent a really good time watching it.

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Farah R

@Farah 10/06/2023

American Outlaws is more like a music video than a movie. The acting is corny, the story is weak, and the whole thing is wrapped in cliches.

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Brian D

@RT50268444 07/10/2023

I was laughing hysterically and then realized it wasn't a comedy and then I laughed even harder. Who wrote this movie?? This movie was a bad excuse for the actors to take their shirts off. I didn't know they had pompadours in the 1871.

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Les Mayfield

Director

Colin Farrell

Jesse James

Scott Caan

Cole Younger

Ali Larter

Zee Mimms

Gabriel Macht

Frank James

Gregory Smith

Jim Younger

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Synopsis

After the Civil War ends, Confederate soldiers Frank (Gabriel Macht) and Jesse James (Colin Farrell) return home with the three Younger brothers to learn that railroad baron Thaddeus Rains (Harris Yulin) is trying to drive Missouri citizens out of their homes. When both families resist, the James boys' mother (Kathy Bates) is murdered. Furious, the two groups of brothers team up for a series of robberies designed to hurt the railroad. Detective Allan Pinkerton (Timothy Dalton) pursues them.

Director: Les Mayfield
Producer: James G. Robinson, Bill Gerber
Screenwriter: Roderick Taylor, John Rogers
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co: Morgan Creek Productions
Rating: PG-13 (Western Violence)
Genre: Western, Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 17, 2001, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 1, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $13.3M
Runtime: 1h 33m
Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo, Dolby A, SDDS, DTS, Surround, Dolby Digital, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)