BOBBIE JO AND THE OUTLAW (Kino Lorber/Kino Cult)

Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw
Kino Lorber / Kino Cult

Video: 1080p High Definition
Audio: 2.0
Subtitles: English SDH

Buy it here from Diabolik

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, Staff Writer and Podcast Director

The Movie: Good

During her shift as a roller-waitress, aspiring singer Bobbie Jo (Lynda Carter) meets Lyle (Marjoe Gortner), the titular Outlaw who fancies himself a modern-day Billy the Kid. Soon the two, and a revolving door of pals, are riding off into the sunset as the law closes in on them. Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw isn't anything you haven't encountered before: lovers on the run in the American Southwest, wrapped up in all the intoxicating energy of new love; but that doesn't mean it isn't a damn fine example of Americana.

As a film, it's a perfect example of drive-in genre titillation, lead by two attractive and magnetic performers and featuring a small appearance from Gerrit Graham (a favorite character actor of mine from Phantom of the Paradise (1974) among other titles), as one of the many brief encounters the couple has during their inherently doomed fugitive odyssey. Rebellious, anti-authority narratives set against the naturally gorgeous landscapes of the west never fail to fascinate me as a fan of westerns. Beneath the surface, the film is equally as interesting.

Director Mark L. Lester was inspired by (deep breath) the Eagles song Desperado, films like Aloha, Bobby and Rose (1975), Bonnie and Clyde (1967), and Macon County Line (1974), and notably the Jay Robert Nash book Bloodletters and Badmen (specifically the Billy the Kid portion) to tell a cowboy tale in the then modern-day. Lester's girlfriend at the time, Merrie Lynn Ross, who plays Bobbie Jo's sister in the film, was instrumental in the casting of both Lynda Carter and Belinda Balaski (who plays Bobbie Jo's best friend), and securing financing for the film.

This has the distinction of being Lynda Carter's film debut, and premiering between the backdoor pilot Wonder Woman TV movie (The New Original Wonder Woman (1975)) and the series proper (1976-1979). It also, it should be noted, has become a point of some contention for Carter who claims she was coerced into her topless scenes here, though Lester and Ross each maintain that nudity was both par for the course at that time and clearly outlined in the script. Regardless, her performance is genuinely magnetic. She even performs a song! Marjoe Gortner is a fascinating individual in his own right, a former child evangelist--still the youngest ever, I believe--who abandoned that life for acting and is, like Carter, genuinely charismatic. Lyle may be kind of a scumbag, but you understand why anyone would saddle up with him.

As a sidebar, I recommend watching the 1972 documentary Marjoe, which is all about Gortner and is a fascinating look at evangelism as well as a tacit condemnation of the predatory nature of Capitalism.

At the risk of running long, one last point of interest: Jay Robert Nash, author of Bloodletters and Badmen, sued Mark Lester after the film's release, claiming that the film plagiarized the Billy the Kid section of his book. Though Lester said he assumed Billy the Kid's story to be public domain, I believe Nash won this suit, and as it turns out he had a habit of such lawsuits. Later, he claimed that an episode of the CBS show Simon & Simon (1981-1989) lifted concepts about John Dillinger which he felt he held copyright on (this case was dismissed) and later still he threatened to sue Wikipedia for a list of similar, though more vaguely defined and apparently never-disclosed, violations. Fascinating.

The Packaging: Average

As with all Kino releases, the caveat here is that "average" for them is slightly above average for a traditional blu-ray release. This disc comes with a cardboard slipcover featuring a still from the film of Lyle and Bobbie Jo embracing with the stolen car in the background, and a reversible cover with that image on one side and a painted illustration on the other of the couple lounging on a rock with Lyle topless cradling a rifle, and Bobbie Jo in a black bra.

The Video: Good

This may actually be the perfect visual representation of "drive-in movie". It's what I envision when I picture one. The film grain is present, but in a way that enhances the aura of the film. The colors are bright without feeling ostentatious and the balance of shadows is pretty much perfect. Of course, much of that is due to the work of director of photography Stanley Wright (his only feature) and cinematography from an uncredited Gil Hubbs (Enter the Dragon (1973), and the Joe Don Baker acupuncture classic Golden Needles (1974)).

Also, the visual appeal of the 1970s cannot be understated. Whether it's the clothing--I am currently obsessed with the belt buckle worn by Herb the leather salesman (character actor mainstay James Gammon) as seen in the image below--or the color palette, they're all beautifully on display. The mustard yellows, burnt siennas, robin's egg blues, & avocado greens giving way to the bronzes, blonde sand, blue skies, and verdant greens of the countryside, with cotton candy neon hues of the downtown strip in between; all eye-candy.

The disc's special features include the original theatrical trailed which really showcases the vibrancy and quality of this release, because the trailer still has examples of the damage and artifacts of unrestored film from this era, as well as demonstrating some of the minor muddiness of the original colors. It only makes the feature that much more impressive.

The Audio: Good

Seeing as this was an independently-financed genre picture, there is, as you might expect, a good deal of ADR dialogue on display here. If you're not familiar, ADR--automated dialogue replacement--is the act of re-recording dialogue to increase the clarity and quality of the film overall. Often, filming in nature necessitates ADR / dubbing due to environmental factors like natural echo or weather and wind. All of which is to say that, some ADR is less noticeable than others, but when it comes to genre films, it only adds to the charm for me. As they say: it's a feature, not a bug.

Noticeable ADR aside, the balance and mix of the sound worked very well here and I noticed no real issues with my three-channel soundbar. The dialogue was clear even when sharing space with gunfire or the rumble of engines.

As I mentioned above, Lynda Carter performs the song Are You Lonely Like Me (written by J.C. Crowley) around a campfire, and it's not only a lovely performance, but feels intimate and real. I should warn you however, tongue firmly in cheek, that I hope you enjoy the ballad Those City Lights (written by Barry De Vorzon, performed by Bobby Bare) as it not only plays over the disc menu, but, if I'm not mistaken, five separate times throughout the film. Talk about getting your money's worth.

The Special Features: Good

This is the sweet spot for me, special features-wise. Not too many to where it feels overwhelming, but not so few that you feel slighted. If you watch the film and want to learn more about it, there's plenty here to assist you, though some of it is a bit repetitive (for instance, director Mark L. Lester tells some of the same stories, with varying detail, in his interview as on his commentary track). I wasn't wild about the John Harrison commentary as it was more focused on Marjoe Gortner, but that was before I learned more about the man. Now I'm lowkey fascinated, so I imagine I'll be going back to it soon.

• Audio commentary with director Mark L. Lester
• Audio commentary with film historian John Harrison, author of Wildcat! The Films of Marjoe Gortner
• Interviews:
• Wanted: interview with director Mark L. Lester
• Gunslinger: interview with actress/producer Merrie Lynn Ross
• An Outlaw: interview with actress Belinda Balaski
• Radio Spots
• Theatrical Trailer

In Summary: Grab it on sale

Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw is perhaps the platonic ideal of a drive-in film, and one with many points of interest. The charisma of its leads, demonstrable by their discrete followings--one as a religious preacher, the other as freaking Wonder Woman!--makes the dizzy electricity of their relationship feel tangible, as they head towards their inevitable end through a world of colorful characters and adventures.

Journeyman genre director Mark L. Lester (Commando (1985), Class of 1984 (1982), Firestarter (1984)) knows all the boxes you want in a drive-in feature: sex, romance, drugs, danger, explosions, fast cars, and youthful rebellion. Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw has all that and more to spare. Get yourself a copy when you can, and try to stay on the right side of the law when you do, cowboy.