Marlon Brando and His All-Time Greatest Gross-Outs Band

Ever wanted to see Marlon Brando in a dress and wig? How about naked in the tub? Or maybe sashaying around in a fringy jacket? Well, you've found your movie.

Despite really gross and disturbing moments with Brando splayed across the screen, and most critics agreeing that this movie is sludge, I reckon it's a super flick. It has an interesting and unique plot, several stars and wonderful acting, and a superb anticlimactic ending.

The story is this: Jack Nicholson is part of a group of outlaws who buy a ranch to cover up their horse-thieving. The big rancher in the area is a creep who hires a "regulator" (Brando) to chase out all the cattle thieves, and then can't get rid of him. Meanwhile, Brando wipes out Nicholson's whole crew, Nicholson decides to turn respectable-like and tries to get down with the big rancher's daughter while getting back at the Regulator, and the big rancher pulls a real slick one at the end.

Brando's character is funny and eccentric at first, and, in a masterful acting feat, slowly and obscurely becomes more and more threatening until he is absolutely reprehensible. One minute he's incredibly smart but slightly weird, and then suddenly you want him dead. He affects an Irish brogue at first, and it takes a while before you notice he hasn't been using it for the last 30 minutes. The bounty hunter is by far the most complex character in the film. And Lord, wait until you see some of the costuming for him.

Nicholson is essentially the bad guy gone good, and the big rancher is the bad guy who is scared of other bad guys, and the rancher's daughter is the sort who says "I know Daddy's bad, but he's my Daddy," so basically a real sissy chick, even though the ending proves she's a bit more than she seems. The acting is all high quality, and the script is satirical, sharp, and edgy.

The beautiful Missouri River in Montana provides a glorious backdrop for The Missouri Breaks, and the camera pans around the scenery regularly. Nicholson has several really cool tough-guy lines, and the ending is like having a tray of ice cubes dumped down your shirt.

I've read a lot of bad stuff about this movie. People are disconcerted and annoyed by Brando's strangeness, irritated with the lack of a satisfying conclusion, and for some reason expect not to "get it" because someone once called The Missouri Breaks a cult movie. Leonard Maltin called it a bomb, and some guy on amazon.com called it a fiasco. I suppose if you're the type to base your opinion of a film on whether Bruce Willis is in it, then The Missouri Breaks sucks.
The characters and Brando's acting make this movie, and I think it's an excellent way to spend three hours.