From the great Walter Hill (Extreme Prejudice) – Jesse James and his gang of outlaws ride again in this extraordinary western that pulsates with hard-driving action and electrifying drama. Four sets of actor brothers – David Carradine, Keith Carradine and Robert Carradine; James Keach and Stacy Keach; Randy Quaid and Dennis Quaid; Christopher Guest and Nicholas Guest – each depict real-life siblings in this emotionally charged portrayal of the Old West’s legendary bandits. The notorious James-Younger gang is the most famous group of outlaws in the country, robbing banks, trains and stagecoaches with a sense of daring that makes them folk heroes throughout the land. But when the mighty Pinkerton detective agency swears to track them down, these criminals must face an awesome enemy that will stop at nothing to see them behind bars…or dead! Only through the strength of their loyalty and blood ties can the outlaws hope to survive the brutal pursuits, unexpected betrayals and blistering showdowns that mark the end of their dangerous ride.
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Video Quality
Kino Classics presents The Long Riders with a mostly lovely 1080p transfer sourced from a 4K restoration that was conducted back in 2017. Unlike quite a few recent “Special Edition” releases of older titles from their catalog with new encodes and special features, this is identical to the Blu-Ray disc released in 2017, only now it comes with a slipcover for its first printing. This is not a dealbreaker, though, as that release was a significant improvement over the dated MGM Blu-Ray from 2011 which certainly left room for improvement. While we would have loved to have seen a 4K UHD Blu-Ray upgrade, the label has stated that this would not financially make sense for them.
The detail and clarity that we get on this Blu-Ray is very impressive with a standout amount of natural film grain intact and resolved without issue. The film appears to be lacking any obvious signs of dirt and damage for a very striking viewing experience that captures the sumptuous landscapes with care. The one area where this disc stumbles is in some pesky digital anomalies such as compression artifacts and intermittent banding. The film showcases some rich, natural colors within the landscapes complemented with some earthy costumes that capture the complexity of the hues. Black levels are pretty solid with fine stability throughout. Kino Classics has ensured this one has stayed in print with a good release.
Audio Quality
The film has been given a DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio presentation that presents this soundscape in an authentic manner. The track balances vocals with the environmental sounds with distinct clarity. There are only brief moments when the track shows any anomalies such as popping, dropouts, or other signs of wear and tear. Dialogue comes through clearly throughout without being overwhelmed by any competing elements. The Ry Cooder score maintains an ideal fidelity with no big swings in quality. Kino Classics has provided a perfectly good audio presentation for this one. The disc also comes with optional English (SDH) subtitles.
Special Features
- Audio Commentary: Film Historians Howard S. Berger, Steve Mitchell, and Nathaniel Thompson provide a very informative commentary track in which they discuss where this fits into the career of Walter Hill, the details of the production, the background of the performers, the thematic details of the story, how this brings something new to an often-told story, and more. This is a very enlightening track that is well worth a listen.
- Interview with Stars Keith Carradine and Robert Carradine: A 16-minute piece with the brothers is provided in which they reflect on the development and creation of The Long Riders, their relationship with Walter Hill, the appeal of telling this story, the healthy competition between the brothers, amusing moments on set, the film’s legacy, and more.
- Interview with Stars Stacy Keach and James Keach: A 16-minute interview with the brothers in which they reflect on how they got the movie made, the long development process, working with Walter Hill, the conflicts over scenes that were cut, and more. Like the Carradine brothers, it is a joy to see them bouncing off of one another to piece together the truth of their experiences.
- Interview with Star Randy Quaid: A 20-minute interview with one-half of the Quaid brothers in which he discusses his love of Westerns, the themes of the film, memories of working with Walter Hill, disastrous experiences with a horse at the premiere, his admiration for his co-stars, and more. It is great to hear Quaid being so sincere at this point in his life.
- Interview with Nicholas Guest: A 13-minute interview with one-half of the Guest brothers in which he discusses his love of Westerns, the research he put into his character, memories of working with Walter Hill, the chemistry of the ensemble, the film’s legacy, and more.
- Interview with Director Walter Hill: A 21-minute interview with the director in which he reflects on the challenges of getting the movie created, why he loves Westerns, what he wanted to accomplish with this story, working with the performers, elements he wishes they could have fleshed out, and more.
- Interview with Composer Ry Cooder: A 15-minute interview with the composer in which he discusses getting brought onto this project, what it was like working with Walter Hill, being relatively early in his career, the inspirations for certain themes, and more.
- Interview with Producer Tim Zinnemann: An eight-minute interview with the producer in which he reflects on learning under his father, the struggle to get the film made, memories of the performers, getting a script in order, and more.
- Outlaw Brothers – The Making of The Long Riders: A terrific 64-minute documentary is provided in which the cast and creative team dive into the creation of this film from multiple angles.
- The Northfield Minnesota Raid – Anatomy of a Scene: A 16-minute breakdown of one of the key sequences in the film.
- Slow Motion – Walter Hill on Sam Peckinpah: A seven-minute piece in which director Walter Hill discusses the influence of legendary filmmaker Sam Peckinpah on his career.
- Trailers: This disc provides the two-and-a-half-minute trailer for The Long Riders. There are also trailers provided for Death Rides A Horse, The Mercenary, Valdez Is Coming, and The Hunting Party.
Final Thoughts
The Long Riders is a rollicking tale that finds director Walter Hill wielding his typical level of excellence over the project. The decision to have so many real-life siblings in one movie may seem like a stunt, but it works really well to build a sense of authenticity between the performers. The movie keeps a good pace and never takes any uninteresting diversions in the plot. This is simply a fun and impactful cinematic outing. This Blu-Ray release from Kino Classics offers up a solid A/V presentation and a robust selection of special features. This is a great film for fans of the ensemble or Westerns in general. Recommended
The Long Riders (Special Edition) is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Kino Classics has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.

Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.