Stories like Jarrod Christman and Weston Grillo’s feature film Missouri Breaks: The Ballad of Missouri Bill are tales of the Old West and of lawmen fighting for justice in a time of lawlessness.
“Missouri” Bill (Jarrod Christman) lives a simple life with his wife, June (April Christman), in a remote cabin in the West. Having just returned from duty after the Civil War, Bill makes his living as the law in the local town. The problem is that the money is not there, as Bill wants to take June away to live a life of safety and security.
Like many Westerns, all Bill has to do is one last job. This “last job” is working for Smiley (Roley Schoonover) on a three-week cattle run. The problem is that one of the members of Smiley’s crew is a rogue named Shooter, who served with Bill during the war. June warns Bill that being around Shooter is going to spell disaster.
Lo and behold, time has not healed the tension between Bill and Shooter as Bill finds himself facedown in the river with a bullet wound, and Shooter kidnaps June. Now, Bill must confront the past in order to save his wife.
“…time has not healed the tension between Bill and Shooter as Bill finds himself facedown in the river with a bullet wound…”
First, I’ll just get this out of the way: Missouri Breaks: The Ballad of Missouri Bill is a low-budget indie Western, which accounts for most of the film’s shortcomings. Much of the story takes place on the open plains, around campfires, and very little time is spent on sets. Most of the backstory is told in exposition dropped throughout the first half of the film, which is usually an indication that its small budget meant much of the story could not have been shot.
What does come across in the film is Jarrod Christman and Weston Grillo’s desire to keep the Western alive, and if it has to be done at the indie level, so be it. What Missouri Breaks lacks in sets, it makes up for in horses and guns—in fact, everyone gets a horse, and everyone gets a gun. Christman and Grillo also maintain an air of mystery by keeping Shooter’s identity hidden throughout much of the film.
The film shines through its exploration of themes. Living in the West is a dangerous time. A horse is vital for travel and work, and a gun becomes a great equalizer in the face of danger. For Bill, the dream of safety for himself and June sometimes requires getting one’s hands dirty. No one gets away clean. The sins and demons of the past follow you, no matter how far you run. To exorcise them, you must confront them directly. It’s a calling of manhood, a time when being a man meant survival for you and your family.
Missouri Breaks: The Ballad of Missouri Bill is a gritty, low-budget indie Western that captures the essence of the old West with a raw, unpolished charm. Despite its limitations, Jarrod Christman and Weston Grillo deliver a story rich in classic Western themes of justice, survival, and confronting one’s past. Though it gets a bare recommendation, It’s a commendable effort to keep the spirit of the Western genre alive, proving that even in indie filmmaking, the allure of the frontier still holds strong.
"…The sins and demons of the past follow you, no matter how far you run."
