Richard Linklatter’s latest film, “The Newton Boys,” a western/gangster hybrid, is an exactingly made look at one of the most successful bank robbery teams from the period between World Wars. It engages mixed feelings of admiration for Linklatter’s filmmaking talent, and criticism for casting choices. Particularly puzzling is the choice of television E.R. star Julianna Margulies for the female lead. At times suspenseful, it attempts to be a more sober “Young Guns” for the ’90’s. Linklater reaches for the sky with this film, but the result is mixed. However, heartthrob Matthew McConaughey may still put the girls in the seats. By the way, the rock-n-roll commercial for this movie you may have seen on television has as much relation to the mood of the film as strip poker does to solitaire.
