The Highwaymen poster

The Highwaymen (2019)

Film · 2h 13m · Rated R

Crime, Drama, Thriller

Two former Texas Rangers hunt notorious outlaws, confronting a public that romanticizes their violent crime spree.

Suspenseful and earnest. A full-attention watch at a measured pace. Emotionally it is heavy. Based on true events.

Streaming on Netflix.

The Highwaymen parents guide

What we could confirm fits an R: strong violence and some strong language.

Scare
Not scary
Jump scares
None noted
Gore
Light gore
Some blood or injury, briefly.
Violence
Strong violence
Violence is frequent or intense.
Sex and nudity
None flagged
It is rated R, so treat our zero as unconfirmed.
Language
Moderate
Some strong profanity, a few f-words.

How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.

Three questions

Is The Highwaymen scary?
No. The Highwaymen is not a scary watch.
How gory is The Highwaymen?
Light gore and strong violence.
What is The Highwaymen rated, and is it OK for kids?
Rated R, and it earns it: strong violence and some strong language. Not one for kids.

What is The Highwaymen about?

In 1934, Frank Hamer and Manny Gault, two former Texas Rangers, are commissioned to put an end to the wave of vicious crimes perpetrated by Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, a notorious duo of infamous robbers and cold-blooded killers who nevertheless are worshiped by the public.

Does it have a happy ending? (spoiler-safe)

Bittersweet. It earns its ending, but not everyone gets what they want.

Cast and crew

Directed byJohn Lee Hancock
StarringKevin Costner, Woody Harrelson, Kathy Bates, John Carroll Lynch, Thomas Mann, Dean Denton

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The Highwaymen is on our True crime and Thriller on Netflix lists.

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Uses the TMDB API; not endorsed or certified by TMDB. Intensity, content, tone and pace tags are CouchRot's own.