--- title: "Wild Wild West" year: 1999 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/wild-wild-west" fi1m_score: 34 critics_score: 31 critics_reviews: 13 published: "2026-09-16T14:43:09.512118+00:00" updated: "2026-09-16T14:43:23.932779+00:00" region: "US" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Wild Wild West (1999) Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld · 1h 46m · MPA PG-13 · Action, Adventure, Comedy, Science Fiction, Western **Fi1m score: 34** · Critics 31 from 13 reviews *In a sentence:* Will Smith and Kevin Kline, surrounded by inventions and short of anything funny to say > Barry Sonnenfeld’s gadget-heavy western gives Will Smith and Kevin Kline little comic rhythm and too few good lines. Bo Welch’s inventive production design provides something to admire, but this is a poor use of capable people. ## Synopsis Capt. James West (Will Smith) and U.S. Marshal Artemus Gordon (Kevin Kline) form an uneasy partnership in a West crowded with science-fiction machinery. Their opponent is Dr. Arliss Loveless (Kenneth Branagh), whose elaborate inventions complicate the business of stopping him. Rita Escobar (Salma Hayek Pinault) is also caught up in the adventure, with General ‘Bloodbath’ McGrath (Ted Levine) among its military figures and Kevin Kline also playing President Grant. West and Gordon must work together against Loveless, despite having little natural inclination to make each other’s lives easier. ## Review Barry Sonnenfeld’s *Wild Wild West* is a poor comedy with some enjoyable machinery. Putting science-fiction gadgets into a western gives it plenty to play with, and we can see the appeal of inventions that nobody expects us to take seriously. The trouble is getting people to be funny around them. Here the job falls to Will Smith and Kevin Kline. Will Smith plays Capt. James West, with Kevin Kline as U.S. Marshal Artemus Gordon, and both seem equipped for a lighter, quicker film. Will Smith retains enough charm to make individual moments bearable, but the performances never settle into an enjoyable rhythm together. We were bored by their exchanges: the one-liners are weak, and the partnership gives us little reason to wait for the next one. Much of the comedy depends on putting these two men together. The screenplay is credited to S.S. Wilson, Peter S. Seaman, Jeffrey Price and Brent Maddock, with a story by Jim Thomas and John Thomas. That is no explanation of what went wrong, but it does make the shortage of usable jokes harder to accept. The smut is particularly wearying because it asks for a laugh before doing anything funny. Jim Miller’s editing cannot create an easy conversational pace from material that keeps struggling to reach a punchline. Bo Welch’s production design is the strongest reason to keep watching. The gadgets are elaborate and peculiar, and the film is worth an occasional pause simply to inspect them. Michael Ballhaus’s cinematography gives the machinery a handsome finish, making it possible to enjoy looking at a scene that otherwise holds little interest. The problem comes when displaying another device takes priority over giving the actors something worth doing, which happens often enough to wear down our appreciation of the work. Kenneth Branagh has a better time as Dr. Arliss Loveless, offering a broad villainous performance that at least belongs in this extravagant setting. His excess occasionally supplies the silliness that the central partnership lacks. Elmer Bernstein’s score gives the action a welcome sense of occasion, though it cannot make a cumbersome sequence feel nimble. As the effects take over, the music becomes another element urging us to enjoy something that has not earned the enthusiasm. Against the basic demands of a buddy comedy, the failure is simple: spending time with the pair should be part of the pleasure. Barry Sonnenfeld managed that in [*Men in Black*](https://film.one/film/men-in-black), which makes the strained company here especially disappointing. There is nothing inherently unworkable about the mixture of genres, nor any need for the gadgets to obey sensible rules. What we need is some pleasure in watching West and Gordon deal with each other, and the film keeps giving us another invention instead. At 106 minutes, this ought to be a manageable diversion, yet the extended climax makes it feel longer. Most critics have little patience with it, and we share their frustration, while allowing some credit for the ingenuity of the design. A fondness for elaborate mechanical nonsense might sustain interest, but we would not recommend it for the comedy or the company. If the gadgets are enough, be prepared to wait through the jokes. *Fi1m score 34, published 16 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics find Wild Wild West a laboured action comedy whose gadgets overwhelm a weak script. The reviews repeatedly describe spectacle taking precedence over storytelling, with jokes that fail to land and elaborate effects that do little to sustain interest. Will Smith’s charisma attracts the most consistent praise, even from critics who dislike the film. There is also some admiration for the production design and its eccentric retro science-fiction machinery, though little agreement that these compensate for the writing. The differences are largely a matter of how much pleasure survives the muddle: none of the reviews is positive, and only two are mixed. Sight and Sound finds some compensation in the visual style and Smith’s likeability, while Radio Times still sees good-natured fun in the gadgetry. Harsher reviews find the spectacle exhausting or boring, and several identify the lack of chemistry between Smith and Kevin Kline as a central failure. ### Reviews we read (13) - **Empire**, Andrew Collins (55/100, inferred): The critic finds the film a flashy but uneven gadget-driven comedy that falls short of its Men in Black ambitions, with dazzling effects and contraptions undermined by a weak script and uneven performances. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/wild-wild-west-review/) - **Sight and Sound**, Andrew O'Hehir (55/100, inferred): The film gets by on sheer visual style and Will Smith's likeability but feels laboured due to a weak script with six credited writers. Production design successfully captures the quirky Jules Verne sci-fi aesthetic of the original TV series. [Read](http://old.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/review/206) - **Radio Times**, Alan Jones (2/5): Superficial and predictable with bloated special effects, the film remains good-natured fun thanks to Will Smith's charisma and inventive gadgetry. The smutty script, below-average one-liners and endlessly drawn-out climax are offset by the gizmos. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-7n10q7/wild-wild-west/) - **The New York Times**, Janet Maslin (40/100, inferred): The movie is a big, lavish production with no there there, ruled by ghoulish special effects that leave storytelling arbitrary. Will Smith's presence is noted as its greatest asset amid the flimsiness. [Read](https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/film/063099west-film-review.html) - **The New Yorker**, David Denby (35/100, inferred): The hugely expensive action-spoof has all the wrong kind of energy and works over the audience rather than entertaining it. Will Smith stands out as a movie star, but the film is unlikely to be a major commercial success. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1999/07/12/overheated) - **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (30/100, inferred): The film gets its proportions wrong, sacrificing playfulness and humor for a relentless display of ho-hum gadgets. Capable co-stars Smith and Kline are underutilized in this top-heavy production. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-jun-30-ca-51432-story.html) - **Variety**, Todd McCarthy (25/100, inferred): Talented people stub their toes in this elaborately expensive misfire that misses the bull's eye as entertainment. The breezy style cannot overcome the cumbersome mechanics and unfocused script. [Read](https://variety.com/1999/film/reviews/wild-wild-west-1117742950/) - **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw (20/100, inferred): The critic's verdict is that the film is a terrible, abject mess without the heart to be a western, the style to be a tech-thriller or enough humour to be a comedy. They single out the complete lack of on-screen chemistry between Will Smith and Kevin Kline for complaint, while noting some ingenious and elaborate design reminiscent of Terry Gilliam and the Coen brothers. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/1999/aug/13/1) - **Time Out**, TJ (20/100, inferred): This is a monument to vacuous chequebook cinema with a pitiful script that produces absolutely no laughs and a profound fog of boredom. It is unrecognisable as the work of the director who made Men in Black. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/wild-wild-west-1) - **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (15/100, inferred): The film is a comedy dead zone where scenes flop without delivering laughs or substance. The critic highlights the lack of chemistry between leads Will Smith and Kevin Kline and the pointless extravagance of its special effects. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/wild-wild-west-1999) - **Eye for Film**, Angus Wolfe Murray (30/100, inferred): The critic views the film as an over-the-top retro sci-fi spoof where everything is excessive, with explosive gags, grandiose effects, and gothic performances that fail to cohere. Smith and Kline lack chemistry as the leads, while Branagh overacts enjoyably as the villain and Sonnenfeld prioritizes effects over character and story. [Read](http://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/wild-wild-west-film-review-by-angus-wolfe-murray) - **Den of Geek**, Joe George (20/100, inferred): The film fails spectacularly as a buddy movie, with mismatched leads and forced direction from Sonnenfeld. It became a punchline due to its bloated budget, negative reception, and lasting embarrassment for those involved, though it delivered on producer Jon Peters' giant spider obsession. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/wild-wild-west-jon-peters-giant-spider/) - **The Ringer**, Rob Harvilla (10/100, inferred): The critic calls the film a notorious summer-movie catastrophe and one of the worst big-tentpole releases of its era, remembered mainly for its bomb status and Razzie awards. He singles out the poor chemistry between the leads and the giant mechanical spider as emblematic of its failures. [Read](https://www.theringer.com/2019/06/28/movies/wild-wild-west-will-smith-20th-anniversary) ## Details - **Director:** Barry Sonnenfeld - **Director:** Barry Sonnenfeld - **Screenplay:** S.S. Wilson, Brent Maddock, Jeffrey Price, Peter S. Seaman - **Story:** Jim Thomas, John Thomas - **Cinematography:** Michael Ballhaus - **Editor:** Jim Miller - **Music:** Elmer Bernstein - **Production design:** Bo Welch - **Costume design:** Deborah L. Scott - **Producer:** Jon Peters, Barry Sonnenfeld - **Cast:** Will Smith as Capt. James West; Kevin Kline as U.S. Marshal Artemus Gordon / President Grant; Kenneth Branagh as Dr. Arliss Loveless; Salma Hayek Pinault as Rita Escobar; M. Emmet Walsh as Coleman; Ted Levine as General 'Bloodbath' McGrath; Frederique van der Wal as Amazonia; Musetta Vander as Munitia - **Runtime:** 1h 46m - **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13 - **Release (the US):** 30 June 1999 - **Genres:** Action, Adventure, Comedy, Science Fiction, Western - **Budget:** $170 million - **Box office:** $222 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSRtRrPBTT8 ## Where to watch in the US - Paramount+: streaming, hd - Amazon Prime Video: add-on - The Roku Channel: add-on, hd - Hulu: add-on, hd - Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, hd - Amazon Prime Video: buy $9.99, hd *Checked 2026-09-16.* Also available in: AT, AU, BE, BR, CA, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, ES, FI, FR, GB, HK, ID, IE, IT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PH, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, TH, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## If you liked this - *The Great Race* (1965): Elaborate contraptions and broad performances in a comedy that enjoys being ridiculous. - *The Rocketeer* (1991): Period adventure with a flying gadget and people worth worrying about. - *The Adventures of Baron Munchausen* (1988): Extravagant inventions serve a fantasy with more wit and stranger ambitions. - *The Good, the Bad, the Weird* (2008): A Korean western whose competing personalities keep the elaborate action moving. - *Castle in the Sky* (1986): Flying machinery and an appetite for adventure, with tenderness beneath the engineering. --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/wild-wild-west