Revealing mistake: In the opening sequence when Sundance shoots the gun belt off the card player, the film was cut to make the quick draw appear faster. You can see Butch's image jump across the screen in the background.
Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid (1969)
Ending / spoiler
Directed by: George Roy Hill
Starring: Robert Redford, Paul Newman, Katharine Ross, Strother Martin
Etta Place heads home after Butch and Sundance attempt to go straight. When the two arrive in town with some stolen houses, the Bolivian authorities are notified. Butch and Sundance are then caught in the middle of a shootout, with the Bolivian Police. After being wounded badly, Butch tells Sundance that if they survive the ordeal, they should travel to Australia. The Bolivian Army joins the fight. The film ends with Butch and Sundance running out into the open, and then the famous freeze frame shot just as they come out. Although multiple rifle and pistols bursts are heard, the fate of the two outlaws is left to the viewer.
Craig
More mistakes in Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid
[After blowing up an entire train car while only intending to blow open the door.]
Sundance: Think you used enough dynamite there, Butch?
Trivia: The turn-of-the-century-style film (which plays alongside the opening credits) was originally intended to appear in the bulk of the story. On Butch, Sundance and Etta's trip through New York, they view this film, which depicts Butch and Sundance's deaths. It upsets Etta so much, it contributes to her later decision to return home by herself. The segment had an annoyed Butch and Sundance watching the film from the back of the theater, whispering comments like, "We never did that". The change was made when it was decided to make the trip through New York into a musical interlude over still-photos. The main reason for the change: the studio had just finished work on a "period" set of a New York street (ca.1900) for the film Hello Dolly and did not want this expensive set appearing in a different film first.
More questions & answers from Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid
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Answer: It's to show how Butch and Etta care about each other as friends and that Etta is not just someone Butch has to put up with because she's Sundance's woman. A strong bond unites the three of them.
raywest