 The studio's drastically cut release version, disowned by Peckinpah, was initially a failure with major critics and the viewing public.Although its depiction of the Kid as a roguish anarchist opposed to illegitimate law (as enforced by Garrett on behalf of a corrupt power structure) was suited to the temper of the times, it quickly left first-run theaters.Soon, however, reviews began to appear in smaller film magazines and journals in the United States and abroad that praised its artistry and breadth of vision.