Deadwood '76 tells the half-baked tale of young Billy May, a Civil War vet who in three days time is mistaken for Billy the kid, buys and sells a gold mine, captured by Indians, reunited with his estranged (and strange) Confederate father, avenges the rape of his new girlfriend, forced by the town of Deadwood to square off with none other than Wild Bill Hickock, and hung by an angry mob!This was the final film of Arch Hall Jr., who is fondly remembered by fans for starring in half a dozen fairly entertaining drive-in movies of the early to mid-sixties, his best being the titular character in the taut thriller, The Sadist.Despite some bad acting by mostly bit players, this is entertaining at times and it tries hard to create a tale of western mythology but it's done in by a very (and I mean VERY) unsatisfying ending.I would have preferred that the end have Billy's father and his Indian followers massacre the town in response to Billy's death, as it was stated earlier in the film that it was his plan to do just that as part of the elder May's plan to resurrect the Confederacy!Co-stars Robert Dixon (Bill Hickock) and John "Bud" Cardos (Hawk Russell the rapist cowboy) were reunited along with cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond five years later in another drive-in western, Five Bloody Graves.

Deadwood '76 is a 1965 low budget western equivalent of the typical 1970s martial arts film. Redolent with cliché from start to finish, this well-written, well-directed (by James Landis), and mostly badly acted film follows the adventures of a young many (Arch Hall Jr) who has been mistaken for Billy the Kid because of his youth, name (Billy May) and gunfighting talent.May is an interesting character who is, unfortunately, uninterestingly portrayed by the son of the screenwriter. In a typical early '70s western flourish, May befriends a band of local Native Americans who have been displaced and otherwise abused by the townfolk and who are plotting vengeance against the union army. He also becomes a would-be prospector, and has a number of bad run-ins with a local gang lead by Sam Bass. May, the ultimate outsider, eventually gets swept up in the degrading local society and its circus-of-death atmosphere, and his developing young life is gravely threatened.Recommended for die-hard Western fans. Not recommended for others.

I could easily not have watched this movie and been fine. Take it or leave it. Cheezy western flick with pretty stereotypical characters. More like a Disney movie than anything else. It is about a guy, who everyone thinks is Billy The Kid, who can shoot really fast. People bet on him and force him to duel with other guys like Wild Bill Hiccock. He makes friends with some Natives because he is also trying to mine for gold. He finds out that his father is an Indian Chief. But he doesn't care and goes on shooting people. It's a pretty boring story.Not recommended unless you love Arch Hall Jr. and shots of his manly cleft chin. Good movie to fall asleep to.

Hall and son provide us this time with an earnest effort towards legitimate film making. Hall Jr. is the youngster mistaken for Billy the Kid-and shows glimpses(as he did in the "Sadist")of real acting ability. Unfortunately, this one comes along about a decade too late to ride the crest of popularity that low-budget westerns once enjoyed. Sadly(?) this was Arch Hall Jr.'s screen Swan Song.