Legends are born of folklore, myth, and a little bit of magic—these are the opening words of the amateur movie “Lost Treasure of Jesse James,” which was released early this year on Jan. 4, 2021. This film, starring Qailen Chambers, Megan Sims and Riley Sullivan, is a family-friends action-adventure movie that follows a group of Missouri kids as they try to solve a 100-year-old mystery in order to save their town. Throughout the movie, they are chased through ancient caves by greedy treasure hunters who want the lost treasure for themselves. The film is directed by Adam Boster.

The movie begins with a scene from the past, Jesse James and his posse riding up to one of the posse members’ fathers’ house. The member asks his father for the will, visibly having been cut out of it. The father, of course, refuses. The group then proceeds to burn the house down. This is where we get our first glimpse of the amateur level of the movie—the fire is edited poorly, and the sound effects don’t fit quite right.

The lines are also delivered quite flatly. It isn’t horrible, but it could have been executed better. Next, we get thrown forward in time to the present day, where we are introduced to the first of our main characters: Jackson. We see him looking at a newly unearthed pistol belonging to Jesse James. He seems quite interested in the story behind it.

In terms of the cast, Riley Sullivan was a good choice for Doniphan. He plays an adventurous young teen very well, especially considering this seems to be his first role. I hope to see him act more in the future.

Megan Sims plays Hope, the only girl in the group. She’s also the shortest, but that doesn’t stop her from being adventurous and brave. While some of her lines are delivered flatly, I think she can improve as an actress. She embodies the spunky attitude of Hope very well.

Qailen Chambers plays Jackson Ford, the third member of the main group who is being forced to move away. Chambers embodies his character very well, really showing the sadness the character would feel when being faced with the imminent moving away from home. All in all, I feel like these children can all improve in the future and go on to act in bigger productions.

The “Lost Treasure of Jesse James” is a visibly botched movie, although quite interesting to watch with your family. It is based on a legend, which I found very interesting. The writing could have been better, along with the special effects; therefore I give it a 6/10. Not a must-watch, but not something to entirely avoid if you enjoy action movies.