Open Range (B+ or 3.5/4 stars)
Two cattlemen set out to get revenge on the men who killed & wounded their workers in Kevin Costner's old-style epic western, 'Open Range'. This film is not quite on the level of Costner's sprawling 1990 Academy Award-winning Dances with Wolves, but it's still an exceedingly well acted, quality movie to watch. This tale is set in Montana, 1882, and "Boss" Spearman (Robert Duvall) & Charley Waite (Costner) have been fellow cattlemen for almost a decade; currently moving their cattle/horse herds with the help of gentle giant, Mose Harrison (Abraham Benrubu), & 16 yr. old orphan, Button (Diego Luna). Without land to call their own, they ambulate throughout the 'open range', allowing their livestock to free graze in the vacant fields of the prairie.
This doesn't sit well with one, Denton Baxter (Michael Gambon), a tyrannical Irish immigrant who runs a small frontier town with the help of his hired gunslinger, Butler (Kim Coates) & the corrupt local law, Sheriff Poole (James Russo). When Mose fails to return from Denton Baxter's town after having gone there for supplies, Boss & Charley find out that he has been jailed & beaten to a pulp by Baxter's henchmen. With the medical assistance of a doctor (Dean McDermott) & his pretty assistant, Sue Barlow (Annette Bening), they fix-up Mose & look to leave town. But matters get worse when they realize that Baxter intends to take and/or re-distribute Boss' herds. Just as Boss & Charley confront Baxter's thugs, others severely wound Button, kill poor Moses, & even their dog {grrr}. After leaving Button with Sue, Boss & Charley - with help from a few locals like old-timer, Percy (Michael Jeter) - seek swift & brutal revenge on those who have done them wrong.
Aside from some quibbles {an iffy plot point, some bloat}, this is a truly great western in the vein of those revered ones from the 1940s-60s. Kevin Costner & others might call this a 'revisionist western' due to its protagonists not necessarily being the most morally upright heroes; they have flaws, faults, & pasts that haunt them. The main gunfight is also exceptionally unpleasant. But those aspects aside, 'Open Range' really is your typical old-school western ... and there's nothing wrong with that in the slightest. James Munro's sweeping landscape cinematography is outstanding. The stellar screenplay is based on a novel by Lauran Paine. The period production values are solid. And I enjoyed Michael Kamen's rousing music score.
Robert Duvall is a delight as the tough, sly, but vulnerable cattleman looking to settle down. Kevin Costner lends his laconic acting style to Charley, but he surprises with moments of real fire when he's hell bent on wiping out the baddies. It's wonderful just WATCHING Duvall & Costner -- two masters of fervent passivity in their acting styles; watching the screws turn is riveting. I also liked Costner's fumbling, yet sweet chemistry with Annette Bening's Sue. Bening, herself, is excellent {when isn't she?}. Sue may be presented as little more than love interest/medical asst., but Bening fortifies the role with sensitivity, as well as effrontery & steely nerve. Michael Jeter steals scene as Percy. And Michael Gambon makes for a deliciously wicked villain.
By 2003, Westerns seemed a bit out of fashion. But Costner knows how to make films of this genre and, this movie because decent box office success; proving that there is still an audience out there for quality motion pictures for the days of old. Even the violent climactic shootout won't deter squeamish viewers because its choreography is executed in such a stirring way. 'Open Range' is a gorgeously atmospheric, well cast, involving, & beautifully crafted film made with integrity, a lack of gimmicks & a dash of revisionism. This movie dares to be open-hearted & sincere about its characters and the elegiac nature about the end of the Old West. Sure, there's a melancholy tone, but so, too, is there room for vindication & hope.
This doesn't sit well with one, Denton Baxter (Michael Gambon), a tyrannical Irish immigrant who runs a small frontier town with the help of his hired gunslinger, Butler (Kim Coates) & the corrupt local law, Sheriff Poole (James Russo). When Mose fails to return from Denton Baxter's town after having gone there for supplies, Boss & Charley find out that he has been jailed & beaten to a pulp by Baxter's henchmen. With the medical assistance of a doctor (Dean McDermott) & his pretty assistant, Sue Barlow (Annette Bening), they fix-up Mose & look to leave town. But matters get worse when they realize that Baxter intends to take and/or re-distribute Boss' herds. Just as Boss & Charley confront Baxter's thugs, others severely wound Button, kill poor Moses, & even their dog {grrr}. After leaving Button with Sue, Boss & Charley - with help from a few locals like old-timer, Percy (Michael Jeter) - seek swift & brutal revenge on those who have done them wrong.
Aside from some quibbles {an iffy plot point, some bloat}, this is a truly great western in the vein of those revered ones from the 1940s-60s. Kevin Costner & others might call this a 'revisionist western' due to its protagonists not necessarily being the most morally upright heroes; they have flaws, faults, & pasts that haunt them. The main gunfight is also exceptionally unpleasant. But those aspects aside, 'Open Range' really is your typical old-school western ... and there's nothing wrong with that in the slightest. James Munro's sweeping landscape cinematography is outstanding. The stellar screenplay is based on a novel by Lauran Paine. The period production values are solid. And I enjoyed Michael Kamen's rousing music score.
Robert Duvall is a delight as the tough, sly, but vulnerable cattleman looking to settle down. Kevin Costner lends his laconic acting style to Charley, but he surprises with moments of real fire when he's hell bent on wiping out the baddies. It's wonderful just WATCHING Duvall & Costner -- two masters of fervent passivity in their acting styles; watching the screws turn is riveting. I also liked Costner's fumbling, yet sweet chemistry with Annette Bening's Sue. Bening, herself, is excellent {when isn't she?}. Sue may be presented as little more than love interest/medical asst., but Bening fortifies the role with sensitivity, as well as effrontery & steely nerve. Michael Jeter steals scene as Percy. And Michael Gambon makes for a deliciously wicked villain.
By 2003, Westerns seemed a bit out of fashion. But Costner knows how to make films of this genre and, this movie because decent box office success; proving that there is still an audience out there for quality motion pictures for the days of old. Even the violent climactic shootout won't deter squeamish viewers because its choreography is executed in such a stirring way. 'Open Range' is a gorgeously atmospheric, well cast, involving, & beautifully crafted film made with integrity, a lack of gimmicks & a dash of revisionism. This movie dares to be open-hearted & sincere about its characters and the elegiac nature about the end of the Old West. Sure, there's a melancholy tone, but so, too, is there room for vindication & hope.