Lonesome Dove Collection (Lonesome Dove/Streets of Laredo/Dead Man's Walk) (1989) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)LONESOME DOVE ~ This may be the greatest movie ever made. Both Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones give the performances of their careers as retired U.S. Marshals Gus McRae and Woodrow Call, and the rest of the star-studded cast shine, as well. The unique scenery of the film is absolutely breathtaking to behold. And the music . . . . . . . Basil Poledouris composes what may very well be the greatest film score of all time!! (In my opinion, the works of Mozart and Beethoven don't compare to this!) Director Simon Wincer went on to helm such fantastic Westerns as QUIGLEY DOWN UNDER, CROSSFIRE TRAIL, and MONTE WALSH. I could go on forever praising this gem of a film, but there are two other movies to review. So I'll sum it up in four words: sheer and utter perfection.
STREETS OF LAREDO ~ Though it can't possibly compare to it's predecessor, this makes for enjoyable Western fare. James Garner does a great job as Captain Call, though he can't quite fill in Tommy Lee Jones' shoes. The cast is above average here, too: Sam Shepard is awesome as Pee-Eye, and no matter how brief Randy Quaid's screen time, you can't take your eyes off him. However, I found Sissy Spacek to be whiney and quite annoying. I just recently found a similarity between this and the first film, plotwise: both update old, cliched Western plots (the cattle-drive in LONESOME DOVE and the bounty-hunter-gone-after-vicious-killer here) and update them with fine form. But this sequal doesn't do it nearly as well as the first. Oh, and that whole relationship between Call and that little girl was just weird and extremely out of place.
DEAD MAN'S WALK ~Here's an idea: make a prequal to the Emmy Award-winning LONESOME DOVE. While this may work on paper, it doesn't on film. Mainly because you'd have to find actors who could successfully portray younger versions of Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones. David Arquette and Johnny Lee Millar just can't do that. While their performances are decent, you just can't manage to firmly believe that these two boys are Gus McRae and Woodrow Call. And who the hell made the casting decision for the younger Clara (excellently played by Angelica Huston in the first film)? She ... like few actors I have ever had to watch.Funny, though; all the lead actors are sub-par, but the supporting cast rules; F. Murray Abraham, Brian Dennehy (who is killed off far, far too quickly), and Edward James Olmos included. Though the music in this movie is good, it feels out of place. But by far the worst thing about this film is the ending; the last twenty minutes may be the most godawful I have ever seen. It totally ruins the whole dramatic impact of the actual Dead Man's Walk scene that takes place before it. This scene is without a doubt the best part of the movie, and is one of the best, most powerful I've ever seen. They should've just ended the movie after this scene, right before that final twenty minutes or so. It would've been a much better movie.
In the end, it might be a good idea to just pick up a copy of LONESOME DOVE (be sure to buy the two-disc edition, which has far better picture quality than the single-disc flipper) rather than this entire boxed set. On the other hand, it looks great on your shelf, and comes with a free copy of the soundtrack to LONESOME DOVE.
LONESOME DOVE: * * * * *
STREETS OF LAREDO: * * * 1/2
DEAD MAN'S WALK: * * 1/2

Click Here to see more reviews about: Lonesome Dove Collection (Lonesome Dove/Streets of Laredo/Dead Man's Walk) (1989)

Lonesome Dove began life as a Larry McMurtry screenplay written for the big screen, with John Wayne, James Stewart, and Henry Fonda in mind for the roles of aging Texas Rangers Gus McCrae, Woodrow Call, and Jake Spoon. That too-good-to-be-true project never happened, and McMurtry shelvedthe story for some years and then revived it as a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. The latter was subsequently adapted for the glorious 1989 televisionminiseries starring Robert Duvall as Gus, one of the most endearing andheroic figures to come out of Old West mythology, Tommy Lee Jones as theequally noble but taciturn Woodrow, and Robert Urich as their fallen comrade,Jake. Set in the late 19th century in a sleepy Texas town, we meet Gus andWoodrow long after they put their days of settling the West behind them. Busy as cattle ranchers yet spiritually idle, the two head out on one last great adventure to set down new stakes in Montana, a journey that is fraught with terribledangers, reunions with old loves, and unexpected collisions with destiny. An exemplary and moving Western drama with magnificent performances from Duvalland Jones (and great support from Anjelica Huston, Rick Schroder, DannyGlover, and Diane Lane), "Lonesome Dove" paved the way for threesequels, two of which are in this collection. "Streets of Laredo"features James Garner this time as Woodrow Call, who is hired by a railroad company to track down a young criminal and comes face to face with his ownpast. The other is "Dead Man's Walk", a powerful prequel in which wemeet Gus (David Arquette) and Woodrow (Jonny Lee Miller) as young men and Rangers recruits, facing their first challenges together. The jewel in thecrown of this collection is the original film, but the other titles arehighly enjoyable and bring a sense of sweeping narrative to theproceedings. "--Tom Keogh"

Click here for more information about Lonesome Dove Collection (Lonesome Dove/Streets of Laredo/Dead Man's Walk) (1989)

Open Range (2003) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)For those viewers who fondly remember, and miss, Robert Duvall's role as Augustus McCrae in the 1989 TV miniseries LONESOME DOVE, take heart. Duvall is back in the saddle again as "Boss" Spearman in OPEN RANGE. It's been way too long.
The lead role in this western actually belongs to Kevin Costner, who plays Spearman's trail partner and employee, Charlie Waite. Boss is a cattleman that practices free-range grazing, i.e. driving his herd from place to place, only staying long enough for the animals to deplete the available food supply. But it's 1882, ranchers are beginning to fence in the West, and freegrazers are an endangered species. So, its no surprise when Charlie and Boss are ordered to take their beeves and get out of Dodge, so to speak, by big time rancher Baxter (Michael Gambon), who also owns the local town and its sheriff. Waite and Spearman are soon backed into a corner when the latter's two other hired hands, Mose (Abraham Benrubi) and Button (Diego Luna), run seriously afoul of Baxter's thugs.
It would be hard to choose between the better performance - Costner or Duvall - both playing characters so strong, self-reliant and silent that neither knows the other's full name. And they've been riding the West together for ten years! Nor does Boss know Charlie's violent history, which included being a Civil War raider, and then a hired gun much like the ones now working for Baxter. When Charlie falls in love with Sue (Annette Bening), the spinster sister of the local sawbones, his guilt over his rough-edged past is a self-imposed handicap that Sue, who sees Waite's inner goodness, must overcome.
Moviegoers accustomed to a steady diet of mindless, FX-laden action thrillers may find the first three-quarters of OPEN RANGE slow going. It's called "character and plot development", an intelligent change of pace. And when the final shoot-out comes, it's perhaps the best ever filmed. While most such western confrontations seem like a choreographed ballet, this one shows them for what they were: relatively short, extremely violent, chaotic, and lacking in fancy gunplay and sharpshooting finesse.
Big Screen westerns are such a rarity nowadays that it's hard to compare this one with any other in recent memory. Though perhaps not as memorable as DANCES WITH WOLVES, this Old West morality play is certainly the best since UNFORGIVEN. Admittedly, we've seen similar plots before: the small homesteader/Big Ranching feud in the classic SHANE, and Big Mining vs. the small prospector in PALE RIDER, Clint Eastwood's transparent re-scripting of the former. However, the acting, cinematography and costuming of OPEN RANGE are excellent. Duvall surely deserves a Best Supporting Actor nomination, and the production as a whole may merit a Best Picture nod. My only complaint lies with the editing, which left in one too many leave-takings between Charlie and Sue, the last being completely superfluous. That said, however, this is a five-star tribute to loyalty, rugged individualism, integrity, and simply doing what's right. I think, sometimes, that Hollywood has forgotten what those qualities are all about.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Open Range (2003)

Packed with epic action, OPEN RANGE is a powerfully gripping story that's never been told until now, and stars Academy Award(R) winners Robert Duvall (1983 Best Actor, TENDER MERCIES) and Kevin Costner (1991 Best Director, DANCES WITH WOLVES), and Academy Award(R) nominee Annette Bening (1999 Best Actress, AMERICAN BEAUTY). A group of free grazers, four men trying to escape their past, are driving cattle and living off the land on the open range -- a place where nature makes the only laws. When a ruthless, evil rancher tries to run them out of town, the men's peaceful existence takes a tumultuous turn and ends in the grittiest, most explosive gunfight on film as two men battle a town for honor, justice, and a way of life that's quickly disappearing.

Get 30% OFF

Click here for more information about Open Range (2003)

Australia (2008) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I love Howard Hawks' films...Bringing Up Baby, His Girl Friday, Red River, and Rio Bravo are amazing pieces of entertainment. As I was watching Australia, the new Baz Luhrmann movie with Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman, I kept thinking...man, Baz must really love Hawks' movies, too.
As evidenced by the films above, the mismatched couple who fight and fight until they realize they're perfect for each other (see Much Ado About Nothing, Taming of the Shrew, and Moonlighting as other examples of the form) and the group of underestimated misfits who come together to fight evil are two big elements used again and again by Hawks. Throw in a bit of John Ford's The Searchers and its hard look at racism leading to inhuman deeds and mix well and you have...Australia.
The problem modern audiences may have with Luhrmann's new movie is it's very, very earnest. This is straight ahead epic storytelling with its heart on its sleeve and hat and boots with never a wink to the crowd in the theater to say "ain't these people quaint". You either buy in or you don't. If you do, like I did, you're in for a hell of a ride.
This, I feel, is the flip-side to The Dark Knight. Good and evil are trapped in something akin to a battle and an embrace in Nolan's Gotham City. You root for Batman, but he does stuff that is on the wrong side of freedom and civil rights. The Joker is pure crazy, but he's the most mesmerizing character in the film. In Australia, there are good guys and bad guys and you are either really good or twirl your mustache evil. The main villain actually may be a bit too two-dimensional in that aspect, but it didn't hurt my overall enjoyment.
Why? Well, epic melodrama is hard to pull off...I'm talking about the real stuff here. The recent BBC production of Bleak House is a great example. There are very good and very, very bad people in that story, but the acting is so fantastic you rarely if ever catch yourself rolling your eyes (like whenever I've watched Smallville...see: bad epic melodrama). Kidman and Jackman sell their characters...the displaced Englishwoman and the rough-hewn "Drover". They are thrown together just to, initially it seems, thwart a nasty cattle baron from monopolizing the beef industry in the country. But the other big story, the main one in fact, centers around Australia's "lost generation". These were Aboriginal children who were fathered by white men who didn't claim them. They were taken by the government, the mothers had no rights, and handed over to the church to be taught to "act white" and then work in the servant class. Nullah, played by the fantastic child actor Brandon Walters, is one of these "creamies" who has been hidden on the ranch now owned by Lady Sarah Ashley (Kidman). Lady Ashley discovers what is going on, is horrified by the law, and works to keep him hidden as well. Why the Drover cares so much about Nullah becomes clear later in the film (no, it's not what you think...that would be too easy) and Jackman's experience with stage and musical work does him proud here. He can do earnest better than almost any actor alive when he needs to and his later use of the f-word (the only curse I can remember from the entire film) hits so hard, in just the right emotional moment, that it kills. Russell Crowe was originally cast as the Drover but backed out. If Crowe had done the film, and I have liked him in other things...the Napoleon-era British navy film that I can't remember the name of right now, it would not have worked. Crowe never loses that bit of edge and the Drover, at one point, really has to fully break down and become completely vulnerable. Jackman shines at that point.
Anyway...a warning, the movie is long 2 hours and 40something minutes, but I didn't realize that until I had left the theater. I saw it alone...I was out of town at a pediatrics meeting...and that's a good thing. I didn't have to hide from Holly the few times the movie hit me a bit too hard and do that cough-throat clearing thing we dudes do to cover up a stray tear.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Australia (2008)

A romantic action-adventure epic set in Australia prior to World War II that centers on an English aristocrat (Nicole Kidman) who inherits a large ranch. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle drover (Hugh Jackman) to protect her ranch. Together they experience four life-altering years, a love affair and the bombing of Darwin during World War II.
Audio: English, French & Spanish: 5.1 Dolby Surround
Language: Dubbed & Subtitled: English, French & Spanish
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen: 2.35:1

Get 43% OFF

Click here for more information about Australia (2008)