Okay Appaloosa

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Ed Harris's Appaloosa is just okay. No, that sounds dimissive. It's a decent...too negative again. It's a solid piece of work -- how's that? But dammit, the words "not half bad" keep creeping into my head, which sounds, I realize, like damnation with faint praise. I don't mean to put it down; I was never in serious pain. But ten minutes in I knew this was no Open Range, which in my book (and the books of many others) is the finest, best-written and most believably recreated western since Unforgiven.

I would put Appaloosa on the level of 3:10 to Yuma, more or less. In fact, I would call it a tiny bit better than that James Mangold western. There are no gay gunslingers (i.e., psychos wearing high-style leather waistcoats with buttons in the back) with makeup dirt caked onto their face. And there are no excessive fetishistic shootouts in which 89 guys get killed. It's got a nice modest feel to it. And it's nicely shot, very well acted (particularly by Harris, Viggo Mortensen and bad-guy Jeremy Irons) and "engaging" as far as it goes.

But it's basically a low-key buddy movie, and as such goes in for charm and humor too much for my taste. No offense but I don't want to be "entertained" when I'm watching a western -- I want to feel it, believe it, smell the horseshit, feel the saddle ache in my ass and sense the wind on my face. Plus it doesn't have a resounding theme (or not one that I could identify). The theme, such as it is, is basically "women come and go, and even when they come you can't trust them. Your buddy watching your back is all that really matters in the end."

It's fine, it moves along, etc. I can imagine some people going to this thing and loving it. The crowd I saw it with in the Cumberland was laughing a good deal. Well, from time to time. But should you laugh at the jokes in a western? This isn't Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. It doesn't have that dynamic or the visual stylishens or the movie-star panache. It's Harris and Mortensen, after all. I wish Irons could have played a good guy. He speaks with his English accent, thank God.

I have to quit again for a 5:30 pm screening upstairs. O'Horten, I'm thinking. And then I'll head downtown for the public showing of The Burning Plain, and then a chat with director-writer Guillermo Arriaga (who's leaving town tomorrow for some reason) and then the Burn After Reading party.

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on September 5, 2008 at 1:46 PM

comment #1

actionman says ...

Open Range was excellent but The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is light years ahead of that film, and in my opinoin, even better than Unforgiven. Not putting down that film either -- Unforgiven is fantastic.

But hey -- if you're saying that Appaloosa is on par with 3:10 to Yuma that means it'll be a lot of fun and very entertaining.

It's just cool that there are westerns still getting made. I love 'em.

Posted by actionman at September 5, 2008 2:52 PM

comment #2

Luke Y. Thompson says ...

Sounds fairly standard for a movie directed by an actor -- lots of his famous friends in it, and they sit around doing character bits rather than forcing the action, right?

As long as it's better than Dwight Yoakam's "South of Heaven, West of Hell."

Posted by Luke Y. Thompson at September 5, 2008 2:56 PM

comment #3

markj says ...

I agree with actionman, Jesse James was an astonishing piece of work, certainly far superior to No Country For Old Men. As usual the Oscar goes to the wrong candidate. Open Range was terrific too. Apparently Costner is planning a new western, can't come soon enough.

Posted by markj at September 5, 2008 3:05 PM

comment #4

markj says ...

Oh, and i'll see anything Harris does. His performance in The Abyss was outstanding, and really took that movie to another level.

Posted by markj at September 5, 2008 3:09 PM

comment #5

Richardson says ...

3:10 to Yuma was the worst western since 'Unforgiven'.

That may not be fair, since I didn't see the Dwight Yoakam movie, but goddamn, Yuma was a piece of shit. Every movie Mangold makes tries so hard, but everything he does comes off as a third generation copy of something that might not have even been that great to start with, but was at least original once.

Posted by Richardson at September 5, 2008 3:26 PM

comment #6

p.Vice says ...

I don't think I'll be able to suspend my disbelief that Ed Harris wouldn't put a bullet into Renee Zellweger at first sight, much less let her act in his movie.

Posted by p.Vice at September 5, 2008 3:34 PM

comment #7

Rodrigo says ...

I love "Open Range." I watch it over and over again as a perennial favorite. But, really...? "Best-written"? Nothing about the "Open Range" screenplay is realistic or believable, least of all the atrocious, "classical" dialogue and close behind that, the stiff-plank acting from a talented cast. The movie is gorgeous and certainly very enjoyable, but "best-written," even well-written? No.

Posted by Rodrigo at September 5, 2008 3:46 PM

comment #8

Monument says ...

RIchardson, the Dwight Yoakam movie makes 3:10 look like an absolute masterpiece, and then some...it's that bad.

Posted by Monument at September 5, 2008 3:47 PM

comment #9

Richardson says ...

re: Open Range - Rodrigo, I agree with you about the script, but I think the acting is pretty solid. And it looks amazing. Other than 'Jesse James', it's got to be the best western since 'Unforgiven', but that's not really saying much.

Mon - I believe you, even though I love Yoakam as an actor.

Posted by Richardson at September 5, 2008 3:49 PM

comment #10

JapAdapters says ...

Thank you, Richardson!

I saw 3:10 to Yuma expecting at least a fun movie and was flabbergasted at how bad it was. Anyone who compares it to, or mentions it in the same sentence, as UNFORGIVEN loses all credibility.

Liked OPEN RANGE quite a bit and I just now ordered JESSE JAMES on blu ray after being reminded on this thread, but UNFORGIVEN might be in my top five all time. At least once a year I put it in to watch the great scenes and watch the whole thing, because every scene is fantastic.

Posted by JapAdapters at September 5, 2008 4:13 PM

comment #11

MickTravis says ...

Thanks to everyone who said what I was thinking: Mangold's 3:10 to Yuma was full retard.

"Assassination of Jesse James" was one of my favorite but it was slightly tainted once I saw "There Will Be Blood."

"Blood" showed me one could make a film heavily steeped in the influence of Malick, but that it could also be a personal and individual statement bearing the stamp of the person who made it.

Don't get me wrong -- I love "Assassination" -- but let's face it. It's as much about its love for "Days of Heaven" as it is the story of Jesse James.

Posted by MickTravis at September 5, 2008 4:25 PM

comment #12

gruver1 says ...

Wells to acitonman: I was going to mention The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford but I thought better of it because I don't finally consider that film to be a real "western." It doesn't really wear the genre stripes on its sleeve. It's a Terrence Malicky, time-travel, faded deguerrotype thing that happens to take place mostly in the open spaces of 1870s Missouri and is, yes, about guys on horses with guns and so on, but it's a little too arty -- too painterly, too pictorially distinguished, too finely atmospheric -- to be lumped in with all the other "oaters." It's like Days of Heaven -- would you call that a western? Takes place in Texas, guys on horses, wheat farming, beautiful open vistas. But it's not one.

Posted by gruver1 at September 5, 2008 4:29 PM

comment #13

The Winchester says ...

I throw my hat in for The Proposition. That movie made me smell the horseshit and feel the saddle ache on my ass. and a giant spear through my upper chest.

Posted by The Winchester at September 5, 2008 4:34 PM

comment #14

bmcintire says ...

I just received my Blu-Ray copy of THE PROPOSITION in the mail today. Only $10.95 from Amazon.com for frigging Blu-Ray! (but it looks like the post-street price went up to $13.95) Most excited to watch this over the weekend.

Also, I've had a copy of UNFORGIVEN that has stayed shrink-wrapped on my shelves for almost six years now. I know I'll watch it again someday, but nothing so far has prompted me to do so. I guess whenever I have picked it up, visions of MILLION DOLLAR BABY and MYSTIC RIVER have made me put it back.

Posted by bmcintire at September 5, 2008 4:48 PM

comment #15

Edward says ...

I'm looking forward to Appaloosa. You can't go wrong with Ed Harris, Viggo Mortensen and Jeremy Irons, based on a book by Robert B. Parker.

I may be one of the few people who doesn't care that much for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. The Wild Bunch deals with similar themes and is the far better film. Butch Cassidy has two great actors playing buddies, it's watchable and fun, but that's about it.

Posted by Edward at September 5, 2008 4:55 PM

comment #16

jjgittes says ...

Open Range isn't that good - it's decent but there's nothing "all-time" about it.

Dead Man and The Proposition are significantly better films. Unforgiven is a masterpiece.

Posted by jjgittes at September 5, 2008 5:24 PM

comment #17

sumo-pop says ...

I've been running my mouth about Open Range for years. The scene before the big shootout where Costner explains to Duvall the hows and whys of human behavior when your life is on the line and how it relates to the next 15 minutes of their lives is an absolute classic.

Posted by sumo-pop at September 5, 2008 5:33 PM

comment #18

nemo says ...

You haven't seen a true piece of shit until you've seen Dwight Yoakam's South of Heaven West of Hell. The only thing that kept me watching was wondering whether it could possibly get any worse. It did. It was root-canal painful right to the end.

And that's coming from someone who likes Yoakam's music. It seems like he just let the camera run without a script, telling everybody to improvise and act weird. Billy Bob and Vince Vaughn probably refused to speak with Dwight for years afterwards.

Posted by nemo at September 5, 2008 5:58 PM

comment #19

actionman says ...

Wells -- I see where you're coming from and I agree with you to some extent. Days of Heaven is certainly not a western. I'd call Jesse James a western, though, before Days of Heaven. But again, I understand where you're coming from.

Posted by actionman at September 5, 2008 6:33 PM

comment #20

Jack Price says ...

"No offense but I don't want to be 'entertained' when I'm watching a western -- I want to feel it, believe it, smell the horseshit, feel the saddle ache in my ass and sense the wind on my face."

Where does The Proposition fit in here? I take it it gets flying colors on the whole "smell the horseshit" front.

Posted by Jack Price at September 5, 2008 6:38 PM

comment #21

actionman says ...

Oh yeah, and The Proposition is f'ing incredible.

Posted by actionman at September 5, 2008 6:44 PM

comment #22

EnglishBob says ...

Just want to add some love for "Open Range." A highly underrated flick!

Posted by EnglishBob at September 5, 2008 8:29 PM

comment #23

NK says ...

Well, I for one thought it was pretty fantastic. I really loved the dynamic between all the leads, not including Renee Z, who I can barely stand watching without clenching a fist. And if I'm not mistaking, did you not walk during the final (incredibly excellent) 20 minutes Jeff? Infinitely better than Yuma. Kinda comparable in some ways to the original Yuma though.

Posted by NK at September 5, 2008 9:22 PM

comment #24

Chase Kahn says ...

If this isn't as good as OPEN RANGE, it must really suck.

That's the Rob Cohen of Westerns...

Posted by Chase Kahn at September 5, 2008 10:38 PM

comment #25

markj says ...

Chase Kahn: Not understanding the Rob Cohen analogy to Open Range, can you explain? Cohen would be incapable of helming anything as majestic and beautiful as Open Range. Check out the clear geography during the climactic shootout in Costner's film and then compare it to the unholy action scene rapid-cut messes in Cohen's films...there's no comparison at all i'm afraid.

Posted by markj at September 6, 2008 3:16 AM

comment #26

TheCahuengaKid says ...

Loved "Open Range" and "Unforgiven"...but for some reason "Jesse James" didn't click with me. And I love Westerns!

Posted by TheCahuengaKid at September 6, 2008 5:43 AM

comment #27

Aris P says ...

The Proposition is one of the few films that I tell everyone to see, regardless of whether they're fans of Westerns or not. Something about it really struck a chord with me cinematically. Also KILLER soundtrack.

Posted by Aris P at September 6, 2008 10:16 AM

comment #28

Flynn says ...

I wish I understood the venom for Mangold here. Is it all cause he was a principal in Jeff's embarrassing Vinessa Shaw incident? I mean, I loved Proposition and Jesse James but Yuma was also extremely well done (as are most of Mangold's films IMO and while you might not think he is a cinema God, the guy certainly isn't making the movies worse (like many of the people who are alternately worshipped here and prattled about). Anyway, I work in the Art Department on film and I can tell you first hand and through friends, Mangold is a smart and decent guy who sweats the details and gives a shit about movies -also all of Jeff's homophobic shit about Ben Foster's look is just plain ignorant. Outlaws were in fact style mavens and went out of their way to wear outlandish (and yes, slightly glam) garb so that they could brand themselves through the image on their wanted posters.

Posted by Flynn at September 6, 2008 2:06 PM

comment #29