Bone Tomahawk

Although advertised as a "Horror-Western", 2015's Bone Tomahawk doesn't hit with wall-to-wall scares or even much gore, relative to it's 132 minute runtime. While some seeking out a straight horror film may find this a bit disappointing I think it's a very engaging film. 

Shortly after a drifter comes to the small frontier town of Bright Hope he is shot in the leg by the town Sheriff (played by Kurt Russell) and taken to jail under suspicion of murder. The town's doctor Samantha O'Dwyer called upon to treat the prisoner's wound. However, in the middle of the night the drifter, the doctor, and the deputy who was at the jail, all go missing. Upon finding an arrow in the building and consulting with a local Native American, who identifies the arrow as belonging to a savage troglodyte clan, the Sheriff quickly gathers together a small group of men to assist him in searching for the missing persons. This group consists of the doctor's husband Arthur O'Dwyer (played by Patrick Wilson) who despite having a broken leg insists on going, the 'backup deputy' Chicory (played by Richard Jenkins) and John Brooder (played by Matthew Fox) who has some experience with this type of matter. 

This movie is only a couple of years old and it had a very limited theatrical release, so I won't give anymore of the plot away because I do recommend seeing it. The film is a slow-burn, yet very suspenseful because you never know what may be waiting for this ragtag group just over the next ridge. This movie doesn't have a ton of action and relies heavily on good performances from the main cast to carry the heavy lifting. Luckily, I think all of the acting is solid throughout.

If you're a fan of Westerns and you haven't seen Bone Tomahawk, then I definitely recommend checking his one out.

 4.5 out of 5

Western Wednesday: The Magnificent Seven

"...the graveyards are full of boys who were very young and very proud." 

1960's The Magnificent Seven is one of the all-time great Westerns. In my opinion, it's up in that top-tier alongside classics like True Grit (the 1969 one), The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Once Upon a Time in the West, and The Searchers just to name a few. Yes, the movie is essentially a remake of Akira Kurosawa's 1954 film Seven Samurai, just set in the old west, but it still feels like it's own thing.

 The plot involves a small Mexican village that is occasionally raided by bandits. Since the village is primarily populated by farmers, three of the men decide to set out to purchase some guns to protect themselves against the bandits. It isn't long before they come across a gunslinger named Chris (played by Yul Brynner), who convinces them that hiring experienced gunfighters would be cheaper then buying guns. They agree, and Chris recruits five other guys; Vin (played by Steve McQueen), Bernardo (played by Charles Bronson), Harry (played by Brad Dexter), Britt (played by James Coburn), and Lee (played by Robert Vaughn). Shortly after they head off toward the Mexican village, a headstrong, young gunslinger named Chico (played by Horst Buchholz) convinces Chris to let him tag along, bringing the group to seven. All goes pretty well initially, with the group working with the farmers to build some fortifications for the village and training some of them to shoot. A few days later when the bandits return, the seven and the villagers hold their ground fairly well and the town celebrates, believing it's all over and they won. Of course it's not that easy and I won't jot down any more of the plot here in case you've never seen the film.

Overall, this is one I highly recommend. I think it's perfectly cast, incredibly entertaining and rewatchable, and it has one of the best musical scores of any Western. The themes from The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly and A Fistful of Dollars are probably two of the only pieces of music in a Western as iconic as the main title theme of this film.

If you've never seen it, go watch it. 

5 out of 5

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80's Month Day 15: The Long Riders

It's 80's Month. It's a Western Wednesday. It's 1980's The Long Riders

Above all else this film is unique in that it stars four sets of acting brothers; James Keach and Stacy Keach, David Carradine  Keith Carradine and Robert Carradine, Dennis Quaid and Randy Quaid, and finally Christopher Guest and Nicholas Guest. Now, you may be asking yourself 'Is the movie any good or is this just a novelty?'

Well, a bit of both. The movie is good but not all of the casting is ideal, in my opinion and the performances vary from really good to good enough. The Keach's, Carradine's, and Quaid's all play members of a gang with James Keach playing the leader Jesse James. One day, after a less than ideal bank robbery, Ed Miller (played by Dennis Quaid) is kicked out of the gang. The movie kind of meanders about a bit, but picks up and gets interesting again about 20mins later after a train robbery and the Pinkertons lead by a man named Mr. Rixley (played by James Whitmore Jr.) come after them. Around this time we're also introduced to Charley and Robert Ford (played by Christopher and Nicholas Guest respectively) who play a big role in the ending of the film. From there it's shootouts, a knife fight in a saloon, a bank robbery that goes very wrong (which leads to a pretty great action scene), and a solid ending.

Overall, it's an enjoyable movie and I found most of it really entertaining.

I give it a 4 out of 5.

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Western Wednesday: In Old Caliente

 It's Wednesday! So, as always, today's movie is a Western.

In Old Caliente is a 1939 film starring screen legend Roy Rogers, as well as, Mary Hart, George "Gabby" Hayes and, of course, Trigger 'the smartest horse in movies'.

So what's it about?

Well, settlers are moving West to new the state of California, and Roy Rogers is there working at a Spanish estate. One day some bandits lead by the ranch's foreman, Sujarno (played by Jack LaRue), rob a wagon carrying gold that is actually headed to the ranch. When news of the robbery gets back to the ranch's owner, the word is that some 'gringos' were behind it. Well, the folks at the ranch immediately suspect Roy of tipping the robbers off and he's promptly fired. 

Later, Roy and Gabby (one of the settlers) team up to discover the bandits' hideout and they recover the stolen gold. Unfortunately, they only have it in their possession long enough to be framed for the robbery. The two are brought back to the estate, where they are imprisoned in the cellar. While stuck down there, Roy gets Gabby to join him in a duet of "We're Not Coming Out to the Dance Tonight" which is one of the highlights of the film. So, they have to make their escape and come up with a plan to clear themselves of the crime they've been falsely accused of.

 Overall, this is halfway decent flick, it's pretty entertaining and there are little comedic moments thrown in. If you like Roy Rogers movies then you'll probably like this one. 

I give it a 3 out of 5.

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Western Wednesday: Jesse James: Lawman

It's Western Wednesday!

Now, I've reviewed some great Westerns on this blog. Films like True Grit, The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid... Today's movie isn't one of those great Westerns, it's 2015's Jesse James: Lawman.
 One look at it and you may have the same initial reaction that I did, "Kevin Sorbo and Peter Fonda, well this should be halfway decent...". Well unfortunately, despite their names getting top billing, Sorbo and Fonda have pretty small roles in the film.

The film starts off with J. Dalton (played by Kevin Sorbo) telling a reporter that he is actually legendary outlaw Jesse James and he changed his name and started a new life after faking his death. The reporter is initially skeptical, and so Dalton proceeds to tell him the story of a time when Jesse James actually worked with a sheriff to help a small town. Cut to some years ago when younger Jesse James (played by Andrew Galligan) rides into that small town and is quickly recruited by the Sheriff to infiltrate the Killian gang that has been causing the town trouble. The thought is that the gangs leader, Hoyt Killian, would love to have someone of James' caliber as part of his gang, thus giving the sheriff a man on the inside. This plan is apparently fine with the town's Mayor (played by Peter Fonda) because he just wants his town to be safe and quiet. From there the movie doesn't offer up a whole lot, and it muddles around to a predictable end. Occasionally there is a cut back to the office where Sorbo is telling the reporter the story, but nothing all that interesting happens.

Whether you want to point to the lackluster acting, the poor editing, the flawed directing, or the lousy dialogue, this movie is as let-down from start to finish. I usually advocate for checking out any Westerns you find because I think it's an underappreciated genre, but you can skip this one.
I give it a 0 out of 5.


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Western Wednesday: 6 Guns

It's another 'Western Wednesday' and this week's film is 2010's 6 Guns.

The plot to this one is pretty basic:

The movie is about a gang of murderous outlaws lead by Lee Horn (played by Geoff Meed) who seeks out a former sheriff named Will Stevens who killed his father. Upon finding him, the gang learns that Will has settled down and started a family. So, as revenge, Horn and his gang kills Will and his two sons, and rapes his wife Selina (played by Sage Mears). Of course Selina wants revenge and when bounty hunter Frank Allison (played by Barry Van Dyke) she sees her opportunity. Selina convinces Frank to teach her how to shoot a gun and, eventually, when Lee Horn's gang returns to town Selina gets her revenge with Franks help. There isn't much more to it than that.

Overall, this one is a slightly below average Western. Not terrible, but not great. The acting is ok with Barry Van Dyke giving the best performance. If you're a huge Western fan then you might want to check it out, but I wouldn't recommend it otherwise.

I give this one a 2 out of 5.

Have a suggestion for a 'Western Wednesday'?

Leave it in the comments below, and be sure to check out some of these past 'Western Wednesday reviews:

Appaloosa
The Man from Utah
Young Guns 
The Big Trail

Western Wednesday: Appaloosa

Appaloosa is a 2008 Western directed by and starring Ed Harris and overall, it's pretty entertaining.

The movie follows a familiar plot but it's done well enough that it doesn't feel stale. The small town of Appaloosa is being terrorized by gang of men led by Randall Bragg (played by Jeremy Irons), who has recently killed the town's marshal and two deputies. So the local lawmakers hire the duo of and Virgil Cole (played by Ed Harris) and Everett Hitch (played by Viggo Mortensen) to be the new town marshal and deputy, and restore order to Appaloosa. There's some good chemistry between the two, but I found Everett Hitch to be the more likeable character. 

It doesn't take long for Cole to quickly starts up a romantic relationship with a woman named Allie French (played by Renée Zellweger), who is also new to Appaloosa. And right after that, one of Bragg's men comes to town and tells Cole that he will testify that he saw Bragg kill the former marshal. Following the trial, the movie starts to drag a bit to me. Cole and Hitch are transporting Bragg by train, when some hired guns that kidnapped Allie force them to release Bragg. Then Cole and Hitch have to go after them, and just as they catch up to the outlaws some Apaches attack, and so on. 

There's a good 15mins that could've been cut from the second half of the film in my opinion.

Eventually Bragg is granted a full pardon by the President, returns to Appaloosa, buys the hotel and claims he's a reformed man. However, Hitch discovers that Allie is secretly in a relationship with Bragg, and he challenges him to a duel. After drawing first and killing Bragg, Everett Hitch rides off into the sunset.

It's not a great Western, but it's good and the whole cast is solid. I'm not really sure if Jeremy Irons was supposed to be a likeable villain, but he was definitely my favorite part of the movie. It is a little slow at times but there are enough good qualities to make up for it.

I give this one a 3 out of 5.

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Western Wednesday: Young Guns

Another Wednesday, Another Western!

Young Guns is not great movie, but there is a lot to like about 1988 Western. It has, what was considered at the time to be, a strong cast and the movie is fun.

John Tunstall (played by Terence Stamp) is a rancher in New Mexico, who hires young troublemakers to live and work on his property, and he acts as a sort of father-figure. this group consists of Doc Scurlock (played by Kiefer Sutherland), Jose Chavez (played by Lou Diamond Phillips), Richard  Brewer (played by Charlie Sheen), Steve Stephens (played by Dermot Mulroney), Charlie Bowdre (played by Casey Siemaszko) and newcomer William Bonney (played by Emilio Estevez) who later in the film will be dubbed "Billy the Kid".

Pretty early on in the film Tunstall is murdered by the men of his competitor Lawrence Murphy (played by the legendary Jack Palance). Shortly after Tunstall's death a lawyer/friend of his, Alex McSween, manages to get the group deputized and gives them warrants for the arrest of Murphy's henchmen. The group calls themselves 'The Regulators' and it isn't long before Billy's hot-headed nature causes problems. After he kills a couple guys rather than arresting them, Billy and the team are stripped of their badges and become fugitives themselves. It's around this point in the film when Billy adopts the name "Billy the Kid" given to him by a local newspaper.
The gang eventually becomes infamous and pretty soon the U.S. Army is out for them. But, they can't run forever and, as in so many Westerns, the film ends in a big shootout.

As stated at the beginning, it's not a great Western. There are a few scenes that could've been cut out completely, but for the most part it's entertaining. 

I give it a 3 out of 5.

Have a suggestion for a 'Western Wednesday' Review?

Leave it in the comments below, and be sure to check out some of my previous 'Western Wednesday' entries.

River of No Return
True Grit

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid 
The Big Trail 
Shalako
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

Western Wednesday: The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)

Taking a break from the usual classic Westerns like The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, The Big Trail, and True Grit, today's film is a much more recent Western. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford was released in 2007, and unlike many modern Westerns, it isn't half bad. Since it's a bit of a lesser known title, and I do recommend checking it out, I won't give away much about the plot in this review. 

The film has a pretty strong cast consisting of Brad Pitt as Jesse James, Casey Affleck as Robert Ford, and Sam Rockwell as Charley Ford just to name a few. The performances are strong throughout, particularly Brad Pitt. The narration, cinematography and music all work in concert to give this one a sort of low-key and intimate tone as opposed to the grand, gunslinger, wild west type of film typically associated with the genre. For a movie with a runtime a little over 2 1/2 hrs it's fairly well paced, but there are a couple scenes that drag on a bit and probably could've been cut down without damaging the final product.

Overall, I don't think this one will ever be regarded as one of history's great Westerns but, if you're a fan of the genre it's worth adding to your DVD or Blu-ray collection.
 I give it a 3.5 out of 5.


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...and be sure to check back every Wednesday for another Western

Western Wednesday: Shalako

This 1968 Western stars Brigitte Bardot and Sean Connery, and was one of the films that just barely missed the cut on my "10 Sean Connery Movies Everyone Should See" list (you can check out that list here).

The film starts off with a group of wealthy Europeans who are on a hunting trip in New Mexico. For whatever reason they've ventured into Apache territory, and that proves to be a terrible idea.

 A French countess named Irina Lazaar (played by Brigitte Bardot) wanders off and she is soon confronted by some Apaches. Luckily for her she is rescued by Sean Connery wearing cowboy hat... I mean, "Shalako".

Shalako is a former Civil War cavalry officer and has been sent by the Army to get the party out of Apache territory. However, the leader of the party, Frederick von Hallstadt refuses to leave and the Apache soon raid the party's camp. To make matters worse, the party's guide Bosky Fulton takes off with the stage coach, guns and ammunition, and supplies, leaving the party stranded. But they have Shalako, and he's gonna to lead them on foot to an Army fort. Along the way, some Apaches catch up with the hunting party and there is a one-on-one spear fight between Shalako and the Apache chief's son Chato. Shalako is about to win and kill Chato, but the chief intervenes and offers to let the party go on their way safely to the fort if Shalako will agree to spare his sons life.
So, they get to the fort, the hunting party is safe, and Shalako and The Countess ride off together.

Overall, it's not great but it's a decent movie and pretty entertaining. I like Brigitte Bardot in the film and Sean Connery, though not someone you'd typically cast in a Western, is still good.

I give this one a 3 out of 5.


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Western Wednesday: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is a 1969 Western starring Paul Newman as Butch Cassidy and Robert Redford as the Sundance Kid. The film has a unique blend of comedy and all the common things you'd expect from a film in this genre.

The plot is straight forward and entertaining: Butch and Sundace, as well as their gang (The Hole In The Wall Gang) are outlaws who are quite fond of robbing trains. It's decided early on that they'll rob a Union Pacific train on both its eastward and westward runs, thinking that no one would expect a second robbery of the same train.The first robbery goes as planned but, unfortunately the second train robbery does not. Butch accidentally uses a bit too much dynamite to blow open the safe, and ends up blowing up an entire baggage car. While the whole gang scrambles to pick up the money that has been blown everywhere, another train arrives. This one is carrying a group of lawmen, so Butch and Sundance make a run for it. Unfortunately for them, the team of lawmen is being lead by a legendary Indian tracker. So, Butch convinces Sundance  that they should escape to Bolivia, where they do actually become successful bank robbers. But it's only a matter of time before the law catches up to them.

 On it's own the plot would make for a decent Western, but it's the chemistry between the two leads (Newman and Redford) that really takes this film from good to great.

Overall, I highly recommend this one and I give it a 4.5 out of 5.


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Western Wednesday: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

"You see, in this world there's two kinds of people, my friend: Those with loaded guns and those who dig. You dig."

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly was released in 1966 and is the third film in Sergio Leone's 'Dollars Trilogy', with the others being A Fistful of Dollars and For a Few Dollars More*.

This one takes much of what worked from the previous two installments and puts it all together into a 3hr epic Western. The plot really isn't too complicated; Set during the Civil War, it's essentially about three gunslingers (played by Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, and Eli Wallach) who are competing with one another to find a large sum of Confederate gold that is buried in a grave at the Sad Hill Cemetery.

So, what makes the film so good? Well, a couple of things: The cinematography is top-notch and Leone's signature style of long shots, and tension filled close-ups, not only works well in this film, but has since become synonymous with the genre. This is by far the longest of the three movies, but it clicks along at steady and entertaining pace. The score perfectly compliments and enhances the mood of the film throughout. The final showdown at the Sad Hill Cemetery is a thing of beauty, and one of my favorites in any Western. Also, like the other films in the trilogy, Clint Eastwood's performance is fantastic.

  Add all of that up and the result is not just one of best Westerns ever made, but one of the all-time great films in general. Whether you're a big fan of the genre, or just enjoy occasionally watching a Western, this one is a must-see.
   

 I give this iconic film a 5 out of 5.


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*Click here for my For a Few Dollars More review: http://onlyinthemoviesblog.blogspot.com/2016/10/a-look-back-at-for-few-dollars-more-1965.html

Western Wednesday: True Grit (1969)

It's Western Wednesday! Last week's review was of a slightly lesser known film River of No Return from 1954. (you can check out that review here: http://onlyinthemoviesblog.blogspot.com/2016/11/western-wednesday-river-of-no-return.html) However, this week's title is one of the most famous Westerns, and one of my all-time favorites, 1969's True Grit. There was a decent remake of this film in 2010, and I may do a review of that one at a later date, but today my focus is on the original.

The plot is pretty simple but enjoyable. After her father is murdered by a man named Chaney, Mattie (played by Kim Darby) seeks out an aging, U.S. Marshal named "Rooster" Cogburn (played by John Wayne) to bring her father's killer to justice. It takes some convincing but Cogburn eventually agrees, and they set out to capture Chaney. They soon come across, and join forces with a Texas Ranger, named La Boeuf (played by Glen Campbell), who is also pursuing Chaney. So, all three of these people are off to track down the 'bad guy', and each has slightly different motivations, but it works well. And, of course, they eventually find Chaney, Cogburn shoots him, and Mattie's father's killer meets his end.

There's a lot to like about this movie, I find all the characters likable and memorable, the chemistry is solid, and the movie overall is very entertaining. It's also one of the all-time greatest John Wayne performances, and it even won him the Academy Award for Best Actor.

True Grit is a true classic, and I give it a 5 out of 5.

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Coming Soon: Western Wednesdays

Starting this week, I'm going to add something new to the 'Only in the Movies' blog. In addition to my regular movie reviews, movie franchise rankings, and the '10 Movies Everyone Should See' lists, I'm going to start 'Western Wednesdays'. It's one of my favorite movie genres, and there are a ton of great films to talk about.

 In recent years our theaters have been filled with comic book movies and computer animated family films, and that's not a bad thing, but when there are a few genres really dominating the market some others get pushed to the side. For Westerns, this has been happening for a long time. Occasionally there is a good one, but we are long past the days of John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, Gary Cooper, and Golden Age of Westerns. Some of this is because American Westerns aren't big box office draws in foreign markets. I think political correctness has damaged the genre, and Westerns simply fell victim to history. Once the "Space Race" came about in the 1960's, American film goers became less interested in the American frontier and more interested in the next frontier.

All of this isn't to say Westerns will eventually die off completely. Like I stated earlier, decent ones are still being made. I thought the 'True Grit' remake from a couple years ago was decent, last years 'The Hateful Eight' was fun, and I really enjoyed 'In a Valley of Violence' which was just released recently (You can check out the review for that one here: http://onlyinthemoviesblog.blogspot.com/2016/10/todays-movie-in-valley-of-violence-2016.html). I'm going to try to have a decent mix of classic Westerns and modern ones for these 'Western Wednesday' reviews and, hopefully, my appreciation of the genre introduces some people to films they may have otherwise not checked out.

Today’s Movie: In a Valley of Violence (2016)

In a Valley of Violence is a Western film Directed by Ti West and stars both Ethan Hawke and John Travolta. Going in I had a few concerns; There aren’t many good Westerns made anymore, Ethan Hawke has always been hit-and-miss for me, and when I think “Old West” I usually don’t think of John Travolta.

However, I was pleasantly surprised. The cinematography, a lot of the music, and even the title cards (which are reminiscent of the ones from ‘A Fistful of Dollars’) all made the film feel like a classic Western. As a Big fan of the genre, these things earned the film a few bonus points in my book.

The plot is simple and straight forward. A drifter named Paul (played by Ethan Hawke) comes to town and he isn’t looking for any trouble. But, after a confrontation with the towns hotheaded Deputy, the Marshall (played by John Travolta) advises him that it’s in everyone’s best interest if he just leaves town. Paul agrees and rides off but the Deputy doesn’t want to let it go, and he later kills Paul’s dog and attempts to kill him too. So, Paul heads back to the town to get his revenge…

Overall, the acting in this film is solid, with Travolta and Hawke turning in particularly good performances. I’ve already written a list of ’10 John Travolta Movies Everyone Should See’ (you can check that out here: http://onlyinthemoviesblog.blogspot.com/2016/09/10-john-travolta-movies-everyone-should.html) but if I had to do it again, this one might actually make the cut. The only actor that missed the mark for me is James Ransone who plays the Deputy. He plays a couple of his scenes way over the top and he never really nails down an accent. 

For anyone who’s a fan of Westerns I’d definitely recommend checking it out.

I give it a 4 out of 5.

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