All the Pretty Horses (2000)

From Cormac McCarthy's novel about young man in 1949 Texas leaving the family ranch for a life in Mexico, and winding up in hot water. Despite mystical undermining (which, presumably, is what director/co-producer Billy Bob Thornton brought to the table), film has a distracting 'formula' feel: two-parts western, one-part forbidden romance, and one-part prison picture. None of it gels, simply because the screenwriter (Ted Tally, of all people) and Thornton are trying for the kind of heavy, romantic movie-western style popular 40 years ago, and yet they do not possess the subtle qualities to make this genre successful for them. Matt Damon frequently flashes his shy/self-conscious movie-star smile, but he's so clean and bland and laid-back, he's practically non-existent on the screen. Penelope Cruz, as his forbidden flame, is better, but the other performers are less charismatic, and the story has no center--it just rambles around. *1/2 from ****

Fmovies: One of the best movies I've seen in the past year. The sweeping panoramic settings, the great writing and a subtle, great performance by Matt Damon make this a movie not to miss. I enjoyed everything about this movie, from the graphic, depressing prison scenes to the joyous romance between a young cowboy and his Mexican princess girlfriend.

After seeing Matt Damon carrying "The Rainmaker" I sat up and became a real fan of the actor. In that movie he impressed me greatly. I decided to see what was he doing next. I read where he was slated to star in All the Pretty Hourses so I got a copy of the book to see what it was all about. I liked what I read and was looking forward to see Matt Damon in the effort. When I read where Billy Bob Thornton was to direct I became ecstatic, I remembered his acting and directing in Sling Blade. Later, I read where there was trouble with the length of All The Pretty Horses at the producer threatened to cut the movie. Mr Thornton's version ran almost 4 hours, the released version to theaters was 117 minutes. Of course I went to see the movie and could see that it should have been longer. Any movie buff could see that. What perplexes me is how studios and produces can contract certain directors and then butcher their completed work. Sergio Leone's Once Upon A Time in America suffered a humiliation when the studio decided to cut his film drastically; it lost it's meaning, and money. Later, the DVD restored version, 225 minutes, came out and was instantly received by customers. Thank God David O. Selznick stuck to his guns with Gone With The Wind. And look at how much money that! made. Like some others I hope that some one one day will be able to assemble the 4 hour version of All The Pretty Horses so that those of us who love movies can at least see what we've missed. I think we deserve to judge the movie for ourselves. Who knows, we might be missing a masterpiece.

All the Pretty Horses fmovies. I really wanted to love this film and from the opening scenes to the last third I really did like this film. I love surreal films as much as the next guy, but this film seems like it was made by Oliver Stone on Valium. The film is really slow, now that can be a good thing, but in this case the pace just keeps getting slower and slower. I heard that Thornton's original cut ran almost four hours, it seems that the film has a whole other film missing from it. I didn't read the novel and I'm guessing that I should have read the novel because I couldn't figure this film out for the life of me. When it was all over I felt empty. The performances are all great, I especially liked Lucas Black in the role of Blevins. Matt Damon and Henry Thomas are both very good in their roles and this is first movie Penelope Cruz has appeared in where I could see that she has real talent and isn't just another pretty face. I loved the cinematography, the outdoor landscapes were beautiful. The film has all the flavor and no real substance. I am torn with this film, I wanted to love it so bad. Even great film makers slip every now and then.

This is an excellent, epic western saga about two Texans who wind up in Mexico and all the trials and tribulations they go through, most of which are fascinating. I've watched this film several times and it gets better and better with each viewing. The acting, storytelling and magnificent photography all made it a treasure of a film....and a very underrated movie. It's easy to get very involved in this haunting tale.

Those two lead guys are played by Matt Damon ("John Grady Cole") and Henry Thomas ("Lacey Rawlins.") Along the way they are joined by the most interesting character of all of them: "Jimmy Blevins," played by Lucas Black. Jimmy is a nice kid but he's big-time trouble. His haunting face in his last scene is memorable.

Penelope Cruz is the attractive love interest, surrounded by a protective Mexican family. That family, mainly a father and aunt, were really enjoyable to watch, too, and I wish they had bigger roles in here.

Not only is the acting good and photography stunning, the soundtrack with Spanish music is outstanding. I've read they actually filmed this for a four- hour movie. Man, I'd love to see that.

The only things I didn't care for were Thomas' blasphemous mouth and a couple of unpleasant scenes where the innocent lead characters are accused of things they didn't do and suffer because of it.

This really isn't an action movie, but much more of a drama and it's excellent storytelling. It also has narration from Damon, who is good at that sort of thing. It's just a powerful movie with a lot of good things to offer. If you like good stories, don't pass this up.

ALL THE PRETTY HORSES is quite effective, though there are some serious gaping holes in the story. The story and characters insist that John Cole and Alejandra have fallen in love; we only get to see a swift montage of sex-making, which is not the same thing at all. Damon made me believe that John was in love through the sheer force of his acting, but the audience needed to be courted along in this romance. Also, Lacey Rawlins at one point crucially (suicidally?) antagonizes a fellow in prison, and we have no idea what bad blood has been brewing between these two.

There are stories about how Thornton's film was first cut at four hours, then the director agreed to deliver a three hour version. The financing studio balked at the length and sold it off to Miramax, who contractually required a cut no longer than two and a quarter hours. What is left runs 117 minutes. What happened? Twenty minutes would have certainly helped smooth out the few rough spots, and a two-and-a-half hour or three hour movie might have been some sort of masterpiece. As it is, some of the epic sweep is contained and the film remains remarkably moving, but may wind up ultimately not finding its commercial or artistic audience because of the compromises. A shame.