Open Range (2003)

Why studios don't make more westerns is beyond me. Some of them are downright unwatchable like "Young Guns" and its sequel but there have been some extremely well made films like "Unforgiven" and "Tombstone" so I'm at a loss as to why more are not made. Thank you Kevin Costner! This story is about four men who are herding their cattle through a certain area and they stop near a town to get supplies. The crew is headed by Boss Spearman (Robert Duvall) and his second in charge is Charley Waite (Costner). They send Mose (Abraham Benrubi) to get supplies and after a day or so he doesn't return. Boss and Charley go to find him leaving Button (Diego Luna) to watch the herd. In town they find Mose beaten badly and locked up in the local jail. A rich rancher named Denton Baxter (Michael Gambon) hates "Freegrazers" and tells them to take their man and keep moving. Baxter controls the sheriff (James Russo) and also has many thugs on his payroll. Back at the herd some of Baxters men have been following them so Boss has an idea of going after them instead of running. That night they confront them and smash their rifles but when they get back Mose has been killed and Button is wounded badly. They take him to the local doctor and meet his sister Sue (Annette Bening) and Charley takes a shine. Boss and Charley don't like to be told where to graze their cattle and they want revenge for the death of Mose. A final gunfight in town is inevitable and Charley reveals that he killed many men in the war. This film was directed by Costner and its very well made. He seems to have found his mark as a directer with this genre. Costner allows the story to unfold on its own terms and the pacing is deliberate which is welcomed after watching so many Hollywood films and their quick edits. The film should be seen on the big screen to be appreciated. The scenery is beautiful and their are so many shots with skylines and mountains and wide open prairies and these shots help tell the story in the film. The scenery is important and gives the film a look that helps you relate to the characters when they speak of not wanting to be told where they can go. The characters are well written and they let out things about themselves little by little as the story is told. Duvall's character is a man of high pride and also a stubborn side and he's not afraid to stand up for himself even if it means he might die. Costner plays a man with a hard past and he seems to be living his life and coming to grips with his experiences in the war at the same time. Charley states that he doesn't have a problem with killing and we believe him. The romance between Costner and Bening seems forced and Bening looks a little to old to be a woman that never married. The film goes on about 15 minutes to long and Costner has not one, but two goodbye scenes with Bening. This is a minor complaint because this is a very entertaining film and after a summer of watching hyper-kinetic Hollywood junk, It's a movie that is very welcomed. Hear that Hollywood?

Fmovies: There is absolutely nothing I can criticise or find fault with in this movie which I genuinely believe to be one of the greatest Western films ever made.The two leads Robert Duvall (Boss Spearman) and Kevin Costner(Charlie Waite) are so convincing as 'freegrazers', and are firmly supported by a host of other players,Abraham Benubi as 'Mose'and Annette Bening as Miss Sue, among the most standout characters.The cinematography is beautiful, the music score is so wonderfully apt and really there is little more to say other than these 2 consummate actors who have previously turned in some really fine performances really surpass themselves in this.Costner has had one or two unfortunate mishaps along the way but more good than bad and Duvall who was brilliant in The Godfather was over-shadowed by two of cinemas all-time greats,Pacino and Brando.

There are those who will disagree, that is fine. I believe everyone should be allowed to voice their opinion. So this is mine. "Open Range" is in my opinion one of the best movies I have seen on the silver screen since John Ford's westerns. It is definitely Kevin Costner's best performance and Robert Duvall, well, he is great in anything he plays in. Ever since his portrayal of "Boo Radley" in "To Kill a Mockingbird" I have been a fan. This movie is an absolute delight and the very best of western cinema. The character of Baxter (Michael Gambon)is spot on. He does so well at his craft that you cannot help but to hate him and enjoy what he is about to get. I watch the movie every time it is on. Great cast and great story.

Open Range fmovies. Costner's third film as a director, his fourth if you include his work with Kevin Reynolds on Waterworld (1995), is another Western. One says 'another', but upon reflection it is obvious that it's a genre that, creatively, he's hardly left. After the highly successful Dances With Wolves (1990) he directed with Kevin Reynolds - albeit in uncredited fashion - the critically mauled The Postman (1997). The latter was nothing less than a reworking of the familiar Pony Express story, and for good measure threw in explicit references to John Ford along the way. Waterworld's ocean setting did nothing to disguise the fact that that was a film that owed another massive debt to the great American genre: sea fort, lone riders, wide-open watery frontier and all. Costner also did sterling work as Wyatt Earp in Kasdan's 1994 film of the same name - a substantial project, and one close enough in manner to his own to suggest more than a passing creative influence from its star.

In Open Range, Costner again has the lead: as Charley Waite, former gunfighter, now sharing ownership of a free grazing cattle drive. Together with Boss Spearman (Robert Duvall), and two others they reach Harmonville where they soon encounter a corrupt town Marshal (James Russo) and rancher (an excellent Michael Gambon) who threaten their way of life. They also discover others who prove sympathetic to their cause, like the sister of the town's doctor Sue Barlow (Annette Bening). There's growing suspense as an inevitable showdown looms ("Men are gonna get killed here today, Sue, and I'm gonna kill 'em...") Waite's personal life, and his romance gradually comes to the fore until its crisis, as well as the combat, mark the end of the film.

On screen Costner shares equal honours with the septuagenarian Robert Duvall, whose personal philosophy that "Man's got a right to protect his property and his life, and we ain't gonna let no rancher or his lawman take either," informs much of the main action. Crusty and fearsome, Spearman's dauntless words recall those of John Wayne's J.B. Books in The Shootist (1976) who expressed broadly similar sentiments: "I won't be wronged. I won't be insulted. I won't be laid a-hand on. I don't do these things to other people, and I require the same from them." In either case its an old man speaking, one fiercely independent after a life of hardship and who won't be trifled with. Open Range takes its main impetus from exactly that sort of unwelcome interference, and resembles Eastwood's Unforgiven in that a good deal of the narrative consists of a determined settling of accounts, an unrelieved search for moral recompense outside the law after an initial trespass against the innocent. What is started almost casually is finished deliberately and by the authority given the wronged: "Ours ain't writ by no tin star, bought and paid for, Marshall. It's writ by us, and we aim to enforce it," says Boss. Like Eastwood's film, Open Range also features a retired gunman who has recourse to his skills to help salvage a situation, and some of the best scenes with Costner's character concern his dispassionate and professional preparation for gunplay. Like William Munny before, Charley Waite has something of an avenging angel about him, whose cold consideration of his trade is filmed completely without irony.

Open Range has all the hallmarks of Costner the western auteur: an expansive, almost leisure

The cowboys Boss Spearman (Robert Duvall), Charley Waite (Kevin Costner), Mose (Abraham Benrubi) and Button (Diego Luna) are conducting their cattle herd through the fields of the West. Boss and Spearman have been friends for ten years, and they have an special affection and friendship for Button, Mose and his dog Dig. Boss requests Mose to return to a small town nearby and buy some supplies for the rest of their journey. Mose never comes back, and Boss and Charley decides to check what happened with him. They find Moses beaten and arrested in the jail by the corrupt Sheriff Poole (James Russo), accused of fighting against the men of a powerful local rancher, Denton Baxter (Michael Gambon). Boss and Charley bring Mose to the local doctor, Barlow (Dean McDermott), where Charley falls in love for his sister, Sue Barlow (Annette Bening). They return to their camping, they are attacked by Baxter's men and Mose and Dig are killed and Button is seriously wounded. The two old cowboys return to the town looking for justice. "Open Range" is one of the best contemporary western, with the characters very well constructed and an engaging low paced story having action, drama and romance. The performance of the cast, highlighting Robert Duvall and Kevin Costner, and the direction of Kevin Costner are magnificent. I believe in the future "Open Range" will be considered a classic in the genre. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Pacto de Justiça" ("Pact of Justice")

Personally, I didn't find it long. I've seen many great Westerns--such films as "Will Penny," "Shane," "The Unforgiven," and several other Eastwood movies spring to mind--and this was right up there with them. My thanks to Kevin Costner, Robert Duvall (of course), and Annette Bening for giving me a wonderful experience at the movies. It doesn't happen all that often anymore. To those who say, "They don't make 'em like they used to," my response is "This one's better."