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-- Review: Open Range (2003) (http://www.vcdhq.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=25964)

review(2003)-Open Range with Kevin Costner

Open Range Movie review

w/Kevin Costner and Robert DuVall

Its been years since Kevin Costner has a genuine Blockbuster movie, and unfortnately it will probably be years before he gets another blockbuster. Yes I did love the film, and may receive yet another Oscar Nomination for Robert DuVall, but with its end of summer release, Open Range should have gotten a better reception from the studios. I hope this movie makes a lot of money but because of the 2 hour 2 minute running time, it may not come to be.

Once again director Kevin Costner steps into the directors chair, as he did for his Oscar Winning Movie, Dances with Wolves. He plays Charley, an aging gun fighting Cowboy, along with his best friend Boss (Duvall) have lived upon the Open Range of the wild west for over ten years. Tagging along with them are Button (Diego Luna) (Y Tu Mama Tambien) and Mose (Abraham Benrubi) and Charleys dog. When a rain storm forces Charley and Boss to send Mose into the nearest town for supplies, they get concerned when he does not return. So in as most Westerns do, Charley and Boss with their guns go searching for their friend. (If you have seen the previews, you'd know Moses gets bloodied and bruised).

The villian in this movie is an Irishman Baxter, played by Michael Gambon, who holds the town in his fist much like Gene Hackman did in another Oscar Winning film, Unforgiven. Charley and Boss abhor violence, but through a cruel mean streak from Baxter are forced to spring into action, making the last 20 minutes of Open Range one of the best and quickest gun fights on cinematic History.

The cast is great, included in this film sides Coster and DuVall are Annette Benning who plays Sue Barlow (an appropriate love interest for Costner's character) who befriends the cowboys.

The movie solely belongs to Gambon and DuVall (who I would pay to see in any cowboy movie) I think possible Oscar nominations there.

Now going back to my first statement, since Open Range is sort of Old Fashion, youngsters should not want to pass on this film, Open Range has thorough shades of another classic western, Tombstone.

Open Range is a long movie, 2 Hours and 20 minutes long and is 'R' for language and violence.

My Rating a 9.75 out of 10.

This film I would hype up very high.

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Re-incarnated as evil overlord..

This is one I've been waiting to see..you know me and my westerns

Good review as always

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"If somebody said to me, in twelve years you’ll be in a band with your brother and two carrot munching geezers who don’t like football, I would've said 'fuck off, I’m not joining the Bee Gees." -Noel Gallagher 2005

honestly, Duvall can go and die of some nasty disease. I can't believe the insults he tossed at Canada's movie industry. A true American Pig.

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Loving God.... Vengeful God...

DuVall might be one, but he is one hell of an actor. what did he say btw??

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Re-incarnated as evil overlord..

quote:

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"I would rather work in my own country," he told CanWest News Service. He also made it clear that he was not backing off his controversial assertion in Washington six months ago that he prefers filming in the U.S. because "there are better actors" south of the border. In a series of rambling and sometimes contradictory comments, Mr. Duvall suggested the reason Hollywood has to import so many American actors for its Canadian-based productions is the lack of capable actors in Canada.

He cited the film, John Q, which he and Denzel Washington shot in Toronto a couple of years ago. "It wasn't my calling but the producer brought all the actors up from the United States because he couldn't find actors (in Canada)."

Mr. Duvall hedged when asked whether he was accurately quoted six months ago as saying he didn't think Canadians make good actors.

"Let me put it this way," he replied. "They're there, but I didn't find them." Then he amended these comments. "I don't know if I said that, but if there are good actors, I didn't see a lot of them up there." A few minutes after that, he conceded that there were "some very good actors" among the Canadian cast members in Open Range. "The guy that played the candy store owner was very good." But then he wondered why Canadian actors needed to be used at all, and blamed Canadian film regulations. "Why not take American actors up there? There's a thing that you have to use the (Canadian) actors up there."

At one point, Mr. Duvall went off on a tangent about the plight of Canada's natives. "I knew an Indian actor years ago who claimed there was a lot of persecution from the Canadian government -- an excellent actor, but he didn't get a chance." He then hinted that maybe Canada's best actors end up in the U.S. "So there are a lot of good actors up there but I think that because a lot of them come down here, maybe your film community is not as valid as ... Australia's which is so far away they have to find their own identity rather than be an extension of us."

...
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Mr. Duvall also took a shot at Canadian customs officials and Canadian gun laws.

"To tell you the truth, I find a lot of animosity up there towards Americans. ... You go through customs, they go through your bags, and I don't think they like Americans in Toronto. In Calgary they do."

One of the reasons Mr. Duvall likes Alberta is that it's "a lot like Texas. "I'll go on record as saying I really liked it up there -- the people, the world-class guys on the crew." He also says the foothills of the Rockies might even be "prettier" than the Andes. "Emerald Lake may be the prettiest place I've been to in my life." He likes the cowboys, too. "There are good cowboys in Western Canada. They gave me a good horse." But he admits he got bucked off one animal when he was trying it out for the movie and was "wracked up for a few weeks."

However, he also suggested that all is not completely idyllic in Alberta. "I know a guy right now who moved from Calgary to Texas because if a guy breaks into your house in Canada and you shoot him, they put you in jail. So he moved to Texas."

And the anti-Americanism still gets to him. "Politically or whatever, they don't like a lot of Americans."

Mr. Duvall is "taking a little time off" after doing four major projects in 18 months. He said he plans to keep acting "until they wipe off the drool."

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Loving God.... Vengeful God...

Fuck Duvall. I lost a shitload of respect for him after reading that. He is a great actor though, and I'm looking forward to Open Range.

And out of the things to complain about regarding John Q, location is not one of them...

muahahahahaha, Duvall is the man. I knew there was a reason I liked that guy. You chimps dog the US at every turn and when one guy says something about your acting population, you throw a hissy fit. Good work, girls.

I, like Petrocs, love a good western. I've been waiting for this movie for awhile now. Maybe Costner can make a bad film or two (Dragonfly), but this is a genre he seems to excel in. I'll be there this weekend.

-K

it's not just the fact that he's prejudice against Canadians, the idiot contradicts himself every freakin sentence.

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Loving God.... Vengeful God...

I have to agree MG. Just finished watching the TCR TS of this.

9.5/10

I fucking loved it kiddo.

quote:

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Originally posted by kalvaitis007
muahahahahaha, Duvall is the man. I knew there was a reason I liked that guy. You chimps dog the US at every turn and when one guy says something about your acting population, you throw a hissy fit. Good work, girls.

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watched this one the other night and I thought it was fantastic

9.5 out of 10

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"If somebody said to me, in twelve years you’ll be in a band with your brother and two carrot munching geezers who don’t like football, I would've said 'fuck off, I’m not joining the Bee Gees." -Noel Gallagher 2005

almost anything anti on this forum is America... and when you say something against anything else your just an american pig.

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"I love the Power Glove. Its so bad."