Costernation
Saw Open Range last night. Bottom line: it’s okay.
While being beautifully shot, the pacing of the thing blew. It was like watching fireworks and you are 10 minutes in and they give you three or four big to-dos in a row and you think “Okay, the grand finale” but then it happens again and you think the same thing. Then they launch some lame garbage for another 5 minutes and you wonder what the hell is going on and if there will ever be a grand finale at all.
The acting is good. I’m glad the actors didn’t decide to put on fake southern accents as they often do for Westerns (that has always puzzled me). And Annette Bening looked damn good as the Doc’s sister and Costner’s love interest.
But again, pacing. The movie takes considerable time to build up to the final shoot out and instead of just giving it to us, wrapping up the romance line and ending the thing, it has to be drawn out for 45 minutes. It was almost as if Costner were consciously trying to avoid the cliched ending with this approach--a strange thing to do considering the other clichés that fly fast and furious throughout the entire movie.
One other gripe, the fat clerk from ER a cowboy aint. A Star Trek Fan Club President, yes. A Simpsons web site host, yes. A Risk board game genius, undoubtedly. I just couldn’t buy him as a cowboy.
For a much better review of what could have been a great movie, go here.
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