Open Range
by Kevin Costner
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Abraham Benrubi, Annette Bening, Diego Luna, Kevin Costner, Robert DuvallDirector: Kevin Costner
Brand: Buena Vista Home Video
Producer: Kevin Costner
Producer: Armyan Bernstein
Producer: Craig Storper
Writer: Craig Storper
Producer: David Valdes
Producer: Jake Eberts
Writer: Lauran Paine
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 5.1; French (Unknown), Unknown; Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; French (Original Language), Unknown
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 139 minutes
Published: 2004
DVD Release Date: 2004-01-20
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Walt Disney Video
Product features:
- 139 minutes
Movie Reviews of Open Range
Movie Review: A Silent Western
Summary: 5 Stars
Every decade or so, either Clint Eastwood or Kevin Costner makes an artistic and entertaining western in an attempt to revive the genre. This time it was Costner's turn, and what he did was absolutely astonishing. He wanted to return to the simple and bare-bones idea of the west and what it was, both in reality and in our minds. He succeeded on a grand scale, but in doing so may have gone even further than what he intended. In many respects, the film Costner made, is a silent western.
The story of two saddle pals grazing their cattle on free range until the evil rancher holding court over a town and all the land surrounding it attempts to stop them is a staple of the west. It will always force a confrontation between good and evil, as it does here. Just as in the legendary "Shane," Costner's character, Charley Waite, has a deadly past he would just as soon forget. It is a side he has not even revealed to his traveling companion of ten years, Boss Spearman (Robert Duvall).
There is something mythic about this omission. It shows how the west really was, with good men being able to size each other up and not ask questions about their past. Boss is a seasoned and tough cowboy who has always suspected the gun on Charley's hip had many stories to tell, but respected the man wearing it enough to know if he had wanted him to know, he would have told him.
The image of the soft-spoken cowboy whose dog means as much to him as any man, is shown not once, but twice: once with the death of Charley's dog at the hands of those trying to drive them off the range, and another when Charley saves another cowboy's dog from drowning. It was the one attachment a man could have without worry. His dog was a loyal friend who could never be turned.
"Open Range" takes on mythic preportions because it remains simple, emphasizing the values of loyalty and goodness we associate with our image of the cowboy. It also elaborates on another thread in the fabric we know as the west; the fact that good men sometimes had to do bad things in order to enforce those values. It was the willingness and courage of men like Charley and Boss that would shape the west into a place where people could live free.
Costner's homage to the American cowboy and gunfighter also shows the old-fasioned side of men who spent long hours together but were flustered at the sight of a pretty woman, having seen one so seldom. Charley's reluctance to engage in a romance with the pretty sister of the town's doctor is born not only of shyness, but his shame at some of the killing he has done. He feels she will look at him in disgust if she knew what real violence was like, and learn that no man is more capable of it than he. It is tender and sweet, and reminds us of our basic humanity and our need for love. The final scene between Charley and Sue (Annette Bening) will remind anyone familiar with silent films, of a D.W. Griffith scene. It has that same sentimental sweetness as many he directed with Lillian Gish.
The gunfight is one of the greatest ever filmed. It is long and ugly, just as they really were. Charley's speech to Boss as he preps the tough cowboy about what is to come, and how each man will react, is one of the great moments in western film history. It is not the gunfight itself, however, which adds meaning to the outcome. It is Charley's loneliness, shown by his picking out a pattern for a gift to Sue should he not survive. You truly get the sense he would almost prefer he did not, so he would not have to face her once he reveals the violence which is second nature to him.
Costner shows the women of the west to be something special also. Bening's character, Sue, may own some good china, but she can drink from a tin cup and tend to the wounded as well. She is strong, as women who went west had to be, but does not lose her femininity.
There are fine performances here from Costner, Duvall, and Annette Bening. The supporting cast is equally good, with Michael Jeter memorable in his final film. Michael Gambon, Diego Luna, Abraham Benrubi, and Dean McDermott round out this tale of the changing west. There are breathtaking shots of the open prairie that are matched by a western saga that is timeless, and could easily have been told in the early days of motion pictures.
The story here is so simple, and it's implementation so direct, that some failed to see its greatness. It ranks right up there with "Shane" in my book. There is a timeless feel to the storytelling here. One thinks of silent westerns made from old-fashioned books like "Riders of the Purple Sage" when watching this. Films with sound and those without are two different art forms with a strong connection to each other. Costner managed to bridge the gap between those art forms in "Open Range" and the results are unforgettable. If you doubt this, next time you're watching it, turn off the sound. You'll be able to follow the story without it. It might even help you appreciate the beauty of what Costner has done here.
Summary of Open Range
Packed with epic action, OPEN RANGE is a powerfully gripping story that's never been told until now, and stars Academy Award(R) winners Robert Duvall (1983 Best Actor, TENDER MERCIES) and Kevin Costner (1991 Best Director, DANCES WITH WOLVES), and Academy Award(R) nominee Annette Bening (1999 Best Actress, AMERICAN BEAUTY). A group of free grazers, four men trying to escape their past, are driving cattle and living off the land on the open range -- a place where nature makes the only laws. When a ruthless, evil rancher tries to run them out of town, the men's peaceful existence takes a tumultuous turn and ends in the grittiest, most explosive gunfight on film as two men battle a town for honor, justice, and a way of life that's quickly disappearing.Released almost exactly 11 years after Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven, Kevin Costner's Open Range proved yet again that the Western is the classic American genre. While it lacks the thematic impact of Eastwood's masterpiece, Costner's first film since 1997's ill-fated The Postman returns the actor/director of Dances With Wolves to the open prairies of America--in this case the free-range frontier of 1882--where legal "free-grazing" cattle drives were falling prey to empire-building land-owners. In the wake of territorial murder, free-grazing cowboys Boss (Robert Duvall) and Charley (Costner) seek vengeful justice against the ruthless rancher (Michael Gambon) who threatens their law-abiding survival. A feisty ally (the late Michael Jeter, in his next-to-final film role) and a doctor's sister (Annette Bening) offer support during climactic shootouts, masterfully staged with the shock and suddenness of real-life gunfire. Rich in character development and thick-hided humor, this handsome production redeemed Costner's directorial career with a well-told story (by Craig Storper, based on Lauran Paine's novel The Open Range Men), flawless performances, and stunning Canadian locations. --Jeff Shannon
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