Open Range

Review by Clint Morris

In his umpteenth western, Kevin Costner plays the right-hand man of a free-grazer [Robert Duvall] who seeks a settling of scores with those that have done them wrong.

It's the 1880's, and Charley [Costner], Spearman [Duvall] and their support are free-grazing cattle. Denton Baxter [Michael Gambon], a rancher from the nearby town of Harmonville, is dead against free-grazing so rounds up the local thugs for a butcher, leaving one cowpuncher dead and another fighting for his life.

Charley and Spearman ride into town to get revenge. Meantime, the former finds unlikely love with local resident Sue Barlow [Annette Bening], who gets Charley thinking about whether or not he's in the right business after all.

Kevin Costner hasn't had a great last decade. Ok, so he's always been in work - but nothing that anyone's given two hoots about.

Seems the days of Oscar-winning triumph Dances with Wolves or crowd-pleasing blockbusters like Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves are as behind him as a road marking in the rear view mirror.

Bottom line: Costner's still a good actor, he's just been going for projects that are a little overambitious, and frankly, that's as translucent as lens cleaner. These days, he gets more hits from the detracting critics than the weekly box office.

Ok so Message in a Bottle, For the Love of the Game, even Dragonfly weren't terrible films, in fact; some of those were quite good - they just weren't what audiences wanted to see from the man who'd brought us many bravura films earlier on. It seems sap is about as welcome as cat poo on the laundry floor when it comes to pleasing hardened reviewers...

If anything, Open Range is a step back in the right direction. Granted, it's another Western, and Costner's almost retired the genre to a halt (having made more than his fair share of cowboy flicks) but at least it's a quality flick, that - assumption coming in to play - most should enjoy.

There's nothing overambitious about it, and that's the underlying factor. It's just a simple character story full of likeable and - being a western and all - unlikeable characters, with a knowable but easily endurable tale. In addition, the casting (Duvall is a star asset), the cinematography and the old-style Western feel it encompasses work fruitfully in its favour.

Open Range is no Dances with Wolves, heck it's not even Silverado, but something's definitely gone right when the words 'good' and 'Costner' get uttered in the same paragraph.

Hopefully it's an indication that there's still some good left in the one-time box office King than analysts previously predicted.

3 out of 5

Open Range
Australian release: Thursday February 12th
Cast: Kevin Costner, Robert Duvall, Annette Bening, Michael Gambon.
Director: Kevin Costner.
Website: Click here.