Ed's Review Dot Com

Evenstar Films, Film Science, Harmony Productions

Paul Dano, Bruce Greenwood, Shirley Henderson, Neal Huff, Zoe Kazan, Tommy Nelson, Will Patton, Rod Rondeaux, Michelle Williams

The year is 1845 and a group of settlers are travelling the Oregon Trail. They’ve hired Stephen Meek (Bruce Greenwood) to lead them. Meek says he’s familiar with the area and knows a shortcut across the Cascade Mountains. Taking an unmarked trail, and blazing it most of the way, Meek gets them into a lot of trouble. The become horribly lost, and many people died as a result of a lack of water and the extreme hardship of the trail. As things become worse, a native american crosses their pass, and since Meek has proven to be unreliable, the men are considering trusting the Native American to be their guide and help them find water. But the Native Americans are fierce warriors and enemies of the people and they’re not sure who to trust. Based on a true story, this is the story of some of the first pioneers to cross the Oregon Trail.

This is a western adventure. It should have been much better, but there are several problems. First is the historical accuracy of the story. The travelers are very cruel and mean to the guide. There is no indication that this was the case. Also it builds to a very anticlimactic and abrupt ending which is not warranted. There is a bit more to the story that should have been told and there should have been an ending. There is a point where one of the boys discovers some gold. This is what has been come to be knwn as the Blue Bucket Lost Mine. For years afterward people tried to rediscover this location that was filled with gold, but it has never been found. In order to learn of the history, you have to look outside the film. There is only a single scene here that is never revisited, but it was one of the great mysteries of the trip across the mountains.

That being said, it’s not all bad. The scenery is beautiful and the acting is certainly acceptable. It’s a good western adventure and worth watching. But be sure to look up the facts of Meek’s Cutoff and the history of these people for the background of the story. It’s a fascinating story. The movie is relatively exciting, and fun to watch, and it got me interested in studying more about the events of the story. Decent adventure and well worth my time.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Lava Box Entertainment Group, Noble Productions Ltd

Brett Moses, Ryan Hurst, Dominique Swain, Michael Parks, Lee Ann Womack, James Parks, Ron Canada, Wes Brown, Tracy Byrd, James Bobinger

Jimmy Wayne Collins (Brett Moses) is a country star with a career on the rocks. He decides to head bck home to Texas to nurse his dying father, Pete (Michael Parks, and ends up learning a lot about himself and the ties he left behind in his youth. He’s got lots of burned bridges to try to repair as he learns that there’s more to life than fortune and fame and many ways to live an honorable life.

First and foremost, this is a western. But it is much deeper and darker than most. Jimmy has been carrying a secret for many, many years which is eating him alive. When his Dad is really sick, he feels an obligation to take care of him, but neither he, nor his dad, enjoy each other’s company. But he still tries to do what it right. It is clear he is deeply depressed. The secret he is hiding is too much to bear. Plus the stress of being a one hit wonder is pretty tough. This is a well acted morality play of right and wrong. Will Jimmy be able to right the wrong he did years ago and make things right? It’s a deep movie, but pretty good.

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Fuse Media, Sad Flutes

Dong-gun Jang, Kate Bosworth, Geoffrey Rush, Danny Huston, Tony Cox, Lung Ti, Analin Rudd, Markus Hamilton, Rod Lousich, Matt Gillanders

Yang (Dong-gun Jang) has been trained from childhood as a samurai warrior. He’s the best. His clan was at war with another clan, and the other’s were defeated. The last remaining member of the other clan is a baby girl. Refusing to kill the child, Yang becomes the number one target of his clan, requiring the shedding of his blood to make up for disobeying the order. Yang takes the baby in tow, and heads to the old west to visit a friend who settled there long ago. Alas his friend has passed on, but Yang meets a young woman, Lynne (Kate Bosworth) who is a knife throwing circus performer, and the town drunk, former gunslinger Ronald (Geoffrey Rush). It seems everyone is after Lynne for a terrible secret she is hiding, and Yang’s clan is not willing to forget what he failed to do as well. All this leads to an unbelievable showdown in the street.

This is a Samurai Western, much like the original Kung Fu with David Carradine. But this is a very beautiful film. A lot of it is dream-like and very artistic. It is a grand battle that we get to witness, but by the same token, it has the magical, mystical feel of many of the great Chinese Kung-fu films. I was very impressed with the drama and the beauty of this film. It is not really literal, but very visual treat that is hard to forget. It’s funny and suspenseful, but above all, poetic in the telling of the story. This is a very, very good film, and I really enjoyed it very much. Don’t expect a pure kung-fu film, nor a western. It’s a blend of the two done with a lot of artistic license, but if you stick with the film, it is very, very beautifully done. Very worth watching!

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Blind Wink Productions, GK Films, Nickelodeon Movies

Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin, Ned Beatty, Alfred Molina, Bill Nighy, Stephen Root, Harry Dean Stanton, Timothy Olyphant, Ray Winstone

Rango (Johnny Depp) is a Chameleon who, being able to shift to his surroundings, naturally wants to be an actor. He performs his plays in the terrarium in which he lives along with such friends as a wind up fish and half a kids doll. Needless to say because these are lifeless objects, they do not perform up to the standards of Rango. But a sudden accident finds Rango stranded all alone out on the highway in the middle of the Mojave Desert until he meets Beans (Isla Fisher). Walking to find water brings him to the town of Dirt, a failing town full of reptiles and the like with no water. One by one the residents are giving up, selling off their land and moving out of Dirt. Rango finds many opportunities to carry on his craft of acting, and becomes the Mayor and sets out to save Dirt. But there are some really evil outlaws waiting to see that Rango doesn’t make it through the day.

This is a successful animated film. Rango is such a lovable character, that we feel for him as he lies and bluffs his way into the minds and hearts of the people of Dirt, making them believe that he alone can find water and save the town. But he’s bit off a bit more than he can chew, and it looks like curtains for poor Rango and the end of Dirt. Rango works because the story is so clever and the character is very fun to watch. We know Rango’s a buffoon and has no idea what he’s doing, but he’s so intent on helping the town and the people he has come to care very much for that he wants to do it so bad. This film is as good as any live action western, and has a lot of good values and reasons to keep you interested in what happens. I was expecting to be disappointed, but I wasn’t. Try as I might, I couldn’t look away and the movie pulled me in right away and kept me riveted throughout the film to the closing credits. Nickelodeon has done a fine job with this film, and should be commended. I recommend Rango for adults and children alike, as it’s a good story, sure to keep everyone’s interest.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Rafran Cinematografica, Euro International Film (EIA), San Miura

Rod Steiger, James Coburn, Romolo Valli, Maria Monti, Rik Battaglia, Franco Graziosi, Antoine Saint-John, David Warbeck, Giulio Battiferri

This is the story of two John’s. Sean (James Coburn) and Juan (Rod Steiger). Sean is an Irish Revolutionary and an explosive expert on the run in Mexico and a wanted man. Juan is the head of a bandit family who’s dream is to accomplish what his father failed to do, to rob the bank of Mesa Verde. This is an odd pair, as they each look for what they want and disregard the other. Of course if helping each other is to their benefit, they will do it, and these guys keep bumping into each other.

Every now and then I like to throw in an odd tidbit or hidden gem. This is certainly one. In the 1971 the Spaghetti Western (old west films done in Europe, mostly Italy, but some of the greatest western stories ever told) was king of the box office. These Spaghetti Western films made mega stars from the likes of Clint Eastwood, but also made household names of the Terrance Hill/Bud Spencer guys from They call me Trinity and brought some of the classics like A Fistful of Dollars, The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly, and many, many others. This is much lesser known, but is also a very classic and quite funny western. James Coburn became really big, and did a great job as the IRA fugitive Sean, on the run, riding his motor scooter around blowing things up. But the real master of this film is Rod Steiger, not so Mexican, but able to play the role of a bandit leader with the best of them. What a fantastic job. Some of the funniest segments of this movie are Rod Steiger talking to himself and trying to figure out how he got roped into something that he didn’t mean to. He’s like Ricky Ricardo when Lucy is on her game, or Oliver Hardy when he says, “Well this is another fine mess you got me in to.”

This film was renamed “A Fistful of Dynamite” for some odd reason, and there is also a short version with more than 1/4 of the film cut out. Be sure to watch the original 2 1/2 hour version if you get the chance. It’s a very enjoyable film, and one that gives you a lot of reason to laugh for weeks afterward. I saw this film in 1971 when it came out. It started a life long admiration of James Coburn’s work. But it is available on Netflix “Watch Instantly” and they have the full 2 hour 1/2 version that I saw in the Philippines in 1971. I have not been able to see the original full length version in all these years, and it was like revisiting an old friend. If you’ve ever been a fan of the Spaghetti Western genre, this is a must see. It may be one of those hidden classics that you missed. If so, it’s a great Saturday afternoon instant queue filler. Great film. Great statement on “revolution” in general.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog