CinePhillyist Reviews... Appaloosa

Appaloosa is a film that's at turns exciting, funny, thoughtful, and moving. Although it is certainly set firmly in the tradition of the American Western, it avoids many of the cliches of the genre, and those it does not avoid, it at least approaches from a unique angle. It has a realistic, humorous love story, and a major female character who's imperfect and complex. There are a couple of bloody showdowns in dusty streets, but (warning: spoilers ahead) our heroes don't go out in a blaze of glory, as I thought they might. When the villain escapes, he returns not with guns blazing, but with money tumbling from his hands, buying up the town and setting up a fascinating reversal; by the end of the film the very same important people who hired Cole and Hitch to get rid of Bragg are cozying up with the former rancher, and would prefer if Cole and Hitch would just disappear.

And how about Cole and Hitch? These are some fascinating men, brought to powerful life by Harris and Mortensen. They're hard, cold bad-asses at first, but as the film goes on, their emotions bubble to the surface more and more. Cole is clearly the leader of the duo, and in many ways the center of the film, but Hitch is the true hero and witness of the tale—it's he, after all, who provides the opening and closing narration, and he who sees the trouble brewing at the end of the film and finds the only possible solution. Earlier in the film, Cole chides Hitch, telling him he's not as good with a gun because he feels too much, and that gets in the way of him doing the job. But it's Cole who lets feelings get in his way here, and Hitch who saves him, with a quick, well-aimed gun shot.

Appaloosa is really a perfect Western, with intelligent, funny dialogue; intriguing and realistic characters; subtle and powerful performances from great actors (including Lance Henriksen, a wonderful character actor whose work I always enjoy); plenty of tension and action; and a moving story that shows much insight into the human condition. In fact, the film has only two flaws: the opening narration, and the closing narration. Narration is always a tricky thing in movies; very rarely it can enhance a film, as is often the case in film noir, but usually it's just an indication that the filmmakers either didn't trust their storytelling abilities enough to get things across through the visuals and dialogue alone, or didn't trust the audience enough to understand. Unfortunately the narration in question here is an example of the latter. There's nothing included in this voiceover that isn't already conveyed far more powerfully by the film itself. To add insult to injury, the narration is poorly written, full of the cliches the film otherwise lacks, and poorly read by the otherwise talented Mortensen. It's a mystery as to how it got in there; I just hope it'll be taken out in a future "Director's Cut" release, a la Blade Runner.

Appaloosa is not playing in any of the usual Philadelphia theaters we cover in CinePhillyist, but you can find it on screens today in King of Prussia, Cherry Hill, Voorhees, and Plymouth Meeting.

Image via Internet Movie Poster Awards Gallery