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Anytime you
have a western that stars Robert Duvall,
can you possibly end up with a bad film?
No way. And who would have thought that
Thomas Hayden Church would ever star along
side him (not to mention being nominated
for an Oscar for "Sideways") after
so many years as the dull-witted Lowell
in the TV series "Wings?" Well,
it happened in AMC's "Broken Trail."
"Broken Trail", directed by Walter
Hill, originally aired as a two part mini-series.
It introduces us to Prentice "Print"
Ritter (Duvall), one of the last of the
real cowboys. He employs his wayward nephew
Tom (Church) to help him drive a herd of
horses, after informing him that his mother
has died and did not leave her estate to
him. The pair head off into the frontier,
expecting little but a quiet running of
horses. But as fate would have it, along
the way they come across a wagonload of
Chinese girls tat are being delivered to
a cathouse. Even though they are moral men,
they almost leave them be, until the guy
doing the delivering decides to try and
steal some of their horses.
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Once he is dispatched, Ritter and Harte become
caretakers to the girls. So they not only have
to get the horses to their destination, but they
need to find a safe place for their new charges.
I had in the past enjoyed mini-series like "Lonesome
Dove", and appreciated "Open Range"
(which starred Duvall and Kevin Costner) a lot
more than most audiences. "Broken Trail"
is not quite as good as either, but comes pretty
close. Initially, it moves kind of slow, but it
fits the style of the characters to a tea. These
are simple men, and the simplicity of the story
takes its time to be set up. Mostly there are
deep conversations between the leads, but they
never feel forced or scripted.
Duvall turned in a pitch perfect performance,
but it seems sometimes as if he were born to play
this type of part. The real surprise was Church,
who is slowly but surely proving his mettle as
an actor. His range isn’t necessarily wide,
but in the right roles he delivers the goods.
What really stood out however, was the stunning
cinematography throughout the film. Most of it
is supposed to take place out in Oregon and Wyoming
(though it was actually filmed in Calgary), and
every shot of the open plains is shot as though
it belonged on the big screen. Sony's DVD release
(out this week), offers a gorgeous transfer which
brings out the best in both the video and audio
departments. The only disappointment was in the
lack of special features, which consisted mainly
of a promotional 'making of' featurette and some
trailers.
"Broken Trail", while not a perfect
western, is a very good one. I'd suggest spreading
it over two nights as it was originally intended.
Directed by: Walter Hill
Starring: Robert Duvall, Thomas Hayden Church,
Greta Scacchi, Chris Mulkey, Rusty Schwimmer
Extras: Making of Featurette, Sneak Peak of "Hustle"
on AMC
Specifications: Widescreen (1.78:1), Dolby Digital
5.1 Surround Sound
Studio: Sony / Columbia Tristar
Release Date: 9/5/2006
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website
We'll give Broken Trail a B.
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