Honeybeads Blog

I've seen this movie a few times and watched it recently this past weekend. I really liked this film and it is one of my favorite Sam Raimi flicks next to the Evil Dead trilogy. It really is a showcase of his talents at using the camera. The plot is nothing special but it works for this kind of film. This movie could be retitled "How to Compose Awesome Shots". If you a Raimi fan and haven't seen The Quick and the Dead (then mostly I question how you call yourself a Raimi fan), or if you just enjoy movies with very intelligent and unique camera work, you need to add this one to your Blockbuster/Netflix que post-haste.

The plot is nothing too elaborate, but it works fine for the purposes of this film. It's even a little creepy when you finally find out why Sharon Stone's character is so vengeful toward Gene Hackman's. The script is otherwise what you'd expect - pretty over-the-top but still seems to work.

Favorite Line:
Lance Henrickson: "You wanna play poker with me little lady?"
Sharon Stone: "Looks like you're having a pretty good time playing with yourself."

The best part of the film next to the aforementioned camera tricks has to be the characters. Each cowboy in this film has a very colorful persona that is either good or evil - no inbetween. The dude who takes advantage of a young prostitute is so disgusting in every way you are literally repulsed by him. The good guys - Sharon Stone, Leaonardo Decaprio, and Russell Crowe - are good looking and full of purpose. I really found myself rooting for the good guys, here. Gene Hackman, the head bad guy, gives, in my opinion, the best performance I've seen him give. By the end of the movie, if you don't want to personally climb into the screen and shoot this guy, you'd better check your own homicidal tendancy meter.

Brian's Bottom Line: Fun, fun, fun! This is a great take on the western movie and certainly the most interesting of the modern westerns. Don't expect a complex plot, but you will see some great directing. Buy this one - it's one of those you can watch again and again.