Written by Mitch Cyrus

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The Mitch Man is back at it for us, and in his latest trip to the theater he reviewed the western "Appaloosa" for us ... which is directed by and stars Ed Harris.  The plot?  Two friends (Harris and Viggo Mortensen) hired to police a small town that is suffering under the rule of a rancher (Jeremy Irons) find their job complicated by the arrival of a young widow (Renee Zellweger).  Did this modern attempt at a western compare with other successes like "The Unforgiven" and "3:10 To Yuma"?  Mitch fills us in. After watching Ed Harris's performance in the new Western "Appaloosa", I was startled to look back on his long career and see that this was the first time Harris has appeared in a Western.  This seems like a terrible oversight, as Harris's steely-eyed gaze, calm resolve, and chiseled features seem to make him perfect for the genre.

Then again, maybe it isn't that surprising, as Westerns simply are not often made, with only two larger budgeted horse operas being released this decade; Kevin Costner's understated "Open Range", and the Russell Crowe/Christian Bale superlative remake of "3:10 to Yuma".

"Appaloosa" is not quite as good as either one of those aforementioned gems, but it is still a good enough movie to make you wish for a few more Westerns, and a lot fewer films about superheroes.

Harris is involved with all aspects of this movie.  He not only has the main role, he is also the director, and worked with Robert Knott on the screenplay of Robert B. Parker's novel about a pair of hired guns.  Harris is Virgil Cole, a law and order stickler who specializes in cleaning up lawless towns.  He is a living legend, known for his integrity, his ruthlessness, his fearlessness, and the speed of his draw.  Virgil has spent the last dozen or so years partnered with Everett Hitch, played by Viggo Mortensen.  Everett is the quiet brawn backing up Virgil's leadership, trusty 8 gage double barreled shotgun always at the ready.

Their skills are sorely needed in the small New Mexico Territory town of Appaloosa.  As is often the case in this genre, there is a powerful rancher terrorizing the town and its people.  Jeremy Irons gets the opportunity to chew on massive amounts of scenery as Randall Bragg, an loutish leader of an uncouth gang of cutthroats.  The town aldermen hire Virgil and Everett, who immediately impose Draconian laws on the town, to be used as the legal justification to start shooting things up.

The plot devices are relatively predictable, given the characters.  You get the normal allotment of escalating confrontations, Indian uprisings, sniveling town elders, bar room fights, and frontier justice.  In fact, if I were just judging this movie on its action pieces, I may not rate it any higher than two footballs.

But the enjoyment in this movie comes from the interplay between Harris and Mortensen.  You get to know quite a bit about each man during the course of the film, and neither is anywhere near as simple as they appear to be.  Virgil is a natural leader, a smooth-but-blunt talker who can charm someone out of their last nickel if he chose to.  But he has insecurities when it comes to anything not involving a gun, and some rage problems as well.

His best friend Everett is his superior when it comes to intellect.  Everett was a West Point graduate that fought for the North in the Civil War, and uses his both his military education and his general education to his advantage, although he appears to prefer to run away from his intelligence rather than embrace it.  He and Virgil are a great team, and the conversations between them are excellent; telling, emotional, and often quite humorous, especially with Everett constantly needing to help Virgil with his vocabulary.

The twist for this film comes in the form of Renée Zellweger, playing Allison French, a widow who comes into the town shortly after Virgil and Everett get established in their positions.  Allison and Virgil take an immediate liking to each other, complicating Virgil's work, and his relationship with Everett.

The character of Mrs. French is quite unique, and a different psychological point of view for a frontier woman than I have ever seen before.  She is not really good, not really evil.  Rather, she is a woman who does questionable things not out of greed or malice, but out of a need to survive a land without laws while being a woman, which very much meant that she was a second class citizen.

Unfortunately, Renée Zellweger was a horrible choice for playing this complex of a role.  This would have been a perfect role for Naomi Watts, Helena Bonham Carter, or Julianne Moore, women who have the talent to bring multiple facets to a character.  But with Ms. Zellweger, we get the same thing she usually gives; a "look how cute and adorable I am!" response to every dramatic situation.  This shallowness puts a tinge of dislike to her character, and made it, for me, the worst part of the movie.

Which is a shame, as the movie itself was a joy to watch, even with it's deficiencies.  As mentioned, the relationship between Harris and Mortensen was the driving force, and as long as that component was the focal point, the movie hummed right along.  It reminded me very much of "Open Range", and the give and take that was exhibited between Robert Duval and Kevin Costner.  That movie also had the triangle component with Annette Bening's appearance as the sister of the town doctor, but that role was very different from the role of Mrs. French.

The main difference between the two movies is the fact that the main characters in "Appaloosa" are lawmen, not cattle drivers.  These are men who are paid to kill other men, and the attitudes they have developed over the years of being successful makes for fascinating viewing.  They are experts on killing, and that fact seems to make them woefully ignorant on how to interact in circumstances where guns are not required.  There is some growth throughout the film for all of them, but not always in the way you would think.

The ending was both a cliché and a completely original twist.  It will surprise you when you see it, but then you will look back and know you should have seen it coming a mile away.

Which pretty much describes this movie as a whole.  You've seen it all before, but in many ways you're looking at something old at a new angle.

In spite of its shortcomings, "Appaloosa" entertains and makes you think.  Not a bad way to spend two hours.

My Rating - Frank Ryan (3 footballs)