There are no lulls but not a ton of action, either. This might be one of the best movies, audibly-speaking, I've ever heard, which is another reason for ranking it Number One. When the action does occur, such as gunfire, the sound is incredible. The two men who are out on the range with Duvall and Costner also were excellent. It was nice to see Bening actually play a wholesome woman for a change. Duvall, by the way, gives one of the best short "speeches" I've ever witnessed in a movie. 2 - Characters you really care about, led by three actors who almost always give solid performances: Robert Duvall (the best in here), Costner and Annette Bening. If it looks spectacular on my 24-inch flat-screen, I can't imagine how awesome it would be a big plasma set. I make this bold statement because of the following: 1 - Fantastic scenery and beautiful cinematography. I can't give it higher praise than that! Since I've seen so many, for so long, it's especially high praise. The best thing I can say about this film right out front is that it may be the best western I've ever watched. Well, at least Kevin Costner must have a heart for the genre as he been involved with several major western productions in the last 15 years, this the latest. Western films were big at the box office in several decades, too. People in the Baby Boomer generation grew up with them on television. They don't westerns that much anymore, at least on the big screen. What starts out with all the flavour of a Boys' Own adventure (complete with cutesy dog) turns out to be a well-rounded minor classic. Open Range is no high and mighty moraliser however there are plenty true-to-genre one-liners, such as "You're nothing!" (grim-faced, cornered bad guy) - "Maybe so," (good guy pointing a gun at him), "but I'll still be breathing in another minute!" Towards the end of the film they also battle with their own inner demons. The qualities of the main heroes are likeable - they value the trust, respect and confidence that is given them and realise the value of these things. The characters are well fleshed out, it has plenty to appeal to adults (men and women) rather than being just a boys-with-guns film. For actor/director/producer Kevin Costner, it seems to have been a labour of love and one that has paid off handsomely. Open Range doesn't do anything particularly new, it just does it particularly well. Their easy going,straight from the hip portrayal of the main characters was one of the reasons that as soon as I had finished watching the video I rewound it and the whole family watched it again.A traditional, well-made western - suitable for most ages, features good guys herdin' cattle, bad guys tryin' to steal the cattle, codes of honour, a corrupt sheriff, a fantastic shoot-out, and Annette Bening being lovely in the wings. Kevin Costner in my opinion is a fine actor, but put him in with an under-rated master such as Robert Duvall, and you can't go wrong. Although the actors had a simple storyline to work with, I felt their performances made the movie all the more realistic. The storyline was simple and easy to follow at the same time as it retold a fine piece of early American history. And for once my family could sit down and watch a movie without all the smut, swearing and extreme violence that unfortunately, all movie makers of late, seem to think is necessary to sell them. This time about the "Free Range" cattlemen and the different hardships they had to cope with. Although not quite as good as "Dances With Wolves" Open Range, funnily enough, not only stars Kevin Costner but is along the same theme in as much as it tells a story about the early American way of life. Open Range is without doubt one of the best family movies I have seen for a long time.
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