Rating: 
Summary: A worthy addition to a classic film genre
Review: OPEN RANGE, Kevin Costner's latest directorial effort, is easily the best western since UNFORGIVEN and a vast improvement over his beautifully photographed but shallow, preachy, pretentious and politically correct epic DANCES WITH WOLVES.Showing a reverential love for the western genre, Costner allows his film take its narrative time building audience relationships with the beautiful landscapes and characters, portrayed here with many fine acting turns. Irish actor Michael Gambon makes a great villain, dripping with malicious unchecked capitalistic greed. Annette Benning makes a fine western heroine/love interest as a doctor's assistant. Michael Jeter turns in a fine supporting performance as a grizzled blacksmith. Robert Duvall delivers a powerful and understated portrait as the mentor figure and Costner delivers his finest performance to date (and I am NOT a Costner fan). His character is shaded, complex, tortured without being neurotic and always fascinating to watch. The Canadian locales are brilliantly photographed and I value the editing. I have long since tired of the whipping MTV, vomit inducing jump cuts of so many contemporary features. Costner stages the gun battles tightly and with a great deal of historical accuracy. The violence is realistic, immediate, bloody and appropriately ugly and clumsy. So far, this is one of the best films of the year, certainly the best film I've seen this summer (I love PIRATES, but for other reasons). OPEN RANGE actually begins this year's Oscar race in earnest. A worthy addition to a classic genre. Long live the western!
Rating:
Summary: Great Movie
Review: I found the slow pace of this movie to be refreshing in a sea of nonstop-inyourface-action-allthetime productions. The extra time allows for excellent character development, and you begin to feel at one with the era. And if that isn't enough for you, the scenery is enough is to keep your eyes fixated on the screen. The climax is well worth the wait, with one of the best shoutouts I have seen since "Heat". Robert Duvall was fantastic, Kevin Costner was very good and Annette Bening was not-so-good (IMHO). Nonetheless, this is a great "guy-flick" even for someone who is not normally a fan of the Western.
Rating:
Summary: A Rare and Fine Western
Review: This genre cannot be accurately critiqued by today's
movie critics, because most of them were not around in the hey day of the Western. So if you read your local reviews, as I did
and it is not glowing, don't let that keep you from seeing this one. Back in the day ALL Movie and TV Westerns were pretty formulaic. Good Guys, Bad Guys, Shootem' ups and Romantic Interests. So to say that one does not break new ground, is moot. For those of us who like them, the story may not be the most important thing. Kevin and Robert give us some rich character development as Charlie and Boss, a couple of "free
grazers" driving a herd from pasture to pasture. The first part of this movie shows a little of that life, then is shattered by
an Irish-American ranch owner bent on ridding the region of any such "trash". The pace is not slow, and not fast ..but laid back until confrontation eventually takes place. The photography is excellent, and the locations in the northern Rockies very cinematic. Annette Bening plays the sister of a doctor called into action when the gunplay happens. She and Charlie are the "romantic interest". ALL the characters in this movie are fleshed out marvelously. I won't give away a lot more, but you know if you like westerns, you should not MISS this one. For ladies and gents both...The gunplay is realistic, but the story and romance, of the era and the parties involved more than make up for it. See this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Exceptional production, destined to be a classic
Review: Classic story, classic acting (Duvall should get best actor), incredible direction and photography, all put together in an **exceptional production**. Not made for the teen market (yeah!), this movie has great character development that reflects how people were in the period of the American cowboys. No politcal correctness, slathering sex while falling in love, asian karate, and guns that don'r run out of bullets. Costner is back with a film superior to Dances with Wolves (best director II for him). My only negative was the first half of Annette Benning's performance - a little too subdued. Best gun fight ever done. Great ending. Want to see it again. My Best Picture so far this year.
Rating: 
Summary: A for Effort
Review: Uninspiring dialogue made this film seem too long. Lonesome Dove it is NOT, and Duvall seemed to be reprising his role without the sparkle of McMurtry's story and wonderful characters. I found it very unlikely that Benning's character would have been single for very long in that town--women were too scarce. It was still a pleasure to watch a film with an attempt at a story--something there are too few of these days.
Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Movie
Review: What a great date movie!!! Wonderful love story. Riveting acting. Anette Bening and Kevin C have a tremendous amount of chemistry. What we liked best was the classic nature of this Western. Bad guys hurt good guys. Good guys get even. The innocence of the good guys is so refreshing. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best!
Review: This is one great movie! It's one of the best I've ever seen!
Annete and Kevin do a great job and they have wonderful chemistry! If I could, I'd see it once a week in the theater!(I've seen it twice now!) Wonderful!
Rating:
Summary: One of the best Westerns in Years!
Review: If you are in the mood for a slow paced western, this is the one to see. It is not quite as slow moving as Unforgiven and the acting is top notchm especially Robert Duvall who is both funny and convincing as a cowboy. The final gun shootout takes a while to happen, but once it does, it is a 15 minute gun fight that will probably go down as one of the very best western gun fights in cinematic history. Kevin Costner has finally directed and acted in a good movie. I put this one just a notch below Dances with Wolves, but it is still one of his best.
Rating:
Summary: Old fashion values
Review: Kevin Costner breaks the stereotyped mold he has been in lately, with his shared lead with Robert Duval. Great casting and cinematography accompany themes of honesty, integrity and absolute loyalty for friends. A condensed version of "Lonesome Dove" with some up-close gunplay that puts the viewer in the thick of it. If you like Westerns, you won't be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Open Range
Review: If you like a good western, you won't be disappointed with this film. It's comes through in every aspect of excellent film making. Kudos to Keven Costner who has certainly redeemed himself with this film.
| 
