jpanyard

Some of the worst acting ever committed to film by name players. The story is weak, the score abysmal, the directing non existent. This may have been the film that doomed Sam Elliott to supporting roles, B movies and TV westerns following his bravura performance in "Once An Eagle." Dennis Hopper's mumbled lines take up about 30 seconds. Ben Johnson is sleepwalking through his role and the female lead would have had difficulty outshining the furniture. Poorly written, poorly directed and poorly acted. It is hard to understand the high ratings given by some reviewers. If the novel on which it was based was as bad as this two-part miniseries, it is hard to believe it was published. The horses were pretty good, however.

Mark Wahlberg might be the Bruce Willis of the new generation. His taciturn Bobby Swagger is perfect. The action is basically nonstop and very gritty. Bobby is a sniper who has retired to the mountains after being screwed by the government in an event which finds his sidekick dead. After being set up, he is stone cold killer. Think Jason Bourne as someone who remembers his past is really p.o.'d about it. The acting is good all around, with Glover and Beatty as bad guys you love to hate. Underlying all this a morality tale about what this country and its government have become. Many situations, of course, stretch the imagination , but watching a sense of honor prevail, no matter how briefly, is worth the price of admission. No Oscar nominations here, but a big bundle of money for the producers will be no surprise.

Loving this genre of films, I looked forward to the BDs. Stayed up and lost an hour's sleep!! It is almost camp in its portrayal of street toughs and gangs in New York. ALL of the leading characters act like morons and beasts. Uusally there are one or two wrestling with the error of their ways and hoping to create a new life. The older brother is the only one who appears to have an IQ approaching 100. The others are definitely "special." I cannot think of a single redeeming characteristic in this truly disappointing show. How it ever got by the "suits" at NBC is far beyond me. Trying to recapture the situational vulgarity and violence that made The Sopranos a cult favorite, the creators of this who have shown it in not a simple task to get it right.