Like the rest of the world, Hollywood was not very enthusiastic about America in the 1970s. In the face of the merciless brutality of the Vietnam War and the blatant racism of President Richard M. Nixon’s “Law and Order” (and his ruthless abuse of power through the cover-up of the Watergate scandal), some of the most interesting and talented filmmakers of the era featured “The Godfather,” “Serpico,” and “Nashville.” Even rollicking mainstream comedies like “The Bad News Bears” have been accused of being anti-establishment.
All of this was juxtaposed with the realization that John Wayne was dying. The quintessential American movie star, who, along with frequent collaborator John Ford, transformed Westerns into the myths of Manifest Destiny, was grasping the relevance of white oats and toothless cop movies as he lost his second battle with cancer. Moviegoers were alternately hostile and uneasy about this. Someone they desperately wanted or consistently wanted. didn’t want It was out of fashion. These visibly flawed humans were deeply infuriating, and Wayne couldn’t stand anything other than the death’s door version of what they had always been.He appeared in his last film, Don Siegel’s “The Shootist.”). When he disappears, his type and the genres he popularized seem to go with him.
This has left leading figures like Kurt Russell in trouble. Was once a Disney child star He grew up to be a charming and handsome devil. If westerns had still been popular, Russell’s path to adult stardom would have been surprisingly smooth. Athletic, sexy and self-deprecating, he was the next big thing in the genre. Alas, the very genre in which he reached his early heyday was popular for a while and then faded away.
But we didn’t shed a tear for Russell. John Carpenter’s “Elvis” proved he could act, and “Escape from New York” established his dashing bona fides. He also took umbrage at Wayne’s portrayal of a superpowered tough guy in Carpenter’s “Big Trouble in Little China.”
But Russell didn’t break into westerns until he landed the role of Wyatt Earp in 1993’s “Tombstone.” Naturally, he was a natural for the role of a legendary lawyer, but it would be another 12 years before he crumbled to dust again. To date, he has only produced three official Westerns. If you think this isn’t enough, at least you can say that his efforts evoke a strong response from the audience, good or bad. With that in mind, let’s rank!
3. Bone Tomahawk
RLJ Entertainment
S. Craig Zahler’s first attempt at genre deconstruction is by far his best work. If he’d given this to an above-average director with a keen sense of pacing, this could have been the “Predators of the Old West” movie we never wanted.
Unfortunately, with a novice Zahler at the helm, the film delivered a slow, awkwardly directed, and downright inept traditional Western that turned Ford’s “The Searchers” into a horror movie. It’s not Russell’s fault that it doesn’t work on “Bone Tomahawk.” He’s giving orders when he’s supposed to be a sheriff leading a squad of four men into the wilderness to rescue a young woman who has been kidnapped by a mutant species called “troglodytes.” If you’re looking for disturbing commentary on Ford’s masterpiece, all you’ll find is a vaguely racist battering from the author, who perfected his work one film later with “Brawl in Cell Block 99.” I’m in the minority who dislikes this movie, so your mileage will likely vary, but I can only see this as a very disappointing and missed opportunity. Kurt deserved better.
2. Tombstone
hollywood pictures
There are many better Westerns than “Tombstone,” but not many are as entertaining. The Kevin Jarre-written biographical drama purports to be a counterfactual retelling of the Wyatt Earp legend, but somewhere between Jarre stepping down as director and George Pan Cosmatos installing it, it morphed into a more boastful rollicking shooter. Russell, Sam Elliot, Powers Booth, Michael Biehn and of course, Val Kilmer as gunslinger dentist Dr. Holiday. As was the case with the vastly inferior “Bone Tomahawk,” Russell is the glue of this film. He shares a few memorable lines and key moments, but mostly allows his supporting cast to steal scenes with impunity. In this regard, the film is a generous film, and the manly good mood will attract countless fans, many of whom will quote chapters and verses of this film.
In addition to parodying John Wayne in “Big Trouble in Little China” This is the only movie where we see Russell really sporting his Duke fashion. It’s not a challenging role, but it certainly seems like an enjoyable one. This is significant considering the story behind it mentioned earlier. You see a man savoring his role as the film’s savior, so you can’t begrudge him this indulgence of the Duke’s.
1. The Hateful Eight
The Weinstein Company
Quentin Tarantino’s only official Western (“Django Unchained” drew on the genre’s tropes but was primarily set in the American South) and stars Russell as a bounty hunter transporting “Crazy” Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh). He was cast as John “Hangman” Ruth. Head to Red Rock, Wyoming for a neck stretch. He snows into the general store with his colorful villains and, perhaps anticipating the biggest presence of everyone in the room, a very large and quite disfigured surprise awaits Ruth.
Tarantino’s films could easily be done as stage plays, but their length can feel just as difficult in live theater format as it does in film format. Probably the best version of “The Hateful Eight” to watch. I’m currently watching the 210-minute miniseries cut on Netflix.. That’s not to say the movie needs more breathing room, but there’s a fun, quasi-cliff element to this transformation. But if you’re keeping a close watch on Russell, both cuts show the throwback star playing a beaten-down bastard who hides behind the law and beats the tar out of women. Considering Russell’s fully public impersonation of Wayne, it’s both unpleasant and terrifyingly charming. It is the legend of the Duke, rewritten with bloody facts.
