Saddle up for Open Range

Kevin Costner has been in need of a great film like this for several years. The man who grabbed a clutch of Oscars recently suffered a massive career slump via several of the worst films ever made.

Open Range

Director: Kevin Costner

Cast: Kevin Costner, Robert Duvall, Annette Bening, Diego Luna, Michael Gambon

Cert: 12.

When the going gets tough, climb on a horse.

Kevin Costner has been in need of a great film like this for several years. The man who grabbed a clutch of Oscars for the lyrical Dances With Wolves and starred in several of the most successful films ever made has more recently suffered a massive career slump via several of the worst films ever made.

But he's back, with a conventional enough, old-fashioned Western - three friends (Costner, Duvall and Luna) take a herd of cattle across the Plains and on the way come across a small, isolated town under the heel of local Mr Big (wonderfully played by Gambon, as a nasty Irishman). Enter left The Magnificent Seven (Three), High Noon and Unforgiven, and all those other cowboy yarns where decent men do what they have to do - that is packed with excellence.

Open Range looks good and everything leads to a spell-binding shoot-out. The playing, as you would expect, is brilliantly low-key and the screenwriting allows for much more than shootin', stabbin' and chokin' ... this is a thoughtful, superbly-paced film with a strong leaning towards characterisation.

It is almost a gentle film, notwithstanding its violence, and Costner returns to the sort of mature storytelling he has done so well in the past. If you want a classic rendering of the Western genre this is it.

Saddle up, adjust your Stetson and wallow in one of the best Westerns in years.

Star Rating: 4/5