Appaloosa

- 3 Eberts

This movie could have been called A History of Violence, part 2. It reunites Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen in this Western written and directed by Harris. It has similarities with the aforementioned movie in that there is a streak of violence that lurks beneath the surface of the main character in the movie. In History of Violence that violence was lurking beneath Viggio's character, here it is beneath Ed Harris'. We see hints of that streak in the barroom scene where Virgil beats a man because he is angry about something else.
The movie reminds me in some ways of My Darling Clementine and High Noon. The town people invite the lawmen for hire in, and then wonder if the cure is worse than the illness. The villain, played by Jeremy Irons, is driven out but then of course, must return for the final showdown.
Ultimately, the movie, which is beautiful to look at, will fall short for some because it is more truthful than the two classic Westerns referred to above. In Appaloosa, the villain is killed, but for reasons that are less than noble. Everett kills him to give his friend, Virgil a better chance at happiness in the town with his flawed woman. The killing, which was done for pragmatic reasons, was probably more truthful than the idealistic reasons portrayed in most classic Westerns.
Revisionist Westerns with its flawed characters are probably more honest than the classics, but they are probably also less fun. Movies that have a hero wearing a white hat somehow makes you feel good about yourself, particularly in times when things aren't going so well.
I like Westerns and I think this was an interesting movie. Roger gave it 3 stars and so will I. The more I think about this movie the more I like it.