The Journeyman

If you like westerns I would give this one a go on a Sunday afternoon with nothing better to do.

At points over acted, and quite cheesy, it grinds along without much character development. This point makes me kinda sad, because there are some very interesting characters that would draw you in if you simply knew more about them. The story itself isn't really that original, but what do you expect in this genre.

Not even in the top 200 westerns of all time :) but it is good enough to fill that "I wanna watch a new western" itch if you haven't seen it yet. Only for western superfans.

Overall I say 4/10.

A very bloody, violent and ruthless Western. Two brothers are orphaned and separated when young, and one takes the wrong path in life, becoming a morphine-addicted Desperado.

Various outlaws, drifters and people with financial interests seek to kill each other, across the Badlands (set in Texas), and they do a pretty good job of it. No one shrinks from pulling a trigger, that's for sure. The violence, especially against women and children, becomes appalling and Gratuitous, really. Not a movie to watch with the Little Lady nor the children.

One man was equipped with a "Broomhandle Mauser" pistol, which was not invented until 1896, and certainly not a common sight in the Old West. This appears, alongside many cap-and-ball variant weapons, which are all much older. So, the story could not have taken place until after the turn of the Century (1900). Just one little Oddity.

If you like to see a LOT of Pathos and Summary Executions, this movie is for you. I had to knock off a few points, though I like gritty, realistic Westerns, the Realism of this one fades, when I reflect that very FEW people would have survived an Old West like this one.

I saw this around the time it came out and watched it multiple times. Every few years I try to find it again to rewatch it and finally it showed up on Amazon.

There's a real nice tension throughout the film and I like the way the information in the back story unfolds in bits and pieces.

I found the story and characters quite interesting and the music good. There's not much black and white to be found in this film. All the charaters have their good and not so good, and really bad, and you find yourself not sure who to root for. (My favorite kind of film!)

I'm guessing from the credits that this was funded by asking everyone the writer/directer knew to chip in a little money, which means you've gotta deliver a solid product or you'll disappoint all your loved ones and I think James Crowley delivered a solid product.

I also simply enjoyed the scenery and livestock.

Some good ideas and a pretty impressive score made this a movie I didn't mind sitting through late one night when it came on the Westerns channel.

Problems include an entirely passive "hero" who does absolutely nothing (in fact only the villain does anything, really), and some characters who are introduced only to be forgotten. But Barry Corbin is a beloved character actor, and I found Dash Mihok relatively charismatic in his role as a double-crossed, repentant bank robber. Daniel Lapaine, as the protagonist (I guess), is pretty much a cold fish, and sticking out like he does is no easy task with some of the other awkward actors put to work in this movie. Any energy the movie has comes from Brad Hunt as the pseudo-antagonist and, to a lesser extent, the aforementioned Dash Mihok and Barry Corbin. Willie Nelson's presence on the bill made me wary initially, but he has a very small, brief role, for which I'm grateful (I love Willie as much as the next Texan, but his presence only ever serves to take me out of a movie).

The score had a cool 1970s horror feel to it, and the idea of a morphine addicted outlaw is pretty fresh. Unfortunately the movie forgets to have a second and third act, the entire movie being a fairly linear chase with plenty of sub-plots (and potential sub-plots) not paying off one bit. However, with the drought of modern westerns stretching on, beggars can't be choosers, wasted potential or not. Now if only I could find that neato score...

If you like your westerns gritty and violent, this will be right up your alley. I loved it!

The story of two brothers who end up raised in totally different ways is not like any other western you'll ever see, but that's what makes it so enthralling.

It's always fun to watch character actors like Barry Corbin and Burton Gilliam, and they are both great in this film.

The real star of the film is Brad Hunt. His acting is the kind that makes us all want to take note of his name. If there is any justice at all, Hunt will become a big star. He's that good.

If you don't like violent westerns, you may want to skip this one (it makes Unforgiven look like a bright ray of sunshine, by comparison), but otherwise, you owe it to yourself to see it, if nothing else, to see Brad Hunt's sensational performance.