Comes a Horseman

Good and gripping modern western imbued with a deep nostalgia for a vanished world , set in the ranchlands of Montana 1945 , dealing with an old-fashioned cowboy on horseback , an Anzio war veteran resistant to the modern times , called Frank Buck (James Caan) . He is a free-spirited man out of sync with the contemporary age . Buck reluctantly attempts to help and joins forces with a single woman , Ella Connors , (Jane Fonda , who holds an uncanny resemblance to her father Henry as well as her brother Peter and her personality dominates the film) pitting wits against the world progress , oil-rich proprietaries and a nasty land baron (Jason Robards as her previous incestuous cousin) in an attempt to hold their dream of pioneering spirit and freedom . Buck and Connors are supported by a local old timer called Dodger (Richard Fansworth) . Meanwhile , a powerful banker (George Grizzard) attempts to take all the oil rich lands surrounding the wealthy owners . An the end takes place and exciting and moving climax when the main conflicts developing throughout the movie come alive .

Romantic , compelling , elegiac and marvelously acted Western with an extreme feel by that time and period . Sorrowfull essay on civilized progress and exploitation of nature , including two main characters out of step with the modern world . The message of Dennis Clark's screenplay is often a little too heavily underlined buttressed by some rather obvious symbols . The film turns out to be rebellious as well as respectful with classic Western mythology , including ordinary set pieces : saloon fights , go riding , rodeo , close range , stampedes and final gun-play , adding some Fordian touches . Although the flick is more interested in the sensitive love story between Fonda and Caan than battles and western action . This ¨Comes a horseman¨ bears certain resemblance to ¨Lonely are the brave¨ by David Miller with Kirk Douglas , Walter Matthaw , Gena Rowlands ; both of them are misfit modern Westerns , share similar issues : ranchers' conflict , open range , confrontations and resistance to the modern ages . ¨Comes the horseman¨ results to be an elaborately designed Western with a slow-moving and persuasive treatment of Western familiar themes such as : brawls in a bar , cattle chase , war range , shootouts , and including a blazing conclusion brings this thrilling picture to a highly satisfactory final . Very good acting from a great cast . As Jane Fonda as the spinster banshee woman who fights off relentlessly cattle baron , she is mercilessly struggling to make it on her own to not have to sell out her lands . James Caan is really convincing as the cowboy who feels empathy and finally love for Fonda . Both of whom are really faced off a villain owner , masterfully played by Jason Robards as a cattle baron attempting to gobble up all Montana land , whose affair with her as a teenager has marked to her father . And special mention for Richard Farnsworth as a Walter Brennan-style old times who steals the show as the veteran who wants to die with boots on .

Pakula directs with aplomb and eloquent feeling for landscapes , making magnificent use of outdoors and adding a wonderful cinematography by Gordon Willis who gives a visually superb lighting . Furthermore , it displays a rousing and thrilling musical score by Michael Small . This intriguing picture was compellingly directed by Alan J. Pacula , though being slowly and deliberately realized . Pacula made a lot of nice films , such as : All the president's men , Sophie's choice , The Parallax view , Starting over , Presumed innocent , Pelican brief , The devil's own and this one : Comes a horseman .

If you like James Caan, (Frank Athearn), "City of Ghosts" who works as a cow hand for Jane Fonda, (Ella Connorfs),"Old Gringo" and owns a large stretch of land in the West and has just lost her husband in WW II and is left all by herself to run a big ranch along with Richard Farnsworth, (Dodger); who is an older man and has worked for Ella's father for many years on the ranch. Ella has some deep dark secrets in her life and rarely says a few words to anyone and plays the role of a rough and tough gal who can do everything by herself. Ella soon finds out she needs help and decides to hire Frank Athearn to assist her with her cattle. Jason Robards is a rich old man who has the hots for Ella and had become very close to her in the past and still wants to control her life. This is a different type of Western and if you like cattle, you can see them running all the time in and around all kinds of wood land. This picture disappointed me, however, Richard Farnsworth gave a great supporting role and was nominated for an Academy Award.

I'm a fan of the late Alan J Pakula's naturalist style of direction, low on action but high on character, particularly his earlier contemporary political thrillers "The Parallax View" and of course "All The President's Men" and so came to this low-key out-west drama set during the second world war, (not that you'd know from the storyline itself). With an A-list acting cast boasting James Caan, Jane Fonda & Jason Robards you just know there's going to be a fair bit of intensity on display. In fact Fonda, despite being on screen from pretty much the start takes ages to utter her first line and it's fair to say that the director employs the "say more with less" approach throughout.

The plot, characters and indeed cinematography recall to mind classic films of yore, like Hawks' "Red River", Stevens' "Giant" and even a touch of "Gone With The Wind" with the fire at the conclusion, but the action is a little laboured, with, to these ears slow-talking, drawling dialogue quite often proving fairly difficult to decipher. The camera however picks out some wonderful scenery in natural clear light and throughout there's a sympathetic musical soundtrack adding shading to the pictures up front.

Back to the plot, which is a little melodramatic, I fear, with its casual slaughter of various individuals and depiction of Jason Robards as the smouldering resentful villain of the piece - I found all this much harder to swallow in its mid-40's settings than if it had been set in the old west. Ditto in fact all the other main characters - if it wasn't for the appearance of the oil derricks, light aircraft and contemporary cars, this story could have happily slotted into a mid 1860's time-line.

Of the acting, it's obvious that Pakula is going to get his handsome leading couple romantically involved although when it's done it's at least done without preamble, subverting the romantic courtship ritual of every other western since the year dot. Caan is fine as the strong-willed individual well able to look after himself (he early on dispatches a couple of Robards' thugs in short order in one of the few action scenes in the film), at least willing to consider adapting to the present-day, while Fonda is probably a bit too mannered in her portrayal of the independent single woman being driven to sell up her ranch by a combination of failing resources and Robards' machinations. She overplays occasionally with her eyes acting more than the rest of her, especially when she swears her "Damn your soul" oath against Robards. Robards himself, late of "All The President's Men", of course, does moody and stolid throughout, with sometimes variable results.

In summary then, a slow-moving but reasonably involving tale of the new old-west, which could have stood more enlivening in my opinion.

Really shouldn't be allowed to review film.

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I only downrated this movie from 10 out of 10 for the predictable script. I was amused by the comment that Richard Farnsworth seemed out of breath. I am not even Farnsworth's age at filming yet, live in the sticks and I am similarly out of breath when doing heavy work. I have had to quit roping at age 60 due to back pain from previous ski racing injuries and occasional horse falls. In any case this is a very accurate description of cattle ranching anywhere. I have visited places in our Big Smoky Valley where real cattle ranches lived, raised kids and worked in mud, snow, very little for conveniences and without the power grid. We will go to a real cattle roundup near McDermitt, NV next fall of 4000 cattle. This is done by a pioneer family with four brothers, and offspring and is a prized invitation.

Watching home movies from real ranchers might convince some city people who don't notice things like such rudimentary sparse conditions. One example of a goof in the movie was Fonda putting on a watch which would have been an extreme extravagance in 1945. Had this movie had writing as realistic as the filming, it would have been much better. Robards was just to vicious to be real. This was 1945, not 1875, and he couldn't have gotten away with all the murders. The automobiles used, Fonda's 1928 or 29 Model A pickup, and Robard's 41 convertible, the Sheriff's 37 Dodge, and the Banker's 42 Plymouth were all very typical. In 1945, people didn't have the kind of money that they do now, and drove a lot older cars and there were no new cars between 1943 and 1946, and very few 1942 models due to the war.

The simple conversations are typical of cowboys and rural people who work hard and don't play boom boxes and don't say much. They are not driven like city people and work much more quietly. The courting buildup between Caan and Fonda had to do with each adapting to the other gradually and trust forming. It wasn't that Caan was laid back as much as he distrusted Fonda's impetuous reactions at first. The writers really got dialog and realistic conditions right.

I am from a rural background, went to college, drafted into the Army, then finished college and lived and worked in bigger and bigger places and did travel to a lot of places including Europe and Asia. I finally got tired of it, knowing I could create my own job in a small place. This is why a lot of people live in simple places and why so many retire in simple places. They don't care that there are no cable systems, malls, stores, or hospitals. That last long ride to a hospital hopefully will finish you off in the time it takes to get there. Simple places with low housing prices, and a simpler more outdoor life allow retirement poor couples to survive with a decent lifestyle which is far divorced from city/suburban pressured lifestyles. When people wonder why anyone would choose such a life, particularly after "seeing the world" some of it is the above. Handshake business, people who care about each other but still fight and argue, and leaving your doors unlocked is real rural culture, particularly in the west, but you always distrust government and you keep your guns ready.

I highly recommend this movie, I would have given it 8.5 out of 10, but the software is whole numbers, so it is rounded upward.