Wild Horses

Bad directing. The first thing you notice is too much time between actors giving their lines to each other. I hate that. Duvall's wife can't act. English isn't her first language and may have a small part to do with that, but she rubbed me the wrong way right off the bat. Did not buy her as a ranger and her delivery was too slow as well. Duvall himself made me anxious because of his breathing. He seemed to be straining for each breath, yet lights up a cigarette, cause that's what cowboys do! Did he also allow himself some ad libbing here and there? Scenes were choppy. Fade to black then start up again without any smoothness whatsoever. James Franco is a great actor and besides Harnett was the only one worth watching. I kept wanting to give up so many times watching this but stuck with it.

Those seeking for a detective movie might be disappointed. Wild Horses is first and foremost a family drama, while the investigation part takes secondary priority. It provides solid emotional scenes, mainly thanks to the veteran cast and the personal premise, although the pace is unfortunately slow. It may not appeal to anyone since it will take nearly an hour before the momentum actually builds up, furthermore the crime element is considerably weak.

Story follows the sheriff from small desert town who opens a cold case concerning a missing boy. It happened fifteen years ago, so understandably it rattles some people, especially the Briggs family. It becomes clear early on that Luciana Pedraza as the sheriff is not in the same league as the rest of the cast, which is unfortunate since her perspective, while not in the same volume of the family's, is still crucial to the plot.

Additionally, there is very thin material for the crime aspect, it could have been skimped to minor subplot, yet the movie invests quite a lot on the police angle. The rest of the time is focused on dialogues in the Briggs family. The Briggs are very rich family and very patriarchy, they also harbors a lot of secrets. Duvall plays as Scott, the head of the family and he delivers a very convincing performance. He keeps the interest of his family first, although this might collide with the tragedy of the past.

Josh Hartnett has added depth on his character. He looks straightforward or rigid, but can also be passionately aggressive. The youngest son Ben is played by James Franco and he might be hust the nicest and honest amongst all. Between the three of them the acting is highly presentable, but since the screenplay consists of slow pace conversations, it can be tedious at times.

It has the good intention on delivering very private issue by the perspective of an entire family. However, the inconsistent delivery and tired pacing might not be refined enough to deliver the intended message.

This is a film done by a man who has been in film business longer than a lot of us have been alive. His style is old school and you have to pay close attention to the storyline and smaller details because they reveal a lot about it toward the end. Also, it's a modern western and you have to go into this film with an appreciation for the western genre. Without a doubt, Duvall, and Franco carried the film along with Hartnett, but I think it would've been beneficial to see more of him. There were a few continuity issues and plot holes but every film has those issues. Granted, I'm a huge fan of both Duvall and Franco so I enjoyed watching the film. It's definitely a story you have to watch with an open mind.

"Don't ever forget the obvious. Those clues will lead you to where you need to be." Scott Briggs (Duvall) is a rancher who comes home and finds something he doesn't like. His emotions get the better of him and something terrible happens. 15 years later an investigator shows up and begins to ask questions about his past. Now Scott is forced to try and hide the truth from everyone while trying to help his family. First and foremost this is a good movie. That said Duvall is starting to fall into the legend trap. By that I mean he is really doing a characteture of himself in every movie lately. He is still great but the person he plays in Night in Old Mexico and this one is pretty much the same person. That is not a bad thing, but it also takes away from the personalization of the movie. Also much like Night in Old Mexico this is not a western even though the cover seems like it is. All that said, the movie is very good and if you liked Night in Old Mexico you will like this as well. Overall, an enjoyable movie to watch, but Duvall really seems to be phoning in every one of his performances lately. I give this a B.

Not much to be said about this film, though concerning the lives of a Texas Ranger involving ranches and features horses. One would know what this film is about from the trailers and overall tones. The film is a slow paced drama which are good at times but the directing, writing and acting aren't too great. The best scenes involve those with Robert Duvall and James Franco together, while the worst (and a lot of screen time) involves the Ranger character of Sam.

The acting here was clear she wasn't much of an actress with her tone and delivery (Her accent was noticeable). She was miscast and her scenes dragged the film down. Also poor acting from the Hispanic mother asking about her son, and a few of the thugs. The climax and overall 'reveal' of the film was very weak, as it just so happens and was dumb. The little subplots with the Maria character didn't really lead anywhere. Also with Josh Harnett's character and his wife, nothing amounted. As he wasn't used as much in the film as we thought we would be. The bright spots as mentioned were the performances of Duvall and Franco, and some nice scenes of the scenery. Wild Horses is a forgettable slow drama.