Lawmen : L'histoire de Bass Reeves

All my life I've heard the stories of Bass Reeves, and it automatically makes for a Hollywood drama. The man was a legend. But every account I've ever seen about his life, always did a disservice. The movie that came out a few years ago is no exception. The cartoonish mustache, the cliched shootouts, and the unrealistic dialogue made me want my 90 minutes back. I went into this expecting more of the same.

The first thing that caught my attention, however, was the cast. David Oyelowo has never played a bad character. But then I see Dennis Quaid, Donald Sutherland, Shea Whigham, and Barry Pepper, my first thought was sheesh. You almost CAN'T mess this movie up. Turned out I was right. The acting is subtle, even if the old school southern dialect is a little strained. The character development doesn't seem rushed. The cinematography is beautiful. It's a great show all around, and the end of each episode so far, makes you want to stay up past your bed time to watch the next. Hats off to a fantastic cast, and finally a storyline that does justice to this forgotten hero.

Being a big fan of both westerns and Taylor Sheridan I can say I've been looking forward to this ever since I first heard about it. It did not disappoint. It's shows how this hero, Bass Reeves, will do anything to take care of his family and bring justice to this who deservee it, even if that means working along side racists and other people he didn't like. There have been a few portrayals of this character over the years but David Oyelowo is by far the best yet. He makes what would still be a good show a great one. It's action packed and intelligent at the same time. Can't wait to see what Sheridan does next.

I enjoyed the first 5 or 6 episodes, but the last ones were a little out there and short. The last episode left me with questions unanswered, perhaps that was the intent. Over all a 7 at best. I enjoy most of Taylor Sheridan's stories/shows/endeavors, but I am glad this one is not setup for another season - or don't think it is. The shows with multiple seasons take far too long between them - so much so that I loose interest and let alone remember what was in the prior season. I truly believe it would be better to conclude some of his other shows like Yellowstone (if it is ending); or 1923 before coming out with more new ones.

I've only watch the first episode, and I'll come back and adjust my review after I finish the series, but I can tell already I'm going to like it. I do like it.

First of all, the writing in this is outstanding. Most productions would make everything black-and-white, good and evil, without any intrigue whatsoever. Bass himself is not perfect, in fact he fights for the confederacy willingly. Even as a slave, he has a sense of honor, of right and wrong, but he serves his master until his master no longer deserves his allegiance.

I know quite a bit of the history of this character, and so far they've been faithful to trying to replicate the authenticity of Bass Reeves.

As sets, locations, costumes, and related are outstanding. The casting is outstanding. No caricatures, and everyone plays the role right on the money neither under nor over playing it. This is smart writing that doesn't insult the intelligence of the viewer.

If the first episode is any litmus test, this is one of the smarter shows on television right now. I've been a critic of Taylor Sheridan lately because I want him to FINALLY finish Yellowstone, but if this is what he's been working on instead, I'm gonna give him a bit of a pass because the show really is outstanding.

If you liked 'The Good Lord Bird' this is very similar. Well filmed, good acting. Seems higher budget than you might expect. I'm only a few episodes in, but enjoying it. You can always tell when a tv series is based on a book because the storytelling tends to be better as does the character development.

If you're into Westerns, civil war style stories and the challenges of the mid 1800's, you'll no doubt like this. Also great to see Barry Pepper and Shea Whitman in the cast. David Oyelowo is a great leading man and brings so much to this series. Looking forward to finishing it and hopefully more series to follow.