Open Range (2003) Review

Open Range is a perfect example of a great modern Western. It doesn't outdo 3:10 to Yuma, but it's certainly a quality movie. I never realized how great of an actor Kevin Costner is. I don't see many of his movies, and he seems to be one of those actors who used to be good, but everything new falls flat. Not quite to the extent of Nicolas Cage, who makes terrible movies these days, but Kevin Costner doesn't seem to have the magic he did earlier on. Sure, Robert Duvall is great in the movie as well, but his performance is overshadowed by Costner's performance. Everyone's performance comes together perfectly and makes great characters, especially Costner as the badass action hero. The plot is perfect, tension and tension builds between the two sides for along time, and it all leads up to the one of the most epic shootouts in movie history. Costner not only acted well, he proves he's a actor-director bargain, and movie was a great set-up for a movie I've been wanting to see for a long time, Costner's true Western masterpiece, Dances with Wolves.
Movie Rating: A-