‘Maybe poker’s just not your game Ike…’
Westerns. The final frontier. Oh wait… that’s space, isn’t it. It’s one of the frontiers, anyway. It’s a cinematic frontier that I am yet to fully appreciate, that’s for certain. Aside from a few notable exceptions (Unforgiven, The Good, The Bad and The Ugly), it’s a genre I’ve never really taken to. I’m nothing if not persistent however, so following a few recommendations I delved right into Tombstone. A slice of 90s goodness with big gunfights, big men and big moustaches. And boy, is it a good time…
Wyatt Earp (Kurt Russell), a lawmaker in the Wildest of Wests, just wants to enjoy his retirement, dammit. Along with his brothers Virgil (Sam Elliott) and Morgan (Bill Paxton), Wyatt is happy to spend his time drinking whiskey and playing cards with local legend Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer), but cowboys keep showing up and shooting the place up. And so, Wyatt Earp decides to fight back.
And fight he does. Once, twice, many times he fights. Because director George P. Cosmatos knows how to make a good western. Fight scenes. Action. Monologues. Kurt Russell crying in the rain. It really shouldn’t be difficult. Instead of wasting time on building tension, Cosmatos takes advantage of a wonderful cast and Kevin Jarre’s genuinely beautiful script and allows these elements to run riot in two hours and ten minutes of rootin’ tootin’ fun.
Tombstone is not as prestigious as the work of Sergio Leone, but honestly, it’s an easier watch. Did I mention Kurt Russell crying in the rain? Because it really is a sight to behold.