Sexuality/Nudity Mature
Violence Mature
Vulgarity Mature
Anti-Catholic Philosophy Acceptable
It is odd to start a review with a few disclaimers, but I think it is warrented for a unique movie like Horizon.
Horizon is not one movie.
It is 4 movies. Or rather, it is the first part of 4 movies.
Kevin Costner has set out to do something that is so wildly ambitious that I cannot really think of an equivelant. He is essentially taking the old-school mini-series format and applying it to the cinema.
If that does not sound like the kind of movie experience that you can handle, then this movie may not be for you.
And when I make the comparison to the mini-series, I am calling to mind the great epics like North and South. But it is important to remember that Costner wants this to be a cinematic experience, not one that feels like it was made-for-tv. If you can give yourself over to that concept, then I think you will enjoy this movie very much.
There are several stories at play here in this movie. All of them have a tangential connection to a place called "Horizon." This is an area of land out west that is being sold to settlers before and during the Civil War. Somehow the stories seem to be interlinked. Below are some of the basic plots:
-The settlers of Horizon are subject to a brutal night raid by the Apache led by the headstrong Pionsenay (Owen Crow Shoe). This attack is told primarily through the eyes of the Kittredge Family: father James (Tim Guinee), mother Frances (Sienna Miller), son Owen (Will Patton), and daughter Elizabeth (Georgia MacPhail). In the aftermath, the nearby Union fort sends Lt. Trent Gephart (Sam Worthington), to bury the dead and escort the lost back to the fort. To his chagrin, very few choose to leave but instead face the dangers of the wilderness. This story then branches into one that follows Gephart and the survivors and one that forms a posse to find the Apache. In addition, Pionsenay comes under the ire of his elder Tuayeseh (Gregory Cruz), who can see more bloodshed coming because of Pionsenay's actions.
-Another story involves a wagon train of settlers heading towards Horizon. The reluctant leader is Matthew Van Weyden (Luke Wilson), who tries to keep everyone safe and moving through the dangerous wilderness. He is particularly annoyed with a posh English couple Juliette (Ella Hunt) and Hugh (Tom Payne) who are not pulling (to Matthew's mind) their fair share. But tensions rise as some of the move violent men of the group begin to lear menacingly at Juliette.
-Another story involves Lucy (Jena Malone) who shoots the patriarch of a Montana family for what appears to be years of a abuse. She escapes with her child but is pursued by the man's sons: Junior (Jon Beavers) and Caleb (Jamie Campbell Bower). These violent men will stop at nothing to exact revenge.
-Another story involves Hayes Ellison (Costner) who finds himself in a small mining town and involved in a life-and-death situation involving the local prostitute Marigold (Abbey Lee)
If that sounds like a lot of plot threads, it is. And even with its more than three-hour run time, the story doesn't feel like it scratches the surface. But I have to tell you, the story never drags. There were times that I felt the need to excuse myself to the restroom, but I resisted because I didn't want to miss anything. Unlike a lot of TV shows where there appear to be a lot of filler scenes, this movie uses every scene to either advance the plot or deepen our understanding of the character.
Costner famously won an Oscar for directing Dances with Wolves, and the beauty he captured on screen is present in Horizon. We see the West through Costner's eyes: a place that is as beautiful as it is dangerous, as enchanting as it is deadly. There were several times where I wanted to pause the movie just to look at the majestic vistas. In my review of The Bikeriders, I mentioned that the film makers never showed us why the life presented on screen was appealing. But Costner is able to capture the appeal of the West. There is something satisfying, wholesome, and honest about wanting to pull yourself up by your bootstraps and create a better, freer, simpler life for your family. In the town of Horizon before the attack, you could see the joy people had at having a piece of that American Dream.
But Conster's view is not one of rose-colored nostalgia. The attack on Horizon is brutal in every way imaginable. And no one is safe. The story subverts expectations, but in a way that is trying to draw you in rather than trying to show off. There is another slaughter elsewhere in the movie that is just as brutal.
One of the smartest things Costner does with this movie is that he trusts the audience to make up its own mind about the events and the characters. Is Pionsenay justified in his attack or not? Is the response justified or not? Costner trusts you to decide these complex things for yourself. At one point, one of the characters begins to be disgusted by seeing a slaughter of Indegenous people. But when he is attacked by them, he does not hesitate to empty his rifle at his enemy. The characters are filled with fascinating contradications.
There are some strong Catholic images in the beginning of the film where we set up a mediation on the nature of violence and the possibility of rising above it.
The only really strong thematic stance that he seems to have is on the need for strong, virtuous men. The strong men who are not virtuous are villanous. The pain and horror of the West is inflicted by these men. But weak, virtuous men are also looked down upon by Costner. When these men try to stand up and protect the ones for whom they have responsibility, they fail. Costner's disgust for their weakness is evident. The movie clearly wants to say that in a violent, fallen world, men need to be good and dangerous. This is best exemplified in a scene with Hayes as he walks up a hill to meet with Marigold. A stranger begins a conversation with him that seems merely annoying. But by the end, Hayes understands that he will have to take action, perhaps deadly action to do what must be done.
All of the performances are great. There is not a bad one in the group. This is the best performance I have seen Worthington give, where his restrained nature works well for the character. MacPhail also took me by suprise. Usually young actors are rough around the edges, but she does quiet a lot with very little. The cast rounded out by some wonderful veteran performances from Danny Huston, Michael Rooker, and Jeff Fahey.
My biggest critique of the movie is that it ends so abruptly that I didn't realize that it was ending. The final scene moves without indication into a trailer for the next film.
I keep thinking about this movie and I am very happy that I only have to wait until August to see Part II in the cinema
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