Aces 'N' Eights (2008)

I've been watching western in my whole life mainly the classics and b-movies of fifties and sixties...but new productions using former actors to sell the picture like this is a crying shame...the plot is usual but the Kober's gang massacre is absolutely senseless,killing for killing is totally lack of intelligence and reason...Carper Van Dien as a regular actor don't hold the picture..already Boxleitner has a decent acting together with Borgnine after all not enough among such mediocrity and finally the lack of beauty women in the story is another weak point...although in beginning has some they didn't participating of the movie itself and Deirdre Quinn isn't quite beauty and looks like a nun...anyway a bad movie!!

Local railroad boss William Atherton sends hired killers Jeff Kober and Bruce Boxleitner to get rid of pesky landowners like Ernest Borgnine, who refuse to sell out. Complicating things for Atherton is progressive thinking railroad executive Jack Noseworthy and Borgnine's hired hand Casper Van Dien.A competent cast of familiar character actors try hard, but this is pretty much done in by the extreme familiarity of the material (see Once Upon A Time In The West) and the fact that the script focuses on too many characters at once, resulting in a lot of half-formed characterizations, sort of like a television series highlight reel.As usual with director Craig R. Baxley, it's well made and the action scenes are expertly handled. However, Baxley (as well as most modern filmmakers) seems to have left out the nuances that made many of the older westerns true classics.One thing I could never understand about these type of westerns is the railroad's desire to to take the whole ranch in order to lay a single five-foot wide track. Didn't those wackos ever hear of an easement?

Its been a long time since I have watched a western and this one, to some extent, did make it worth while watching.People in a small town are violently forced to sell their ranches at a railroad price as the the on coming railway would go through their land. But the Government sends in their man from Chicago to sort this out in a peaceful manner. And just as things seem to go well, one of the ranch owners is killed in a shootout.The movie, directed by Craig Baxley, stars Casper Van Dien, Bruce Boxleitner, Ernest Borgnine and Jeff Kober.As much as I liked this movie and as much as I like to watch westerns, I felt that the script in some areas and that writers along with with the director and the the actors could have done something to make it stronger. Perhaps it was even trying to make some actors be the likes of James Stewart, John Wayne and Clint Eastwood who would have suited more. But never the less it was a good movie and be aware there are some violent scenes that one with a weak heart may not want to watch.

***Warning more than likely this contains some spoilers*** Well may I start off by saying that I always have been a huge fan of westerns. My grandfather and I would watch John Wayne movies for days straight whenever I visited and ever since then I check out just about every Western that i can get my greedy little hands on. The problem has been that Westerns went out with Silverado. Even went they try them lately like the big name, and coincidentally excellent, 3:10 to Yuma they struggle at the box office. So what was once America's only original type of cinema and the one time savior of the film industry has been reduced to straight to video (Renagade etc.), or high profile films that wander out to minor theatrical runs (Seraphim Falls etc.) To the former category we add the Casper Van Dien actioneer Aces N' Eights. The results in Straight to DVD westerns has not been good to say the least. They have been plainly awful (Ghost Rock & Renegade), or merely passable fare (Miracle at Sage Creek & Avenging Angel). Which category does this one fall into you may ask, well neither really... The film starts out with a group of hired guns led by the vicious Tate (Jeff Kober) running a group of people, in Texas, in typical violent Western fashion. This was pretty much the last straw for Luke Rivers (Casper Van Dien) who rides off in search of a better life. The story picks up 3 years later in the Arizona Territory. As is the case in many westerns a greedy landgrabber Mr. Howard (William Atherton) is keen on buying, or stealing all the parcels of land in the path of the railroad. To accomplish this goal he has hired the aforementioned Tate to deal with some of the more stubborn landowners. The foremost of these landowners being Thurmond Prescott, the amazingly still grinning and spry as ever Ernest Borgnine who has, conveniently enough, taken in Luke. Further compounding Mr. Howard's attempts to grab the land by any means necessary is the arrival of of Jess Riley (Jack Noseworthy) a lawyer from Chicago who has the audacity to actually seek a peaceful resolution to the current crisis, but since when has that made a good western? Therefore, Tate brings on another gunslinger DC Cracker (Bruce Boxleitner) a very mysterious is he or isn't he a bad guy character. Together they attempt to run off the landowner's behind Mr. Riley's back. ***Spoilers*** As one can probably guess the gunslinger's manage to gun down Mr. Prescott, and the reformed Luke is forced to strap on his guns once again as the film builds to a pretty dang impressive showdown between the railroad men and Rivers. This film isn't without share of problems the scenes with the landowner's getting gunned down at times seemed a little redundant and Luke's relationship with the local schoolmarm Jo Tanner (Deidre Quinn) is very underdeveloped. the film clocks in at a brisk 87 minutes and it would've been nice to see them take an extra half hour to flesh some of the relationships out, but don't let that deter you as the script, from Pale Rider scribe Dennis Shryack and fist timer Ronald M. Cohen really picks up more and more momentum as it goes. Veteren TV project vet Craig R. Baxley (Action Jackson & half the Stephen King miniseries ever made) handles the project with a very steady and at times stylish hand. He really accomplishes more than one would think possible on a three and half week shoot. What further propels this film forward is the cast Casper Van Dien has never been better as the grizzled gunhand, Ernest Borgnine is simply unbelievable as his eyes twinkle, he rides horseback with a shotgun, and still looks menacing and he was born in 1917! Jeff Kober oozes menace as Tate, Bruce Boxleitner nearly steals the show (he would have if every one else hadn't been so good as well) as the aging gunslinger. Jack Noseworthy looks and nails his role as the good guy lawyer and Deidre Quinn did very well with what she was given. When all is said and done this is a rip-roaring Western like they used to make and is by far and wide an extreme overachiever in the straight to DVD realm. The last frame felt like a bit of a cop out, but still if you are a fan of Westerns, action, or just good old fun in the movies don't let anything stop you from seeing Aces N' Eights... 7/10 As usual my apologies for my horrid spelling/grammar...