Silverado (1985)

Silverado is directed by Lawrence Kasdan and Lawrence co-writes with his brother Mark. It stars Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn, Danny Glover, Kevin Costner, Brian Dennehy, Jeff Goldblum Linda Hunt and Rosanna Arquette. Music is by Bruce Broughton and cinematography by John Bailey.As a big Western fan it's most interesting revisiting Silverado some 30 odd years after its release. In context of the time it first came out, when the genre was a dead duck, it was a bold and beautiful romp. How wonderful to find that with one or two 1980s irks aside, it is still a fine Western beast beating a true genre heart.Ok, it's hardly pulling up trees thematically, in the main because it embraces what it homages, every cliche in scene and writing is respectful to its predecessors, the Kasdan's achieving everything they set out to do - entertain like minded film lovers.Cast are on fine form, clearly enjoying the material and setting of such. The locations are outstanding, the vistas gorgeous, with production design to match. Broughton's musical score is rambunctious and lifts the spirit, even if much of it feels 1980s as opposed to the era of film's setting. Action scenes are expertly staged, the improbable irrelevant for joyous rewards, and stunt work high end as well.Themes such as prostitution and racism are only given small acknowledgements, but character building is evident at every turn to fully involve audience from first reel to last. Heroes and anti-heroes, psychos, thieves and power hungry villains, no stone left unturned here. This isn't for those after the grim textures of something like Unforgiven and latterly Hostiles, this is more in keeping with something like Tombstone, or even the much divisive Lone Ranger.Saddle up and enjoy if you haven't already done so! 8/10

Four heroic individuals keep running into each other as they trek to the same location for diverse reasons in this popular lighthearted western from Lawrence Kasdan. The film was released during a time in which western movies were on the decline and it received some acclaim in its day for paying tribute to the conventions of the genre. Watched as a contemporary viewer though, 'Silverado' is a far less riveting affair. The film's best asset is the colourful cast with the likes of Kevin Kline, John Cleese, Brian Dennehy and others at their most charismatic, however, by attempting to include nearly every western trope in the book (saloon fights; shoot-outs; stolen horses; burned houses; jail breaks; etc), the story comes off as rambling and rather bloated. The film also features so many principal characters aside from the four protagonists that one never gets to truly know any of them in real depth, and the film feels unfocused rather than deliciously complex as one might hope for a film with such an onslaught of main characters. The movie is certainly entertaining in parts and there is no denying the attention to detail with the period sets and costumes, however, the film makes one yearn for the alternative westerns that started to emerge in the 1970s, such as 'High Plains Drifter', that actually tried to do something more than just throw some rousing action together.

This film is like a culmination of the classic western film genre. It's got it all: great memorable characters, great cinematography, great music soundtrack, and a compelling classic story line. Is it innovative? Not really. But neither was J.S. Bach in music. He culminated the Baroque era that had preceded him. In doing so, he happened to bring baroque music to its highest zenith. This film does much the same for western films. It's chock full of all the most endearing clichés with a little modern flavor added here and there. Most people are unable to get the fact that originality in art is vastly overrated. It's much better to do something really well than to sell out everything to merely do something new. There's a lot of really crappy art out there that has little besides originality going for it! I'd rather admire a story that's been retold with passion and a high level of craftsmanship, and that's what Silverado does!

Co-writer, producer and director Lawrence Kasdan did his part in keeping the Western genre alive with "Silverado". It may not be innovative, but that may well have been the point, as Kasdan aims to pay tribute to a beloved movie genre that dated all the way back to the silent era. Admittedly, this one came along when the Western was going through a bit of a dry spell, which made it all the more welcome.Four very engaging stars - Kevin Kline as Paden, Scott Glenn as Emmett, Danny Glover as Mal, Kevin Costner as Jake - are an interesting combo, as these characters, united by circumstance, eventually band together to fight against the injustices occurring in the town of Silverado. More than once, they prove their worth, in a story (written by Kasdan and his brother Mark) that is fairly episodic."Silverado" is extremely well shot, by John Bailey, in widescreen. It gets the look of a classic Western just right. It hooks you right away with an opening moment of quiet suddenly interrupted by a gunfight, and promises a substantial amount of entertainment to come when we're introduced to the tough and resilient Emmett and get a load of the majestic New Mexico locations. Admittedly, this doesn't work quite as well when you start to think about it too much, so it's better to just go with the flow and appreciate all that Kasdan and his cast & crew have packed into this presentation. Certainly, it would be hard not to get roused by that stirring and wonderful music score composed by Bruce Broughton.There's a lot of acting talent to go around here, but giving things a curious quality is some unexpected casting. Linda Hunt? Jeff Goldblum? JOHN CLEESE? Rosanna Arquette is fairly appealing if somewhat aloof as the gal who catches both Klines' and Glenns' eyes. Jeff Fahey makes his film debut as scruffy psycho Tyree. Lovely ladies Amanda Wyss and Lynn Whitfield play local girl Phoebe and Mals' sister respectively. Recognizable character players in the cast include Marvin J. McIntyre, Sheb Wooley, James Gammon, Ray Baker, Joe Seneca, Earl Hindman, Jim Haynie, Richard Jenkins (also making his film debut), Pepe Serna, Ted White, and an uncredited Brion James as Hobart, the wagon master. The real standout for this viewer is Brian Dennehy, who never overplays his role as villainous sheriff Cobb, instead suffusing the character with a good deal of charm.The pacing rarely slows down, and the action scenes are first rate. Especially good is a scene involving a stampede.While lacking the overall impact for this viewer to consider it great, it's still pretty fun while it lasts.Seven out of 10.