Director: S. Craig Zahler
Screenplay: S. Craig Zahler
Starring: Kurt Russell, Patrick Wilson, Matthew Fox, Richard Jenkins, Lili Simmons, David Arquette
Running Time: 132 minutes
Genre: Western, horror, action, adventure,
In the 1890s, grizzled Sheriff Franklin Hunt (Russell), his loyal, elderly deputy Chicory (Jenkins), ruthless, bigoted gunslinger Brooder (Fox) and cowboy Arthur O'Dwyer (Wilson), who has a broken leg, set off on a dangerous quest to rescue three people, including O'Dwyer's wife, Samantha (Simmons), who have been kidnapped by a hidden clan of cave-dwelling cannibals.
For a variety of reasons, the Western genre has declined greatly in popularity in recent years, but good ones are still made occasionally, and this is a good one. It is a gripping, if bleak, blend of horror and Western, that plays like a mix of The Searchers (1956) and The Hills Have Eyes (1977). The film is beautifully shot with stunning landscapes, contrasted with (literally) gut-wrenching violence. Mostly it moves at a sedate pace, but keeps the tension high and there is a strong vein of dark humour throughout, which helps alleviate the film's often grim tone. It's very well-performed by a great cast and always visually interesting. The film really kicks into another gear with the action-packed climax, which feels as if it's been dropped in from another movie entirely. The film's violence is pretty graphic, and the amount of gore may put off some viewers, while the film's largely slow pace may put off some of the horror fans, but it's worth giving it a go.
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