Starring: Sam Elliott, Tom Conti, Kate Capshaw, Kenny Morrison, Matt Clark Directed By: Robert Day Average Rating: Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Binding: VHS Tape Format: Color, Original recording reissued, NTSC Label: Warner Home Video Number of Items: 1 Release Date: June 01, 1999 Running Time: 91 minutes Theatrical Release Date: February 28, 1987
Amazon.com: Not to be confused with Sam Raimi's flamboyantly stylized Western of the same name, this made-for-cable adaptation of the Louis L'Amour novel is a lean, taut pioneer adventure set in the wilderness of the northern Midwest. Sam Elliott, sporting his trademark bushy mustache and eyebrows so thick they keep the rains off his face, stars as the mountain man and tracker Con Vallian. Tom Conti is Scottish storekeeper Duncan McKaskel bringing his wife Susanna (Kate Capshaw) and son from Pennsylvania to a homestead in Wyoming. When a scraggly gang (led by the wonderfully sleazy Matt Clark) marks the family as an easy target, Vallian makes himself their gruff guardian angel, partly out of attraction to Susanna ("You're a handsome woman," he likes to repeat). Pride, jealousy, and rivalry make Duncan and Vallian uneasy allies and Conti's musical lilt is a marvelous contrast to Elliot's gravely drawl. Capshaw is somewhat colorless but comes to life in a surprising explosion of angry violence. The beautiful landscape culminates in a stunning meadow where the homesteaders find their cabin, a location that must be the closest thing to heaven on Earth, but for the devils still on their trail. --Sean Axmaker
Great movie This is going to pure and simple. Anyone who loves Sam Elliot and the western theme will love this movie!!!
Hondo/Shane is an Honorable Cuss The difference between Hondo and Con Vallian is that Vallian doesn't have a dog. Otherwise, they're both soft-talkin' straight-shootin' half-breeds who live outdoors but who like women. The mysterious stranger who appears in the nick of time is also kin to Shane, who is not only appealing to the Woman, but her small son. Also, akin to the plot of Shane, the husband is a real man...he's just outnumbered. A gang of theives has their eye on the "pilgrims," their horses, and the comely Mrs. McCaskell (Kate Capshaw). There is no law around to appeal to, they just have to keep riding through open country and hope they can outrun the gang that is pursuing the family. Vallian appears and dispenses pithy advice, and it's clear that his help is offered for the protection of the woman. If he shows the husband at a disadvantage, well, that's just too bad. Fortunately for the woman, her husband (Tom Conti) isn't an Eastern sissy, even though he's suspiciously well educated. He's a veteran of the Union Army and an abolitionist. Conti performs with dignity and good humor. He can't be more romantic than the rangy stranger, and he knows it - but he's banking on his wife's fidelity and the innate decency he senses in Vallian. Sam Elliott is nearly peerless at this kind of role; his excellence in a Louis L'Amour western is a given. I'll take a dozen, thank you. But this film owes a good deal of its tension and fascination to the contest between the two honorable men, thanks to Conti... We just know triumph over the bad guys is just a matter of time. The film really crackles at the moment the boy steps up to Vallian and says, "I want you to stop making my dad look bad in front of my mom." Top that, Shane!
not worth buying... I bought this film based on Amazon reviews and what a mistake that was! This film is not terrible or even bad but it's certainly nothing special, ho-hum average at best and the storyline is just plain silly...
If you really want to see this movie, my recommendation would be to rent instead of buying...
The Quick and the Dead This excellent movie - NOT to be confused with a western parody of the same name with Gene Hackman and many other famous actors in ridiculous situations - is a believable, possibly historic adventure of the western expansion of the 19th century, of evil men, of the courage and values of pioneers and the noble actions of many unsung heroes. As usual, Sam Elliott - Louis L'Amour's favorite Sackett! - is the quintessential tough-but-nice guy. His acting and his voice are not reminiscent of the great John Wayne, he does not sway with bravado when walking, he has actually created a new breed and a new approach. Tom Conti looks slightly out of place but manages to turn in an acceptable performance that does not detract from the excellence of the script. The bad guys are uniquely evil and very convincing actors. Kate Capshaw is a very believable frontier wife. It has become one of my favorite westerns - a genre which I have loved for over 50 years! - ranking right up there with "Shane", "Red River", "Jeremiah Johnson", "Nevada Smith", "The magnificent seven" and "The Sacketts". Manuel A. Gutierrez
Love this movie One of my faves...The old west and Sam Elliot together just can't get any better than that. Great movie and great quality
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