Too much romance makes the movie sag near the end and the plot could have gone in a more interesting direction. But if you are wild about Westerns, saddle up for Appaloosa.
Comment
09/26/08
Appaloosa (2008)
76
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:151
Fresh:115
Rotten:36
Average Rating:6.6/10
Consensus: A traditional genre western, Appaloosa sets itself apart with smart psychology, an intriguing love triangle, and good chemistry between the leads.
Runtime: 1 hr 56 mins
Genre: Westerns
Theatrical Release:Sep 19, 2008 Limited
Box Office: $20,157,730
Synopsis: Actor Ed Harris takes only his second stab at directing, following the Oscar-winning feature POLLOCK (2000) with this spirited western. Harris draws on a strong cast, many of whom have acted with... [More]
Starring: Ed Harris, Viggo Mortensen, Renée Zellweger, Jeremy Irons
Director: Ed Harris
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Reviews for Appaloosa
Appaloosa shows a square jaw and a steely gaze, but also a smile and a wink.
09/19/08
Top CriticAppaloosa will probably just ride off into the sunset without much of an impact, but it will sate your fix for horses, guns and slapping leather. You know, if you're into that sort of thing.
09/19/08
From its first, mournful brass theme, Ed Harris's Appaloosa nails the look and feel of a classic Western. This is an old-style, laconically macho, six-shooting horse opera made with an obvious and unapologetic love of the genre.
10/03/08
Viggo Mortensen is a trustworthy ally in the project, an actor whose extraordinary range enables him to move his performance along the scale from 0 to 100 at will.
03/11/09
It's a rousing, efficient western that is about the friendship of two men, just as much as it is about getting the bad guys.
10/07/08
Ed Harris does it better than anybody.
11/07/08
Actor turned filmmaker Ed Harris wants to go back to the days of simple sagebrush storytelling, and with one major exception, everything he does...is nothing short of brilliant.
10/02/08
Ambition is a great quality in a filmmaker, especially when it's realized. Yet there is something to be said for just telling a story, and with Appaloosa, Harris does a fine job of it.
10/02/08
Standard western finds comfort in its familiarity.
10/03/08
Appaloosa is firmly grounded in genre orthodoxy even as it teases at the edges of nonconformity. The results are decidedly mixed.
10/03/08
Appaloosa is entertaining, certainly, but it feels rather slight and feeble next to some of its more superior recent cohorts in the western genre.
09/22/08
Harris's adoration for the genre is clear, and his Appaloosa is a fine addition to a growing list of neo-westerns incorporating a respectful tone, ideal aim of violence, and heartfelt observation all in the same breath.
10/02/08
Appaloosa is a familiar story told well enough that it's worth seeing, but won't truly linger for any but the most diehard Western fanatic.
10/03/08
Appaloosa is ideally suited for fans of the genre for whom quiet drama speaks as loud as big guns.
11/15/08
Appaloosa carries a whiff of feminism. Or at least an awareness of what life was like for women on the frontier.
10/03/08
Appaloosa is an archetypal western with touches of the modern buddy comedy. Though it falls short of these classics, it is a little bit Destry Rides Again and a little bit more Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
10/02/08
Top CriticPhotographed handsomely with wide-angled majesty, the film does precious little myth-making, though Harris subtly twists some of the genre's conventions.
09/26/08
A welcome return to the roots of the western genre.
10/13/08
It's deliberately paced, but this non-Western-fan loved it.
10/03/08
Latest News for Appaloosa
April 18, 2009:
Crackling eccentric verbal wit as Harris' marshal seeks to 'button up this town tighter than a nun's corset' while overcome by Zellweger's irresistible flirty charms, because she 'chews her food nicely and even takes a bath before going to bed. 
More...
January 13, 2009:
Crackling eccentric verbal wit as Harris' marshal seeks to 'button up this town tighter than a nun's corset' while overcome by Zellweger's irresistible flirty charms, because she 'chews her food nicely and even takes a bath before going to bed.
More...
January 10, 2009:
Crackling eccentric verbal wit as Harris' marshal seeks to 'button up this town tighter than a nun's corset' while overcome by Zellweger's irresistible flirty charms, because she 'chews her food nicely and even takes a bath before going to bed.
More...
October 02, 2008:
Box Office Guru Preview: Chihuahua to Overtake Multiplexes
Hollywood kicks off the fourth quarter with a stampede of new releases that will test the elasticity of the marketplace. Ambulances are already on standby to rush the high... More...
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