'WILD HORSE' MAKES FOR A WILD RIDE!

WILD HORSE, WILD RIDE – Film Review

 

WILD HORSE, WILD RIDE, directed by Alex Dawson and Greg Gricus, is a documentary about kindness and decency.  I hope that doesn’t sound too sappy, because the movie isn’t at all.  Thousands of wild horses run loose on government land, and every year, thousands are rounded up and removed.  They all need homes and, as it says in the film’s introduction, “None has ever been touched by a human hand.”

 

The Mustang Heritage Foundation, whose mission is to facilitate and encourage wild horse adoption, sponsors an annual event called the Extreme Mustang Makeover Challenge, in which one-hundred people get one wild mustang, and one-hundred days to train it for a competition in Fort Worth, Texas.  The hope is that, the more tame the horse, the better the home it will find when it’s auctioned after the competition.

 

The movie focuses on nine individuals who take part, and they are an impressively mixed bunch.  There are experienced trainers who have done this before, and a biomedical engineer who has never trained a horse.  There’s the stunning blonde rodeo cowgirl.  And there are cowboys, from a pair of 20-ish brothers in New Hampshire, to a Mexican immigrant in Wisconsin, to a Navajo father and son from the res, to an ageing cowpoke taking part along with his seventh bride.     

 

Although there is an explicit ticking clock, the underlying theme of the film is patience, as each rider gentles and trains their animal, and the filmmakers, allowing their film the same tone as their theme, eschew rapid cutting and fast music to instead show the same calm and patience as the trainers.  There are many quiet moments in the movie, which are no less exciting for their lack of drum-beat.

 

The methods of the trainers are as different as their backgrounds.  Some are on the horses quickly; others ride for the first time just days before the competition.  Some train the horses blindfolded; some work from the center of the corral; some work the new animals side-by-side with a trained animal.   Though all that take part do so out of compassion, there are additional motives as well.  The older men in particular have a need to prove something to themselves.  These are all people of no great wealth who give selflessly of their time.  There is a respect and love that develops between human and horse during the process, even between the most cantankerous participants.  And there is sadness, and sometimes tears, with the realization that, the better the job they do, the less likely the trainer will be able to afford that horse at auction.

 

WILD HORSE, WILD RIDE is a beautiful, inspiring film which opened theatrically on Friday, August 24^th.  To learn more, and to find out when it will be at a theatre near you, go HERE.  If you're in the L.A. area, the film will screen on Tuesday, September 6th at the Autry, at 6 pm.

And if you are inspired to take part in next year’s competition, here is who you should contact:

Mustang Heritage Foundation
PO Box 979
Georgetown, TX 78626
512-869-3225
Fax: 512-869-3229

www.extrememustangmakeover.com

For information about adopting a wild horse or burro:

1-866-4-Mustangs (1-866-468-7826)
www.wildhorseandburro.blm.gov

 

‘COPPER’ – Television Review

Tom Weston-Jones

 

On Sunday nights, while you’re enjoying season 2 of the post-Civil War Western series HELL ON WHEELS, you might find it worth your while to check out the new Eastern set in the same period on the opposite coast, COPPER.  The first original dramatic series to be produced by BBC-America, it premiered last Sunday, August 19^th, with a strong opener to its ten-episode season.  Set in New York City’s infamous Five Corners District, the tale is as compelling as it is relentlessly grim.  Examining a world most viewers were introduced to in Martin Scorsese’s erratic film based on the brilliant history, GANGS OF NEW YORK, by Herbert Asbury, the story follows a Civil War hero and transplanted Irish cop, Detective Kevin Corcoran (Tom Weston-Jones), as he tries to see justice done on New York’s meanest streets and alleyways. 

Five Points, New York reproduced in Canada

 

No saint himself, we meet him when he and the other cops he works with ambush and slaughter a pack of bank-robbers, then gleefully pocket the loot until more disciplined police arrive.   Corcoran has an in-depth knowledge of the dregs of New York, but a connection with high society as well, through fellow war-vet and wealthy dilettante Robert Morehouse (Kyle Schmid).  He works overtly with Det. Francis McGuire (Kevin Ryan), and covertly with Dr. Matthew Freeman (Ato Essandoh).  Freeman is a black m.d., and while Corcoran turns to him for his forensic expertise, he must present the findings as his own, knowing a black doctor’s evidence would never be taken seriously by N.Y.P.D. of the time.  He is also a friend to various scarlet women, among them Madam Eva Heissen (Franka Potente).

5th Avenue Society

 

Corcoran comes with a personal axe to grind – he’s investigating the death of his wife and child (and if it sounds a bit like HELL ON WHEELS on that score, HELL ON WHEELS sounds a bit like OUTLAW JOSIE WALES).  And he’s got a case he’s drawn into – the appearance and disappearance of a street-urchin prostitute.  This is a story of corruption and evil, and I’d not recommend it for the kiddies, but for grown-ups who like their heroes tough, and their villains despicable, you can’t very easily top a necro-pedophile.    

 

Digging for clues

Lensed in dank, shadowy Canada, the show is created and written by a sterling trio of scribes: Tom Fontana, Will Rokos, and Barry Levinson.  It is grim, grueling fun, and gives a convincing and involving glimpse at one of the most tragic times in our greatest city. 

 Here's a teaser of tonight's tough-looking episode:

 

WHY ANTHONY LAPAGLIA QUIT ‘DJANGO’

"The people at Django, their attitude more or less was, 'Just dump the other film', but I couldn't do it out of respect to (director) Rob Connolly, out of respect to the material, out of respect to the material, out of respect to the commitment I’d made.” 

Thus Anthony LaPaglia left his small, much-postponed role in the Tarantino film to honor his commitment to UNDERGROUND, a film about Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, which had been financed based on LaPaglia playing the lead.  LaPaglia joins a slew of actors who were cast in DJANGO UNCHAINED, then walked, including Joseph Gordon-Leavitt, who was to play LaPaglia’s brother; Kevin Costner; Kurt Russell; Sacha Baron Cohen; and Jonah Hill, who agreed, then left, then returned as another character. 

While LaPaglia says he had a good time on the DJANGO set, hanging around and waiting to work, he said the production, “…was just out of control, over-budget, it was everywhere.”

REDBOX SIMPLIFIES FINDING ‘LEGEND OF HELL’S GATE’

If you plan to rent LEGEND OF HELL’S GATE – and you certainly should – and I don’t say that just because Henry’s Western Round-Up is quoted on the box – there’s a quick and easy way to locate a copy near you.  The good folks at Redbox contacted me and said that if you go here --  http://www.redbox.com/movies/the-legend-of-hells-gate-of-hells-gate -- and type in your zip code, ect to the commitment I'd made.''

Thus Anthony LaPaglia left his small, much postponed role in the Tarantino film to honor his commitment to UNDERGROUND, a film about Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, which had been financed based on LaPaglia’s playing the lead. LaPaglia joins a slew of actors who were cast in DJANGO UNCHAINED, then walked, including Joseph Gordon Leavitt, who was to play LaPaglia’s brother; Kevin Costner; Kurt Russell; Sacha Baron Cohen; and Jonah Hill, who agreed, then left, then came back as another character.

While he had a good time on the set of DJANGO UNCHAINED, waiting to work, he said the production, “… was just out of control, over-budget, it was everywhere.”they’ll do the rest.  I tried it, and found ten copies from half a mile to 3 ½ miles from my home.  (If you’d like to read my review, go HERE.)

The general link to search for movies is this: http://www.redbox.com/locations?loc=91401&productRef=5497I

I tried it for another fine recent western, GOOD FOR NOTHING, and found six copies available in my neighborhood.  It’s a pretty handy tool! (The link to my review of GOOD FOR NOTHING is HERE.)

 

‘WILD BOYS’ – AUSSIE WESTERN SERIES IS WELL WORTH A LOOK!

As long as we’re being big-hearted and including Easterns like COPPER in the Round-up, let’s take it a little farther, and check out a ‘western’ set in and shot in Australia’s New South Wales, WILD BOYS.  The official synopsis for the series is: Australia 1860s, Wild Boys follows a gang of bushrangers as they stage hold-ups determined to keep ahead of the troopers or wind up at the end of a noose. 

There were ten episodes in 2011, and it appears that there is a second season, which has its finale tonight, but I’m not sure, and none of the videos posted on the official site will run in the U.S.  But the trailer is below, and I’ll be finding out more this week.

 

SATURDAY NOON MATINEE AT THE AUTRY

As they do on the first Saturday of every month, the Autry presents a free double-feature of Gene's movies.  This coming Saturday, September 1st, it's YODELIN' KID FROM PINE RIDGE (Republic 1937) and LAST OF THE PONY RIDERS (Columbia 1953).  The latter deals with the Pony Express being supplanted by the stagecoach business, and features a fine performance by Dick Jones.

ALL-STAR BIG VALLEY SADDLE-UP SATURDAY ON INSP

Saturday, September 1st, INSP will present a marathon of BIG VALLEYs with guest stars like William Shatner, Adam West, Richard Dreyfus, Bruce Dern, Charles Bronson, Leslie Neilsen, Milton Berle, George Kennedy, Ron Howard, Dennis Hopper and Regis Philbin!

That’s it for today’s Round-up!  Don’t forget to catch episode three of the second season of HELL ON WHEELS tonight on AMC.  Next week I’ll have, among other things, and interview with HEATHENS AND THIEVES co-director John Douglas Sinclair.

Have a great Labor Day Weekend!

Happy Trails!

Henry

All original contents copyright August 2012 by Henry C. Parke – All Rights Reserved

POLISHING THE ‘COPPER’ FOR BBC-AMERICA

For years, BBC America has brought a mix of British programming stateside, but starting on Sunday, August 19th, they will begin presenting their very first, very own dramatic series, COPPER. 

Kevin Ryan and Tom Weston-Jones

It’s an Eastern rather than a Western, set in New York City in the 1860s, and focuses on Kevin Corcoran (Tom Weston-Jones) a tough Irish-American cop working the city’s notorious Five Points district. Corcoran must balance his work, his ethics and his quest to learn the truth about the disappearance of his wife and the death of his daughter. A Civil War vet, two compatriots from the battlefield -- Robert Morehouse (Kyle Schmid), the wayward son of a wealthy industrialist, and Dr. Matthew Freeman (Ato Essandoh), a black physician -- expose him to both New York society, and the black community of Harlem.  They further share a battlefield secret that inextricably links their lives. Corcoran's closest friend is his partner at the 6th Precinct, Detective Francis Maguire (Kevin Ryan).

Among the female characters in the tale are in Eva Heissen (Franka Potente), the madame of Eva’s Paradise and Molly Stuart(Tanya Fischer), the ambitious courtesan at Eva’s brothel.  The uptown girl is beautiful and sophisticated Elizabeth Haverford (Anastasia Griffith).   Sara Freeman (Tessa Thompson) is the wife of Dr. Matthew Freeman.

Franka Potente and Weston-Jones

In the back-story, Dr. Freeman went to war not to fight, but to serve as Robert Morehouse’s valet.  Morehouse has returned from the war minus a leg, and too restless to settle down as his father’s business partner.  And while Dr. Freeman uses his scientific skills to assist Corcoran in his investigations, his contributions are kept secret: Corcoran’s superiors, already dubious about science, would never seriously consider evidence provided by a black man.

Many in the cast come from across the pond, and are not particularly familiar faces here, but there are exceptions.  Franka Potente made a splash as the title character in RUN, LOLA, RUN, and co-starred opposite Matt Damon in two BOURNE movies.  Anastasia Griffith first gained attention in DAMAGES and can currently be seen in ONCE UPON A TIME. Kyle Schmid was so liked as a vampire in the series BLOOD TIES that he’s playing another vampire on the current Syfy series BEING HUMAN.  (I guess if the audience doesn’t quickly warm to COPPER, they can take a cue from how the DARK SHADOWS soap was saved, and have him bite Kevin Corcoran.)   

Ato Essandoh, Kyle Schmid, Weston-Jones

The series, shot in Canada, and with a ten-episode first season, was created and co-written by Tom Fontana of BORGIA, OZ, HOMICIDE and ST, ELSEWHERE fame.  Working with him is Oscar-nominated (for MONTERS BALL) Will Rokos and Oscar winner (for directing RAIN MAN) Barry Levinson.  Cineflix Studios’ President, Christina Wayne, was in charge at AMC when they produced BROKEN TRAIL and MAD MEN. 

TWO MUST-HAVE BOOKS FOR WESTERN FANS AND WESTERN FILMMAKERS

Author Peter Sherayko

“I’m going into a meeting with a producer, and he slaps this book down on the table in front of me, and says, ‘This book tells you how to make a Western.  Have you read it?’

“Have I read it?” Peter repeated, incredulously.  “I wrote it.”

Buck Taylor,Val Kilmer, Kurt Russell, Michael Rooker, Peter Sherayko

I’ve long suspected that all the things I don’t know about making a historically accurate Western could fill a book.  Peter Sherayko has filled two books with that knowledge.  The first, TOMBSTONE: THE GUNS AND THE GEAR, an updated edition of his 2004 original, tells and illustrates what went into the making of the most beloved and influential Western of the last two decades.  The second book, THE FRINGE OF HOLLYWOOD, tells how to make a historically accurate Western, even on a low budget.  With the ever-growing knowledge of detail and history on the part of the Western fan, as a direct result of TOMBSTONE, I would say reading both books before you make your Western film is more than just a good idea:  making a Western today, without the benefit of first reading TOMBSTONE: THE GUNS AND GEAR and THE FRINGE OF HOLLYWOOD, would be foolhardy.

Old Man Clanton's .45s

Over the past few years, I’ve had the pleasure of being on a number of Western movie and TV sets with Peter Sherayko, and been exposed first-hand to his encyclopedic knowledge of the American West in 19^th and early 20^th centuries, and his enthusiasm in sharing that knowledge.  It’s no surprise that he and Kevin Jarre, who wrote, and was the original director of TOMBSTONE, were fast friends.  It was their mission to do as meticulously detailed and historically accurate a telling of the O.K. Corral gunfight as could be imagined, and they succeeded so well that it forever changed audiences’ expectations of accuracy in weaponry, art direction and costuming in the Western movie.  Also as part of the process, Peter organized The Buckaroos, a group of historically knowledgeable re-enactors who have all the period Western skills, in and out of the saddle, to add to every scene a patina of authenticity.

Virgil Earp's (Sam Elliot's) rig

Poring over historical documents and photographs, they not only got the events right, they found out what kind of weapons each man was known to possess at that time in their lives.  And instead of the drab brown wardrobe movies have traditionally assigned to Western characters, their research revealed the gaudy and colorful clothes these dapper Victorian men wore.  In the extravagantly photo-illustrated TOMBSTONE: THE GUNS AND THE GEAR, you’ll not only see every rifle, shotgun, sidearm and knife that each major character in the film had, you’ll see the same for the minor characters, the riding extras, characters whose scenes were cut out, and characters whose scenes were never even shot!  The same is true of rigs (holsters to us non-pros), saddles, hats, shirts, boots, and every sort of hand prop.  And the choice for each, based on personality, known wardrobe preference or logical deduction, is explained in detail. 

Doc's knife with retractable blade

Also in the book, entitled ‘A Brief Tombstone Timeline,’ is the most succinct telling of events from 1872 to 1903 that I have ever read.  And Peter states what so few have the courage to even utter: that Doc Holliday was believed to be involved in a series of stagecoach hold-ups.  The book opens with an introduction by gun expert George J. Layman, the original forward by writer-director John Milius, and a new forward by John Fasano, the writer who script-doctored  TOMBSTONE when Kevin Jarre was fired, and who provides fascinating details on how the movie was made.  If you love TOMBSTONE, owning TOMBSTONE: THE GUNS AND GEAR is an absolute must. 

Sherman McMasters 1878 Double Action Colt

Following the popularity of TOMBSTONE: THE GUNS AND THE GEAR, THE FRINGE OF HOLLYWOOD was written to teach how to make accurate Westerns, even on a tiny budget.  What could be a dry recitation of rules – don’t use this gun before this year, don’t use that kind of saddle – is instead entertaining, engaging and informative because, again, Peter Sherayko knows his subject so well.  For instance, he could just have said that the most oft-seen gun-rig of movies and TV since the 1940s, the low-on-the-hip holster known as the buscadero gun belt, is wrong.  Instead, he tells us why.  It was developed in Texas at the turn of the century for a lawman who found the traditional, higher-worn rig uncomfortable when driving his Model-T Ford!  And the leather that used to cover the side of the gun up to the grips was cut away, exposing the trigger guard not for lawmen, but for 20^th Century quick-draw competitors – the same reason the round-the-thigh strap was added, and the leather loop over the hammer! 

Similarly, the clothes of the cowboy in movies, from the jeans to the hats with the bent-up side brims are not from the Old West but the fashion of modern rodeo-riders.  And the saddles – don’t get Peter started on the saddles!  But again, rather than just saying that almost all the saddles seen in Westerns are much too modern, he explains the economic realities of the wrangler’s job that makes them tend to flat-out lie to producers about what is correct-to-period, and what is not.  His heaviest criticisms are for wranglers and weapon suppliers.  “The majority of Western films have depicted two firearms which, to the uneducated, appear to be the only guns in existence: the 1873 Colt Single Action and the 1892 Winchester carbine.  The icon John Wayne used these guns in virtually all his Westerns from 1939’s STAGECOACH to 1976’s THE SHOOTIST.  He used them in THE COMANCHEROS taking place in the 1840s, THE SEARCHERS 1868 and TRUE GRIT mid-1870s, all historical times when those guns simply did not exist.” 

As he points out, those movies were made at a time when good reproductions of the correct firearms were not available, and originals were costly and hard to come by.  Happily, things have improved, and the wide array of proper repros makes it possible to have a wide range of weaponry, and still keeps things accurate. 

Sheriff Behan's gear

Actors also come in for serious drubbing, when they dishonestly claim to be good on horseback.  Still, wranglers don’t trust them with horses, and armorers don’t trust them with guns, so they need to be proactive if they’re going to get the experience they need. 

With sections devoted to proper saddles, ropes, whips, hobbles, scabbards, canteens, bedrolls, bridles, bits, spurs, and saddlebags, you’ll find not only a wealth of information, but perusing the material can frequently provide inspiration as well.  Both books are available from Amazon and wherever fine books are sold.  

ROY ROGERS UNDER STARS AT ANDRES PICO ADOBE

ROY ROGERS UNDER STARS THURSDAY AT ANDRES PICO ADOBE

The Andres Pico Adobe at10940 Sepulveda Blvd., at the corner of Brand, in Mission Hills, is the headquarters of the San Fernando Valley Historical Society.  On Thursday, June 28^th at 7 p.m., they’ll present a program where several Historical Society members will be presenting their collections, including Civil War uniforms and weapons, and John Brooks’ collection of percussion revolvers, followed by a screening of SAN FERNANDO VALLEY (1944), starring Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Bob Nolan and the Sons of the Pioneers. 

I’d not been aware of the Andres Pico Adobe before this, but it sounds fascinating.  It’s the second oldest home in Los Angeles, its oldest portion being built by former San Fernando Mission Indians in 1834.  It was the headquarters of Don Andres Pico in 1945 when he leased the entire San Fernando Valley to run cattle – he was already running his cattle in the entire Antelope Valley, but the steers were complaining about feeling cramped!  Andres brother, incidentally, was Pio Pico, the last governor of Mexican California. 

GLEN CAMPBELL ROCKS THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL

I just came back from a magnificent performance by Glen Campbell at the Hollywood Bowl.  Part of his GOODBYE TOUR, so-named because his Alzheimer's probably won't allow him to perform much longer, he was in wonderful voice as he performed many of his hits, including, of course, RHINESTONE COWBOY and TRUE GRIT.  A virtuoso guitarist who was a hugely successful session player before he began making his own records, he demonstrated skill with a guitar that I can only compare to THE WHO's Pete Townshend.  His band includes a son on drums and another on guitar, and Glen and his daughter Ashley brought down the house with a tremendous rendition of DUELING BANJOS.

For a show whose second half was excellent, the first half, the 'tribute' section, was astonishingly poor.  After a decent, brief set by the band DAWES, Courtney Taylor-Taylor, late of the DANDY WARHOLS, took the stage and sang a pair of MONKEES songs that Campbell had played guitar on -- and sang them in bass, and was so horribly flat that I assumed for a while that it was a joke, and he would be revealed to be Ray Romano or someone.  No such luck.  He was followed by Lucinda Williams, who was also flat, listless, and slurred her words.  The iconic Kris Kristofferson followed, and tried, but was not in good form.  You could feel the growing anxiety throughout the Bowl when Jenny Lewis took the stage, and actually sang!  Identifiable words and notes!  We didn't want to let her go, but happily she was followed by Jackson Browne, who was in fine form, and led all the others back on stage for a fine rendition of VIVA LAS VEGAS before intermission.

Have a great week, folks!

Henry

All Original Contents Copyright June 2012  by Henry C. Parke -- All Rights Reserved