The year is 1891. Wyoming is in it first year of statehood. The three hammett brothers cain harry and dale find themselves in the middle of a rapidly escalating range war when they resist big-time cattle ranchers who want to run them off their land. Studio: Lions Gate Home Ent. Release Date: 05/20/2003 Starring: Tom Berenger Rachel Ward Run time: 180 minutes Rating: NrIn the tradition of Lonesome Dove and Streets of Laredo, this three-hour Hallmark miniseries ranks among the finest TV Westerns ever produced. With a deft balance of rugged action and richly drawn characters, Johnson County War captures the essence–if not the precise historical details–of the range wars that raged between Wyoming homesteaders and cattle barons in the early 1890s. Fighting for the legal settlers are the Hammett brothers Cain, Harry, and Dale (Tom Berenger, Luke Perry, Adam Storke), along with Dale’s tough-as-leather wife (Michelle Forbes) and an ill-fated whore (Rachel Ward) who stands proudly against the hired gun (Burt Reynolds) who terrorizes the region for his cowardly British employers. Reynolds is too contemporary for his role, but he’s a dapper villain surrounded by stooges you’ll truly love to hate, and Berenger leads the excellent cast with an outstanding, lived-in performance. An actor and veteran stuntman, director David S. Cass Sr. capably serves the original script by Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana, bringing workmanlike intensity to several exciting chases and showdowns, all beautifully filmed by ace cinematographer Doug Milsome. –Jeff Shannon
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April 8, 2008
#1
DO THE WORDS ‘HOSS APPLES’ MEAN ANYTHING TO YOU?
DONT WASTE YOUR TIME WITH THIS ONE. MISCASTING AT ITS WORST. LACKLUSTER SCRIPT, AND POORLY PLAYED PARTS. IM SURPRISED TOM BERENGER WHO, IS AN EXCEPTIONAL ACTOR WASTED HIS TIME ON THIS ONE. THE SCENES WITH HIM ARE TOLERABLE BUT THEY CANT MAKE UP FOR AN OTHERWISE UNREALISTIC HALF STAB AT A WESTERN.
IT IS A SHAME TO TAKE AN HISTORIC EVENT AND MAR IT LIKE A BAD PAINT JOB.
THIS ONE PLAYS SLOW BUT NOT TRUE. THE PROFANITY IS OVERLY EXCESSIVE AND IT IS OBVIOUS THAT MOST OF THESE PREPPIE ACTORS HAVE NEVER SAT A STEED OR FIRED A GUN FOR REAL.
THERE IS LITTLE BELIEVABLE ABOUT THIS ATTEMPT AND I CANT IN GOOD FAITH RECOMMEND IT.
WHAT A DISSAPOINTMENT.
April 8, 2008
#2
This is a very uneven movie, especially from an acting standpoint. Tom Berenger and Luke Perry have moments in which they seem to be asleep while acting, but then are just fine at other points. Burt Reynolds is woefully miscast. Adam Storke and Michelle Forbes are fine throughout, though. As for the story, it is a mishmash of just about every Western cliche you can think of, none of which pay off very well, as the movie comes to a flat conclusion. Still, there are occasional flashes of inspiration, so if you’re a die-hard fan of either Westerns or writer Larry McMurtry (who adapted the screenplay), then this might be worth a look.
April 8, 2008
#3
Larry McMurtry should be lynched for writing this non-event. On and on it goes, interminably. It could have been 90 minutes long, and actually been worth watching. But because the network had to have as many commercial breaks as possible, they crammed a 90 minute story into 180 minutes. What a disappointment!
April 8, 2008
#4
This film is superb! I have always been a fan of Tom Berenger and this film is certainly one of the best. Great story and beautiful scenery. Glad I bought it.
April 9, 2008
#5
The Johnson County War is a great subject for an authentic Western, and Hallmark’s track record (plus Larry McMurtry’s pen) would seem to bode well for this production. Unfortunately it’s not very good, despite magnificent scenery and adequate performances by Tom Berenger & Michelle Forbes. Rachel Ward steals her few brief scenes, but Burt Reynolds’s acting is almost as garish as his face lift. If 60 of its 180 tiresome, cliche-ridden minutes were cut, it might make an above-average made-for-TV movie, but even that drastic snooze-factor reduction would fail to rescue it from mediocrity among theatrical releases.