Wyatt Earp

In the summer of 1994, actor Kevin Costner's Western mega-epic "Wyatt Earp" crashed and burned at the cinema effectively halting his lengthy streak of critically-acclaimed hits dating back to "The Untouchables" in 1987. At the time, the modestly-profitable rival "Tombstone" had effectively stolen Costner's thunder by beating him to the box office punch six months earlier and leaving his far more expensive saga as a tired retread. Still, in its expanded version, "Wyatt Earp" deserves re-discovery for factors extending beyond Costner's presence alone.I will first address director Lawrence Kasdan and producer Costner's intentions since Costner basically is the movie. This duo evidently wanted to capture a somber Louis L'Amour-esque look on-screen (the costuming is a dead giveaway), as their tragic interpretation of Earp's life story often resembles an Old West version of "The Godfather," replacing mobsters with frontier cops. Unfortunately, with so many individuals introduced or merely name-dropped in the span of three hours, similar characters (especially rustler Curly Bill and friends) blend together far too easily making it hard to tell them apart. If you are not already familiar with whom all these historical figures are, then good luck to those who can't recognize who's who. The same problem extends to the desert backdrop. As the movie was filmed on location in New Mexico, this would explain why Wichita, Dodge City, and Tombstone largely all look like the same locale. "Tombstone," on the other hand, had the advantage of one primary location, which certainly simplifies the necessary story-telling.With a timeline spanning nearly forty years, "Wyatt Earp" should be commended for ambitiously giving viewers as much story as possible, but this inevitably causes obvious pacing issues. Costner may have assumed that lightning would strike twice following the majestic 1990 "Dances With Wolves," but this plodding film's ambiance (including James Newton Howard's melancholic score) is unable to successfully carry 180+ minutes without any comic relief or an exhilarating romance (although Costner and co-star Joanna Going are believable as Wyatt and the third Mrs. Earp). The script's sometimes clunky dialogue also disguises speeches (i.e. Gene Hackman as Earp's father repeatedly spellling out the Earp family credo) and explanations of off-screen incidents as everyday dialogue, which only further muddles the slow narrative.The film's all-star ensemble (also including Dennis Quaid, Mark Harmon, Annabeth Gish, Michael Madsen, JoBeth Williams, Tom Sizemore, Bill Pullman, among many others) is top-notch, as it should be considering the production's estimated $75 million price tag. Specifically, I give kudos to Dennis Quaid as the film's acting MVP. Rather than copying Val Kilmer's high-profile, flamboyantly roguish take on John "Doc" Holliday, Quaid's coarsely authentic approach was certainly overlooked for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nod (if not the trophy itself). To Quaid's credit, he not only looked the part, but he made the tubercular, decaying Holliday as unlikeable as most of his contemporaries thought he was. Mare Winningham as Wyatt's second wife, Mattie, also merits acclaim. Others, such as Hackman, Gish, James Gammon, and Joanna Going, in supporting roles, deserve some honorable mention as well.As for Costner's performance, with some reservations, it is generally a positive. Based upon the various accounts of Wyatt Earp's life that I have read, his stone-faced portrayal of Earp is virtually dead-on. Further, I would conclude that, although Kurt Russell physically resembled the real Wyatt Earp (and, yes, was more entertaining), Costner's depth drew closer to Wyatt's cold fish personality. Make no mistake, though: Costner's ego tends to overplay his hand, including twice where he makes short announcements to the stunned saloon crowd upon prevailing in battle. Somehow, I don't imagine that rowdy drunkards would have been awed into silent fear by Earp's mere presence. Also, by having other characters tell Wyatt how much better a stage driver, buffalo hunter, shooter, etc. he is than they are, it doesn't really help build a myth; rather, it becomes a bore.The bleak, gritty realism of "Wyatt Earp" will appeal far more to movie-goers who enjoy historical documentaries as entertainment vs. those who prefer straight-up Hollywood historical fantasy (and, yes, "Tombstone" is largely a Western fantasy). Speaking of which, it is known that Costner was originally linked to "Tombstone," until he had a falling out with late writer-director Kevin Jarre over the proposed film's scope. It helps explain the supposed bad blood between the rival productions, as Costner's ego dictated that he must pursue his own epic vision of Earp's life. He was definitely right in providing the characters far more depth and creating a realistically somber balance. Case in point: Costner and Kasdan accurately depict an aloof Wyatt as being despised by his sister-in-laws, as his brothers too often deferred to Wyatt's needs over their own wives. Further, Mare Winningham's performance as Wyatt's neglected second wife, Mattie, is heartbreaking to watch as it removes even more luster from Earp's status as an Old West icon. Except for conveniently ignoring the real Wyatt's alleged antics as a card shark and opportunistic con artist, Costner's film is and will likely remain the closest Hollywood will come to exploring Earp's legendary life story. To its credit, the film's classy finale acknowledges that separating fact from fiction is often next to impossible, so Earp's life will always (to some degree) remain a mystery. Still, real history alone doesn't sell movie tickets. Despite offering a mostly outstanding Western epic for adult viewers, Costner and Kasdan underestimated the necessity of popcorn entertainment that "Tombstone" captured so well with mainstream audiences.As a random thought, this epic movie still has extraordinary potential if it were cleverly re-edited, i.e. trimming much of its first third into quick-snippet flashbacks, such as Urilla's (or Irilla's) death, for a more haunting effect on Wyatt's psyche during the Tombstone years.Rating: 8/10 (In most categories, it's a historically superior and better-acted film that ages better than "Tombstone," but it sorely lacks the other film's charismatic flavor. It really depends upon what you are looking for in a big-screen Western: gritty realism or Hollywood fantasy).P.S. The DVD special features are not necessarily spectacular, but they are certainly some nice, well-produced additions to check out when you have the time. Included in the special edition are some additional scenes that pad the film's running time past 190 minutes.

Very good

If you love westerns you can't go wrong with this one. Outstanding cast.

Great movie

This is a GREAT interpretation of the Wyatt Earp legend, more historically accurate than some of my other favorites, such as Tombstone, but because of it's more accurate account of the historic Wyatt Earp, it is one of my personal two favorite tellings of the story. First off, why 4 stars? The movie is long, and it's debatable whether they should have added in all the earlier parts of Wyatt's life (and just as importantly, are those earlier parts historically accurate?). But, those earlier parts of the story, Wyatt losing his first wife and it having a devastating effect on him, was in truth instrumental in forming the fearless peace officer who became the Legend. I also like the fact that it showed Wyatt's formative days making a living shooting buffalo and working on stage coach lines. The real Wyatt Earp was such a multifaceted person, working many jobs, not just as a law man. But what is also an important part of this telling is you notice in the movie that Wyatt only drinks coffee, never alcohol. This was one of the notable quirks of the badass lawman Wyatt Earp, who according to one of his best biographies Stuart N. Lake, he was noted as never drinking alcohol or cursing, which made him an oddity in the land of hard drinking and hard fighting cowboys.Some of my close friends have criticized Kevin Costner's performance as wooden, and poorly acted. Personally, I liked the interpretation of Wyatt being someone who was not a smooth talking people, at times very hard, person while still having a very approachable human side for family and friends, since Wyatt Earp was known for his fierce loyalty to family and for standing for what was right. I also think Kevin Costner did a great job showing the badass gunfighter side of arguably the greatest gunfighter and lawman in the west. You always have to wonder what it would take to have the incredible cold nerves of someone who could tame some of the bloodiest and toughest cowboy towns in the West. And that is where I really like Costner's interpretation. Of course Tombstone, with Kurt Russell, is my all time favorite version of Wyatt, but because Tombstone has some glaring inaccuracies about the historical Wyatt, namely that he was "afraid" of facing down certain gunmen and consequently had to let Doc Holliday deal with worst gunman, is complete BS. According to biographer Stuart Lake, who personally interviewed not only Wyatt himself, but also interviewed many of his deputies and even some of the outlaws Wyatt dealt with, Lake says that Wyatt was described as the most fearless gunfighter in west, and was also faster on the draw than any gunfighter ever witnessed by his deputy Bat Masterson.All of this being said, I think Wyatt Earp with Kevin Costner, alongside Tombstone with Kurt Russell, are the two classics and pure fun movies when it comes to trying to capture the Legend of Wyatt Earp. And this particular movie, because it is more historically accurate in terms of Wyatt's character, puts it right alongside of the very best movies on this great character. It's biggest downfall is only the length of the movie, which definitely could have been shortened, and so I have to give it four stars, since that is a glaring editing issues with the movie.

It was good

brilliant

Based on that which is historically known of the life and deeds of Wyatt Earp, the movie remains faithful to these outlines. Great actors, well-balanced script with action, human reactions, dilemmas and interaction and depiction of some of the mores of the time. Some family issues. Spiked with violent scenes, but not overwhelmingly so.As with many of the movies depicting the time of colonisation of the far West, you happen to find on some occasion relatively modern and sophisticated dwellings that were certainly not present in those remote corners. A western movie that escapes that undesirable feature is "True Grit" starring Hailee Steinfeld, Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon.Back to Wyatt Earp, I liked watching it very much, watched it again with my wife and it now stands in my film library.

Concordo con altri recensori che la qualità del BR non aggiunge granché ad un buon DVD in questa edizione, ma sicuramente l'impiego di un solo supporto è premiante.Per quanto riguarda il film so di essere poco obbiettivo: stravedo per Kostner e per il Western in generale. Se ci fossero metterei 6 stelle. L'ho visto 2 volte nonostante la durante notevole. Straconsigliato anche se la storia è stravisitata.

Nachdem ich RDR2 durchgespielt habe , habe ich große Lust auf Western bekommen .Meine Sammlung bietet nicht viel an Western , außer Spaghetti Sergio Leone und eben dieses eine Meisterwerk - der mit dem Wolf tanzt - . Zu dem Film muss man wirklich nicht mehr viel sagen .Habe mir dann bei Amazon tombstone und Wyatt Earp gekauft .Vorweg ,Wer mit den Erwartungen eines „der mit dem Wolf tanzt „ an diesem Film geht - wird voraussichtlich super enttäuscht werden .Ich habe teils Ekel gefühlt , wie schlecht Costner den jungen Wyatt spielt - einfach super schlecht .Und die Dialoge , ja die Dialoge , die ziehen sich und ziehen sich .....Habe den Film in der Mitte abgebrochen , da ich mir dieses Übel nicht mehr antun konnte.Später habe ich noch erfahren , dass der Film mehrmals für die goldene Himbeere nominiert war .