This Review Reveals Minor Details About the Plot.
And One Fine Filly
Plot Overview
It's 1949 in San Angelo, Texas.
Budding rancher John Grady Cole (Matt Damon) has his dreams
shattered when upon the passing of his grandfather, he learns
from the family lawyer that the generational ranch will be
passed on to his mother, the sole heir, who intends to sell this
albatross to the oil company and repair to California to take
up live theater with her current husband. His father (Robert
Patrick) is no help as he's divorced and has lost the will to fight
his old lady (“I ain't the same as I once was”) after
serving in the 3rd army division who'd engaged in trench warfare
and other unsavory stuff; he let his ex deprive him of all his
rights. As historians Paul Boyer et al write of The Postwar
Political Setting: “Hundreds of magazine articles focused
on the readjustment problems that ex-GIs faced. The more than half
a million divorces recorded in 1945 gave the United States the
highest divorce rate in the world” (935). Plan B is John
takes off to Mexico, with his aunt's blessing (Vaya con Dios,) as a sure bet to
find ranch work.
He discusses his plan with his
sidekick Lacey Rawlins (Henry Thomas) under the stars on a
bright moonlit night. Lacey throws in with him but has to sneak off
at sunrise unnoticed by his abusive dad with his demanding chores.
An opening montage pulls
into a horse's eyeball on which is reflected veiled vehicle
headlights at night, and we hear horses galloping away. Some
sort of rustling operation likely. Our two compadres are soon
joined on the trail by a kid Jimmy Blevins (Lucas Black) on
“one helluva horse” of questionable provenance. He
was earlier fleeing hot pursuit from a truck & a horse. The two
buddies accept his cowboy company against their better judgment on
account of Americans should stick together. Circumstances
force them to split up on the other side of the Rio Grande although
they keep figuring they haven't seen the last of him.
The two find
all the ranch work they could ever hope for on the 27,000 acre
spread of Don Hector de la Rocha y Villarreal (Rubén
Blades.) John even acquires an in with Rocha who discovers him
knowledgeable in horse breeding. A romantic attachment
develops between Rocha's daughter Alejandra (Penélope Cruz)
and gringo John. This leads to a cross-cultural
misunderstanding the like of which you would not believe. If
John's grandfather could describe his west Texas ranch as
“heaven on earth” then we'd not be far off the mark to
call residence in a Mexican hoosegow (casa grande—big house)
hell on earth.
Ideology
It's no secret that boys like to emulate the life of cowboys, and in this case there's something to be said about it along the lines of, (Prov. 30:24) “There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise:”
(Prov. 30:25) “The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer.” The first lesson for success is to start working early, in the summer of life. Lacey is introduced in front of a backdrop of a sunrise with a cock crowing in the distance. Later we'll see him scattering seed for the chickens. Him having a demanding father, we can well imagine he got started at a young age feeding the chickens. His old man pours himself a glass of milk; that means there be cows about. As soon as he was old enough to carry a pail, he'd have to do the morning milking too. He and John in their prime were “two top hands” already. On the Mexican ranch John broke 16 wild mustangs in 4 days with his sidekick helping to rope them. Career advisor Charles Means tells of, “a family, well known to me, offering unusually good wages [who] tried out nineteen maids before finding one that was capable and willing to work” (14). Rocha was impressed by John. It was not his first rodeo. Young Blevins who tried unsuccessfully to pass himself off as 16 was “not as green as he looked” either. He does say he's too young to receive capital punishment, not that Mexico even has it. These cowboys all started ranch work young.
(Prov. 30:26) “The conies are but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks.” The second lesson is location, to settle in an area conducive to one's line of work. There were still open ranches in Mexico, so that seemed a good move for the cowboys, but the alien culture didn't offer them the protection as did the surrounding rocks the conies. Even Blevins was able to find ranch work back in the states.
(Prov. 30:27) “The locusts have no king, yet go they forth all of them by bands.” The third lesson is to get oneself an informal support network. John had his buddy Lacey. Even Blevins was able to give him a little money to buy a knife in prison. His girlfriend might be able to persuade her rich dad to purchase their freedom … but at what cost to herself? And an old man that John freed went and staked him out for his journey home.
(Prov. 30:28) “The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings' palaces.” That palace gets swept regularly, but the spider just puts up a new web when his old one falls to the broom. Career setbacks do occur, so one just starts over. Means tells us:
A few years ago a close friend of mine took an inventory of his personal assets. In the few years that he had been out of school he had successfully promoted two or three different enterprises. Each of them had brought him considerable money and he had built up a good-sized fortune.Lacey tells John in the end, “You'll get it sorted out.”Suddenly reverses struck. Business turned bad. Profits were replaced by losses. Deficits grew. Still more damaging was the defalcation of a trusted partner. In the end, everything was gone.
And so this friend took an inventory. It wasn't much of a task. He found by actual count that he had left only $5.65, a railroad ticket to California, and an untried idea. Oh, there was plenty of energy and enthusiasm but his money was gone. Discouraging? Emphatically yes! But not at all hopeless.
The resourceful and courageous person is not crushed by defeat. On the contrary, he uses failure as a stepping stone to success—a friendly tipster, a lesson to be remembered.
Today [1939] this man is at the head of two very successful businesses, and his yearly income runs into high five figures. He is a very wealthy man and resides in Beverly Hills. (9–10)
Production Values
"" (2000) was directed
by Billy Bob Thornton. Its screenplay was written by Ted Tally,
adapted from Cormac McCarthy's novel, All
the Pretty Horses. The movie version of the book started
at around 4 hours, then the director cut it down to 3, and the
distributor forced it down to 2. It is what it is. They did a
better job than I could ever do, while a lot of devices were
employed to take shortcuts. This is not the way movies are
generally made, and some won't like it, but I took it in stride. It
stars Matt Damon, Penélope Cruz, Henry Thomas and Lucas
Black. The director being an actor himself saw to it that the
acting was above reproach. Cruz playing the hot Latina relied on
her looks more than any acting ability, but hey, when you got it flaunt it.
I didn't mind. Black was a real hoot playing a callow drifter
MPA rated it PG–13 for violence and some sexuality. It was filmed in Big Bend National Park, Texas, USA. The score was partly composed by country star Marty Stuart who also sings the end credits song. Impressive cinematography can be credited to Barry Markowitz. Runtime is 1 hour 56 minutes.
Review Conclusion w/a Christian's Recommendation
The two male leads talk about God
and discuss the afterlife. John concludes, “God looks
out for people. … He's just about got to. I don't believe we'd make
it a day, otherwise.” It has a soft Catholic background.
This is more a thinking man's western than a shoot-em-up. It won't be everyone's cup of tea but it can help but bolster a flagging genre.
Movie Ratings
Action factor: Well done action flick. Suitability for Children: Suitable for children 13+ years with guidance. Special effects: Well done special effects. Video Occasion: Good for a Rainy Day. Suspense: Several suspenseful moments. Overall movie rating: Four stars out of five.
Works Cited
Scripture quoted from the King James Version. Pub. 1611, rev. 1769. Software
Boyer, Paul S., et al. The Enduring Vision A History of the American People. Vol. 2. Lexington, Mass.: D.C. Heath & Co., 1993. Print.
Means, Charles E. Let's Go Places. Copyright 1939 by The Business Book House. Charlottesville: The Business Book House, 1939. Print.
bibles.n7nz.org