Customer Reviews

Comes a Horseman

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an ideal movie for home theatre. I grew up on a working ranch and Richard Farnsworth, James Caan and Jane Fonda are totally convincing as cowboys and cowgirl. Jason Robards is utterly evil in this movie. I've liked them all in several other movies but none are as good as this one. The breathtaking backdrop and a really well written story combined with an excellent array of talent makes this one of the treasures of my western collection.

COMES A HORSEMAN is a romance wrapped in a western. The local cattle baron (Jason Robards) wants to drive out rancher Jane Fonda, who has hired on local wrangler James Caan to help her make it through one more hard year. Complicating things in this World War II era tale is the oil company that wants everybody's land.
With some truly beautiful wide angle photography, a plethora of establishing shots and a dearth of tight close ups, COMES A HORSEMAN is an more an actor's than an editor's movie that works as well as it does because it has an excellent cast at the top of their game. Director Alan Pakula often pulls the camera back and allows his actors room to discover their character and the meaning of the scene.
I only had two problems with this movie. I felt the ending, the final confrontation between bad guy Robards and good gal Fonda, was a bit contrived . The other problem was a puzzler - weren't their any doctors in cattle country America in 1945? A couple of characters get busted up pretty badly in the course of things and they're dumped into a bed with a damp handkerchief on the forehead with nary a doctor in sight. It didn't bother me much when Caan was laid up without professional medical care, but I hated to see poor Dodger (Richard Farnsworth) treated in such a manner.

An okay movie that could have been a great one. Certainly, the cast is not to be faulted. "Julia" co-stars and co-Oscar nominees Jane Fonda and Jason Robards again ignite sparks as cattle ranchers battling nature, economic changes, and - most notably - each other in the closing years of World War II; James Caan offers one of his most sensitively understated performances as the newcomer who becomes embroiled in their conflict. And the supporting cast is beyond reproach. There's fine work from stage and screen veteran George Grizzard, Jim Davis (Jock Ewing on TV's "Dallas), and Mark Harmon; and a particularly touching performance by the marvelous Richard Farnsworth as Fonda's aging sidekick and former mentor. Other big plusses are some gorgeous locations and stunning set decorations, all beautifully photographed by cinematographer Gordon Willis.

Now ... if only the film editor had been more alert! Because Willis' breathtaking camerawork eventually turns out to be a near-fatal liability in the wrong hands. There are many instances in which the film needs to cut to a series of close-ups or at least a medium shot of the actors so that the audience can stay connected to the human drama; however, the editor remains resolutely focused on the grandeur of the scenery, leaving the viewer emotionally distant and uninvolved. This problem is compounded by the inappropriateness of Michael Small's musical score. Too often the music seems to be desperately competing for the viewer's attention, always at the expense of the actors and the screenplay. Halfway into the two-hour running time, the unrelentingly majestic visual and aural backgounds were becoming annoying irritations; before the closing credits they had developed into full-fledged nuisances.

On balance, I have to admit that the film is worth a look ... especially in the widescreen format offered on the DVD release. The disc includes the Original Theatrical Trailer (which, by the way, does offer some great editing!), and a very high quality film-to-video transfer with clear, crisp sound. If only the film could be recut and rescored, then reissued as a "Director's Special Edition". Unquestionably, there's a pony buried somewhere underneath this mess! **-1/2 stars

The story is about a sweeping passion that you don't see much anymore --the grab for land, the insistence that a way of life stays the same.

This movie is additionally noteworthy because it garnered the late actor Richard Farnsworth an Academy Award nomination for his part as the steady and honest "Dodger." Farnsworth turns in a fine performance that is plainly and comfortably delivered.

Fonda does a great job playing the part of a tough, unsentimental, and unlikeable but tenacious hard scrabble landowner --a rarity in today's wanna-be-liked movie making machinery. Caan matches her character with an easy going but as hard driving manner, and Robards is an example of menace by long stare. The pacing of the movie is slower than anything made today, so wrap your head round 1978 and just take it in.

One of the greatest reasons to watch this movie is the horsemanship. There's some hard riding here, exemplary riding of the sort you don't see as much these days. Farnsworth had a wonderful riding style, straight and graceful. When you see him in the saddle, you miss him. Iconic, you realize how much he carried all the Westerns made from 1937 and on. This is one of those movies where the three leads seem to be easy with horses.

For sure, there were things that could have been done to give it more authenticity. But that's not how they did the Western in 1978. So to complain about it now is futile. This would make a great movie to remake if only they could find some actors who really knew how to ride like Farnsworth, Fonda & Caan.

Awards 1978:
Richard Farnsworth, Best Supporting Actor Winner--National Board of Review,
National Society of Film Critics; USA, Best Actor Nominee, Academy Awards, USA.
Jane Fonda --Best Actress Los Angeles Film Critics Award
Dennis Lynton Clark--Best Movie Script, Wester Writers of America

Western Horseman Magazine
Cowboys & Indians Magazine
The Cowboy Kind Book with a Forward by Richard Farnsworth
The Straight Story Movie with Richard Farnsworth, for which he garned a Best Actor Nomination
The Grey Fox starring Richard Farnsworth

This is another fine example of a very underated film release during late 70s ,starring the legendary James Caan , the always superb Jane Fonda and jason Robard in a truly great villian role.They dont make this kind of film anymore.Buy the DVD and judge yourself.Dont expect to see a slam bang action western,there is a fist fight and gun fight but fast and stylishly done by the director.A cinematic masterpiece

Pakula did a fine job of capturing the grandeur of the 'fading' West in this sweeping tale of greed, passion, betrayal, and murder. I watched it six, or seven times on the big screen when it first came out, possibly because I felt it was an excellent re-uniting of Fonda, and Robards ( two of my favorite actors ), and was quite surprised by how good Caan was in his role as the laconic neighbor of the feisty, embittered widow that Fonda plays. Richard Farnsworth, however, was simply incredible as Fonda's aging ranch hand, and the quiet dignity, and humor he brings to the role is a fitting match for the awesome landscape he seems so much a part of. It should be in the collection of any fan of Fonda, Caan, Robards, or anyone that just enjoys a well-told western yarn.

"Comes a Horseman," an ambling, leisurely paced western that quietly debuted in 1978, has never received much acclaim. Perhaps a film loaded with so many extraordinary talents should have soared to great heights. Most contemporary critics were bored. The film was released during a furious moment in United Artists' history when they were juggling Apocalypse Now, Manhattan and Raging Bull, and it simply fell through the cracks. Stephen Bach was not especially kind in his expose novel Final Cut : Art, Money, and Ego in the Making of Heaven's Gate, the Film That Sank United Artists, which detailed the famous Heaven's Gate disaster. He describes previews of "Comes a Horseman" as being failures and details his frustration at bankrolling what he considered to be a mediocre film.

Perhaps. I first saw "Comes a Horseman" at the theater the week it opened and have never forgotten it. I was touched by its gregarious nature and winsome style. There's a salt-of-the-earth quality here, perfectly symbolized by the star-making performance of Richard Farnsworth as an old-time cowhand limping towards his final days. Alan J. Pakula, a brilliant director known for his fascinating suspense thrillers Klute, The Parallax View and All the President's Men, oddly took on this project. I believe most directors dream of making westerns, having been raised on the epic works of John Ford, Howard Hawks and George Stevens. Pakula tried on this hat with great earnest and created a film that realistically portrays the rigors of ranch life. There's authenticity in every scene and, in many ways, it uniquely documents a closing era of the western legend.

Buck Athearn (James Caan) is a returning WW II veteran who purchases some land to start a ranch. The locale is never mentioned though, while beautifully filmed in Colorado by the legendary Gordon Willis, it could easily be Wyoming or Montana. Asleep next to a campfire, he is attacked and left for dead by men working for local ranch king J.W. Ewing (Jason Robards). Over a period of several weeks, Buck is nursed back to health by Ella Connors (Jane Fonda), a neighboring ranch owner immersed in a bitter land war with J.W. Ella, a prickly tomboy carrying the scars of a tough childhood, has a lone ranch hand in Dodger (Farnsworth) and, against frightful odds, they are trying to stay afloat. After a talk with Dodger, Buck decides to work for Ella.

Caan is perfect as Buck, a no-nonsense loner who must have been a fearless soldier. This was near the peak of Caan's career and his stoic presence is a fascinating accompaniment to Fonda's. As Ella, Fonda is an uncomfortably stubborn woman with rage bubbling beneath the surface. Caan and Fonda have a classic scene together, when they quietly read at a table while eating dinner, that is a subtle testament to their great talents. Farnsworth, who was nominated for an Academy Award, is unforgettable as Dodger. He's an old-time cowhand (who appears to be the only extrovert in the valley) with memories of long-ago drives and bones that crack each time he mounts a saddle. Robards has the difficult role of J.W., a weathered monument who sees the days of his ancestor's myth closing fast. In addition to his feud with Ella (there's a secret between them), his irritating business associate is interested in the newfangled idea of drilling for oil. J.W., of course, considers this a rank abomination.

All of these familiar dramas, including Buck and Ella's growing attraction, play out languidly. Viewers, however, are treated to extraordinary images of the relentless glory of ranch life - swirling dust, matted sweat and the blue smoke of branding iron fires. There's also an amazing shot of actual lightning on the horizon, something I had never before seen in a movie. When I first saw this at the theater, it took my breath away. Sadly, it doesn't play as well on TV, but no matter. It's real.

I could have done without the concluding dramatics, when J.W. and his elderly hands (an intentional choice by Pakula, I'm sure) ride upon Buck and Ella with rifles blazing. It's an old-time gunfight, akin to Sam Peckinpah's finale in Ride the High Country, that serves more as a tribute to the western than anything that would have realistically played out. I love the final long shot, returning the film to its gentle track, when Buck and Ella slowly begin to unload wood from the back of their 1930's-era truck. They are rebuilding their lives, and we realize how much we care about these characters, wondering if their children are still working the land to this day.

This is another fine example of a very underated film release during late 70s ,starring the legendary James Caan , the always superb Jane Fonda and jason Robard in a truly great villian role.They dont make this kind of film anymore.Buy the DVD and judge yourself.Dont expect to see a slam bang action western,there is a fist fight and gun fight but fast and stylishly done by the director.A cinematic masterpiece

I first saw this film when I accidentally stumbled onto it on a cable TV western replay in 2010. Had I known it starred Jane Fonda I would have given it a pass because I can't stand her in real life, but she was perfect for this tom-boy bitchy female part. I was drawn into the story by the excellent casting and superb filming of the settings, especially the dramatic skys. Caan played his part of the soft spoken but smart and tough-as-nails ranch hand perfectly. The photographers knew what they were doing. I can't elaborate on what the other viewers have already said and won't try. To make a long story short, I bought the DVD so I could review it over and over for oil painting ideas. I have sfopped the film on single frames, photographed the frames, and printed them for use as scenic references. The panoramas are that strong. Also the cattle roping and branding scenes.

During the DVD replays I continually made dialog discoveries I missed on previous replays. The story line and uneducated cow hand dialogs in the screenplay are extremely well crafted and acted. This is not a formula movie, or at least it doesn't come across as one to me.

The only error I caught was the depiction of a North American Navion light plane which didn't exist until after WW2 was over and NAA needed a civilian light plane to take the place of the wartime P-51 production lines.

Some may not know that Robards' stunt man was killed filming one of the final scenes where Robards' character (Ewing) got a foot caught in a stirrup and was dragged by his horse into a post. The producers left the scene in but cut away just before the stunt man hit the post and was killed.

This film was classified as a flop at the time, but I see it as an unrecognized masterpiece and never tire of re-watching it. I live in Texas ranch country where cow hands go into WalMart with their spurs still on and their saddled horses waiting in trailers outside. The brief references and camera shots of Beechnut and Copenhagen chewing tobaccos just added further touches of realism.

I spent the Summer of 1978 working for the Forest Service in Idaho. Later that year, back home in the Midwest and missing the mountains, I saw this movie when it was first released on the big screen. I drank in all the scenery, it is beautifully shot, but was won over by the incredible acting of Fonda, Caan, and Farnsworth. Fonda is really excellent, but Caan gives a powerful performance that is about 100 times better than his work in The Godfather. I just saw it again, 33 years later, and still think it never got the credit it deserved. There is a moment in this movie where Fonda confesses her most humiliating experience to Caan. His reaction to her final breaking down of her emotional barriers at this moment is breathtaking. I thought so 33 years ago as a very young single girl, and I still do even more so today as a mature woman married nearly 20 years. In a series of casual movements and quiet conversation, he finds a way to let her pull herself together, yet at the same time reassure her what she has just confessed to him has not changed how he feels about her. I know many found fault with the pacing of this movie, but back in the seventies, the world had a longer attention span. Turn down your modern electronics and let yourself get caught up in the hardscrabble existence of decent people fighting impossible odds in a changing West in the 1940's.