Boobirt Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Solidrariol Am I Missing Something?

Curapedi I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Mabel Munoz Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

vchimpanzee In 1883 in Dakota Territory, a bounty hunter named Cochrane is chasing after Cincinnati John Mason ("I've never been to Cincinnati", Mason frequently tells people). We later learn three men died because of him and while they might not have had high moral standards, Cochrane says, "The law is the law." Mason was also connected with the death of a prisoner in Mexico whose family wanted justice; someone was told to release one or the other, and Mason was released. Mason may have killed people for The Pinkertons. He does admit to having been a Texas ranger.A gang wearing masks robs the mail in Wyoming and several people on both sides are shot.At a card game in Montana, Mason has three aces while the other man has three kings. I'm not clear on who was cheating but a number of guns are drawn and Mason needs to get out of town. He meets Ben McClure at a campfire.In Promise, Wyoming, Mason meets up with his father who is not happy to see him. He also meets up with Alice who is attractive, intelligent and tough, and very happy to see him. However, Ben McClure wants to marry her. This becomes a problem later. Alice seems to be the closest thing Promise has to a doctor, though maybe we just don't see the doctor in the movie.Alice's brother Rodd is about to lose the family ranch, and he is prepared to do anything. He even considers the ranch more important than his sister. Rodd needs $5000, and money like that is hard to get legally. Mason says he doesn't do that any more.The masked gang shows up again. At least I assume it is them. They wear the same masks. The only way to be sure is that some, or maybe all, have double X on their shoulder. We are told this is the first time someone has died. There are railway workers who are getting paid more now than they used to. Someone has to deliver the money, and Ben and Mason volunteer to do the job at different times. Each time there is a problem. We can't really be sure what Mason's intentions are. Meanwhile, Cochrane finally catches up with Mason. This is a standard Western, with nothing particularly special except that it's never clear just who the good guys are and who the bad guys are. There's lots of fightin' and shootin' and not too much blood. Several people die but most of them we didn't really know. Donald Sutherland gives one of the standout performances, but doesn't he always?Jill Hennessy also does a great job. This was cleaned up for TV. One word network TV doesn't tend to allow did slip through, but a number of other words got bleeped. A lot of them. Cleaned up, it's probably no worse than most Westerns, but not as clean as the family-friendly Westerns of the distant past.I just watched this because it was on. You might like it if you like Westerns.

scythempress Jill Henessey is looking old, as is Sutherland, because he is. Slaters constant drinking, smoking and quotes got old fast. Henessey as an Annie Oakley wanna be, finally gets a chance to use the gun she keeps displaying to shoot her worthless criminal brother and doesn't. Why in the world didn't any of the fools who saw the masked marauders during the day put two and two together on their clothes and hats? They looked the same in town except no masks. Even in those days, you didn't just pull the badge off a dead man and become his replacement. A bounty hunter who is also a US Marshal is tracking a man who cheated at cards in a Mexico prison resulting in the death of one prisoner and the release of another for a family that wants revenge. Wow, talk about a reach. The only thing I find mildly good about this is the ending. Everything from opening credits to that point was a waste of time.

thinker1691 In this day and age when the genera of the true Western movie is becoming a rarity, it's difficult to see any which are memorable. Some good examples are 'High Plains Drifter, The Wild Bunch and Unforgiven' where a gunman is remorseful of his past. To that group is this new addition called " Dawn Rider." Growing up I remember the same title on another movie, but nothing as memorable as this offering. Director Terry Miles who also co-wrote the story relates the western tale of a man (Christian Slater) who returns home to his father who unfortunately is killed in a hold-up. His son, being a former Pinkerton detective, silently ponders who might have been responsible. At the same time the son is tracked by a shadowy, but persistent lawman (Donald Sutherland) and his posse who have an outstanding though dubious arrest warrant for him. In addition, the rider has set his eyes on a woman (Jill Hennenssy) who becomes a nurse and friend to him, unaware she is set to marry another man. The rider has a persistent problem in that a group of cowboys in white masks is making themselves known as a ruthless band of killer robbers who are planning for their final confrontation with the law, while the rider remains vaguely unaware how close the danger really is. The movie appears to have been hewn from an authentic western photograph. Indeed, the rustic town is rough-cut, thread bear with all the black and white images of early Americanna, complete with colorful names for the citizens and multiple uses of buildings. The movie itself is believable in mannerism, costumes and even dialog. Slater does well to carry the film to it's inevitable conclusion with Donald Suttherland giving a convincing performance with a surprise ending. Excellent Film. Recommended. ****

Tony Heck "When my father died he was trying to tell me something, Dos Equis." When fugitive John Mason's (Slater) father is killed by a group of masked bandits he decides to hunt them down and get his revenge. Things get complicated when he realizes that the bandits are closer to home then he thought. I have said a few times now that I don't know what happened to the western genre. After "Dances With Wolves", "Tombstone" and "Open Range" the genre seemed to fall off drastically and is now limited to very low budget cheesy made-for-TV movie type movies. I was looking forward to this one mainly because of the cast. I thought finally a descent western that I will like. While this is a great many times better then 90% if the recent contributions, this felt the same as the rest. This could have easily been another made-for-TV movie if not for the cast. Nothing really original and this is not the return of the great westerns I was hoping for but this is easily one of the better ones in recent memory. Which isn't really saying that much I know. Overall, worth watching and entertaining but it is a little slow and still a B-rate western. I give it a B-.