Vintage

Open Range, starring Kevin Costner as the subdued, melancholic, rather "Eastwood-like" Charlie, is the classic straightforward western hero in every sense of the genre. Don't expect too many surprises in Open Range, which Costner directs as well as stars in, but his play-it-close-to-the-vest approach to the western is refreshing and succeeds beautifully.

Robert Duval's "Boss" is his mentor, a man who for the most part is only an unwavering foundation of the old code of the west. Charlie, who carries with him a dark past and a skill for killing men, looks to Boss as a son would a father.

I know there have been countless classic western movies that built the reputations of actors like Clint Eastwood, John Wayne, and…umm…Emilio Estevez (see: Young Guns). But I can’t claim to have seen all, or even a large portion, of them so when I say that Appaloosa, the 2008 release starring Viggo Mortensen, Jeremy Irons, Renee Zellweger and Ed Harris who also directed and helped write the screenplay, was a pretty good film in my opinion. It’s no classic, I can say that with certainty, but as far as westerns go I can’t say it sucked either.