I am – Hercules!!
"I hate 'Deadwood'! It's terrible!" Robert Duvall told Howard Stern two weeks ago while promoting his AMC miniseries "Broken Trail," which launches tonight against the acclaimed HBO western. While promoting “Trail” on the Howard Stern radio show, Duvall seemed to take issue with the acting on "Deadwood," or the accents the actors used, or something. I think he said something about only people in New York and Los Angeles liking "Deadwood." It was a little tricky figuring out where he was going.
(Walter Hill, who directed the “Deadwood” pilot, also directed “Broken Trail.” Was Duvall unaware of this? Did Duvall and Hill part on bad terms?)
The reviews are mixed on “Trail,” which stars Duvall and Thomas Haden Church as cowboys who rescue a handful of Chinese sex slaves.
Variety says:
… A slow-going cross-country trek, AMC's first original movie owes a considerable debt to producer-star Robert Duvall, who is such a pleasure to watch as to (somewhat) compensate for the leisurely pace. Modeled after the "Lonesome Dove" series, this earnest Western from producer-director Walter Hill finally arrives at a satisfying conclusion, although the narrative about taciturn men and imperiled women at times seems mired in mud.…
The Hollywood Reporter says:
… It's a Western miniseries with impeccable pedigree, memorable characters, breathtaking cinematography and a story that seems almost as if it had been put together by a committee. … the characters, though vividly and expressively portrayed, are not terribly well-developed. … Credit the skillful performances of Duvall and Church for endowing these characters with a depth and magnetism that go well beyond what was on the printed page. …
TV Guide says:
… what a pleasant surprise that when [AMC] ponies up (so to speak) for its first TV-movie, it ranks among the best I've seen in years. …Robert Duvall, notoriously denied an Emmy for Dove, could remedy that with his quietly compassionate, captivating performance as Print Ritter. …
Entertainment Weekly gives it a “A-minus” and says:
… a superior saga: Duvall limns a crusty character distinctive from his Lonesome Dove days; Church erases his natural wit and replaces it with beautifully weathered melancholy …
The Washington Post says:
… It was written, as readers of Thursday's Style section know, by one of Duvall's horse country buddies, Alan Geoffrion, and his lack of experience shows. His talent is for scene and character, not structure. The dialogue is often what might be called agrarian lyric and his characters always surprise with their quirks, their preferences, even their names (Big Rump Kate, for example). Yet the movie starts and stops, takes detours thisaway and thataway, abandons or loses interest in characters. The result is a dramatic mess disguised as a visual feast. Or, possibly, it's a visual feast disguised as a dramatic mess. …
8 p.m. Sunday and Monday. AMC.
