THE ONLY THING GREATER THAN THEIR PASSION FOR AMERICA… WAS THEIR PASSION FOR EACH OTHER.
Director Michael Ciminoās legendary follow-up toĀ The Deer HunterĀ (1978) ruined his reputation and became such a commercial failure that it almost destroyed a movie studio ā but the criticism hasnāt always been fair. This depiction of the 1890s Johnson County War may be insanely longwinded, not always coherent and completely fails to introduce any engaging charactersā¦ but the senseless historic conflict is nevertheless portrayed with passion (as inĀ Deer Hunter) and the lavish budget shows in the exquisite technical details.
1980-U.S. 219 min. Color. Widescreen. Written and directed byĀ Michael Cimino. Cinematography: Vilmos Zsigmond. Cast: Kris Kristofferson (James Averill), Christopher Walken (Nathan Champion), Isabelle Huppert (Ella Watson), Jeff Bridges, John Hurt, Sam Waterstonā¦ Brad Dourif, Joseph Cotten, Terry O’Quinn, Mickey Rourke, Willem Dafoe.
Trivia:Ā Dafoe’s first film. Also shown at 149 min. At one point, John Wayne was allegedly considered for the lead; Jane Fonda, Sally Field and Diane Keaton as Ella. When the budget started getting out of hand, the studio considered replacing Cimino with Norman Jewison; the movie ended up costing $44 million and only took $3 million at the box office.
Razzie:Ā Worst Director.