Which TV westerns would you like to see made into movies?  There’s one in the works that I just found out about. I saved that info for last, because this blog started out on movie westerns for 2011, a mix of cross-genre and traditional approaches that says a lot about the changes in our culture.

To me, the most interesting mash-up is Cowboy’s and Aliens, maybe because my husband is a big Sci-Fi fan.  The bigger the monster, the better.  You can’t have too many giant ants crawling toward your hometown. Neither can you have too many zombies threatening to take over every person on Planet Earth.  I thought of him when I was googling stuff for a recent blog. A movie poster came up for Cowboys and Aliens.  I thought it was hilarious.  Surely someone was joking . . .

Nope.

The movie comes out in July 2011 and it stars Daniel Craig, my favorite James Bond by far. It also stars Olivia Wilde and Harrison Ford, who is forever etched in my mind as Han Solo, space cowboy extraordinaire. The idea originated as a 2006 graphic novel. Created by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg and written by Fred Van Lente and Andrew Voley, Cowboys and Aliens mixes the western and science fiction genres.          

 Here’s the write up from IMDB:  “A spaceship arrives in Arizona, 1873, to take over the Earth, starting with the Wild West region. A posse of cowboys are all that stand in their way.” I love this!  My husband won’t be able to resist the alien spaceship, and I’m on board with the cowboys.

Cowboys and Aliens isn’t the only cross-genre western to be in the movie theaters.  Has anyone seen Rango?  It’s out now, and I confess I haven’t seen it. Johnny Depp is the voice of Rango, a chameleon who ends up in the town of Dirt.  There he meets a community of desert creatures in need of a sheriff. The story is full of classic western-isms.  A bank gets robbed. Someone cuts off the water to the town.  A grizzled old cowboy gives Rango much needed advice and wisdom. And, for course, there’s a duel.

Rango is a western . . . it’s also a cartoon and an alternative reality story.  What an interesting mix!

I’m pretty much a purist when it comes to western movies.  True Grit (both the old and the new) is more my style, but I’m excited about these cross-genre movies. Not only are they crossing lines in terms of “story,” they’re crossing into places where westerns will find new  fans.  Both movies will have video games, and Rango is bound to make a splash with children.

It all bodes well for the western genre.  But I’m most curious to see is what it does to western traditions.  I can’t help but think of Gene Autry’s “Cowboy’s Code.”  I hope the new movies reflect those values, because that’s what makes the western genre great.

I just did some more googling and found something else.  It looks like The Big Valley is coming to the big screen with a story about Heath, the Barkley son played by Lee Majors. Filming is on hiatus, but it’s supposed to be finished this year. With Lee Majors (as Tom Barkley, the father) and  Aidan Quinn (not as Heath, but he’s the lead), I’m all for it!

 Has anyone seen Rango?  Who else is eager to see Cowboys and Aliens? Any thoughts on The Big Valley?  All this movie talk, and now I’m in the mood for popcorn!

129 years ago today Maxwell Henry Aronson was born.  Max eventually changed his name to Gilbert M. Anderson, but you would probably know him better by the name of the character he played in over 300 films – Broncho Billy.

Anderson was a native of Pine Bluff, Arkansas.  He drifted into acting, working first as a photographer’s model and newspaper vendor before moving into work as a vaudeville performer.  In 1903 Anderson landed a role in The Great Train Robbery by claiming he could ride a horse like a Texas Ranger.  When it turned out he could hardly climb onto a saddle, he was demoted to ‘extra’ and ended up playing several minor parts in the film.  The resulting 10 minute movie found an enthusiastic reception from the general public, and Anderson was hooked.  He decided to make his career in the fledgling moving picture business.

Anderson formed a partnership with old friend George Spoor and together they created the Essanay Company (the name is a play on the first letter of each of their last names “S and A”).  This company was destined to become one of the early film industry’s predominant studios. 

At first Essanay made comedies, but Anderson couldn’t forget the success of The Great Train Robbery and soon he focused on Westerns.  But where Anderson really differentiated himself, is that he was one of the first to realize that the public needed a ‘star’ to latch on to, a central character they could really focus on.  But at that time (1909) the big names of the stage were reluctant to risk their careers on the new medium of film.  So Anderson decided to take on that star role himself, creating the character of Broncho Billy from ideas he collected for the most part from popular dime novels.  Anderson wrote and directed most of the movies himself and within five years he had filmed over 300 one or two reel movies featuring his new character.  Most of these films were distributed simultaneously in the U.S. and Great Britain.  And while Anderson was not especially dashing, audiences liked Broncho Billy for his bravery and virtue.  As a side note, Essanay studios also filmed many Charlie Chaplin shorts, including The Little Tramp.

In 1915 , Anderson’s final film in the Broncho Billy series, Broncho Billy’s Sentence, was released.  He turned to writing for a while and then later attempted a comeback.  But by then more dashing actors such as William S. Hart and Tom Mix had taken over the hearts of film viewers.  So he made comedies for a while before finally retiring from film.

Some of the milestones in his later years:

• 1958 – Received an honorary Oscar as a “motion picture pioneer, for his contributions to the development of motion pictures as entertainment.”
• 1965  - he made a cameo appearance at age 85  in a modern Hollywood Western called The Bounty Killer, his first talking picture.
• 1998 – posthumously honored with his image on a U.S. postage stamp.
• 2002 – posthumously inducted into the National Cowboy Hall Of Fame
• Anderson also has a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame.

Gilbert Anderson died in his sleep in 1971 at the age of 90 at a sanitarium in South Pasadena, Ca.  He was cremated and his ashes were placed in a vault at the Chapel of the Pines Crematory in Los Angeles.

One of the reasons I started writing westerns was being thoroughly addicted to television westerns in the fifties and sixties and seventies. I loved them all, but I certainly had my favorites: “The Virginian”, “Rawhide”, “Wagon Train,” “Cimarron Strip,” “Have Gun, Will Travel,” and on and on. Of course I also liked “Bonanza” and “The Big Valley” and other family oriented westerns, but the ones that really appealed to me featured the lone tough hero with a well-concealed heart of gold. He’s the hero I wrote in my westerns, including the one published in September, “The Lawman.” He’s the hero I truly love.

One trivia answer: the most popular genre on television during the 1950′s and 1960′s was westerns. There were several hundred western series during those decades. In checking a list of series for this blog, I found some that entirely escaped me. “Bordertown,” for one. “Brave Eagle” for another. And then ”The Californians.”

I have mourned their loss. Oh, a few producers have tried. There was the “Magnificent Seven” that had a brief run. And the “Young Riders”. But none had the impact and staying power of their predecessors. I fumed and fussed, and finally had to be satisfied with Encore’s Western Channel where I’ve happily indulged in the nostalgia of “The Virginian”, “Gunsmoke”, and the enigmatic Paladin.

 I was going to blog about something else today, but then on Saturday, I made my annual pilgrimage to the Cracker Barrel (I go only once a year to get country ham and their wonderful cheesy hashbrowns because that’s about all my body should have in one year). Now Saturday is not a good day to go. Everyone in Memphis goes on Saturday morning, and there’s always a waiting time. Waiting times mean browsing. Browsing means sales. It always does for me, anyway, because it’s a great place to find some oddity that’s great for a gift basket or dirty Santa gift or little token of appreciation to someone.

I found the mother lode this time: an entire rack of collections of old western television series. Among them was a CD with the first season of “Wanted: Dead or Alive” with Steve McQueen. All 36 episodes. My fingers itched to grab all the series, but I disciplined my self and only took the McQueen series. Now if “Rawhide” had been there, I would have been in real trouble. Still, I might have to check back next week. Minus the country ham.

In any event, I don’t know if you all remember “Wanted: Dead and Alive.” Steve McQueen played Josh Randall, a moody bounty hunter who used a Winchester sawed-off shotgun. He was a man of few words who gave half – or even all – of his reward money to charity, then disappeared. I remember him as being absolutely relentless in pursuit of a wanted man but protective of children and women. I’m sure he had a secret somewhere, but I’ll have to listen to the series to discover it. I might add I was/am a huge Steve McQueen fan. Maybe it was the smoldering blue eyes.   Or the quirky grin. Or the laconic aloneness.

 Now I look forward to hosting a “Wanted” Dead or Alive” marathon and inviting my niece and grandnieces, all of whom I’ve addicted to westerns as well.

And I had to share my find with you, just in case you share my obsession and have a Cracker Barrel nearby.    Thirty six episodes for $12.99. There were also seasons of “The Virginian,” “Wagon Train,” “Bonanza” and “The Rifleman.” And then there was a three-CD library of episodes from a variety of western series.

 What is your favorite western from the past? And why? And do you mourn, as I do, their absence from the small – or maybe not quite so small  – screen today?

A generation ago I fell hard for Jeff Bridges in the steamy Against All Odds. So hard I named one of my fantasy football teams AAO. Every time I see the freeze frame at the end of the movie and hear Phil Collins sing, sigh. My breath catches.         

 Jump ahead to Crazy Heart, Jeff’s Oscar winner, which I finally caught on cable last night. (I have not seen The Big Lobowski) My thoughts on the movie:

1. The ending was perfect. I kind of expected him to die and was so glad he didn’t.

2. The combination of soaking booze, endless cigarette smoke and sweat (as well as the occasional throw-up) kind of made me gag at the possible scent of him.

3. Jeff Bridges can really sing.

4.  Maggie Guyllenhall IMO would never have gone for him, considering he wasn’t really Jeff Bridges and she was too young for him anyway, but she did change his life and that was a good thing.

5.  Her little son should have been named something cool like Kaden or Jaden or Aiden or Hayden because Buddy makes him sound like a dog. But he’s the same age as my grandbaby and evoked Carter every second. The toy cars, dinosaur, precious voice, velvet skin. The unconditional love. Sigh. 

Segue to True Grit, a stunner of a great Western. What’s not to like? My thoughts:

1. Again, the ending is perfect although I cried buckets.

2. Rooster’s endless booze mixed with the tobacco, dirt and unwashed conditions of the time fit the movie and didn’t bother me much. Mostly because here at Petticoats and Pistols we’ve endlessly discussed the reality of 19^th century cowpokes reeking to high heaven.

3. Mattie Ross had as much grit as Rooster. That scene of her surging on horseback into the river, my, my. I think it would have taken forever, however, for her pa’s giant wool coat to dry.

4. Very, very touching, her wanting him buried in the family plot.

5. I wish Robert Duvall had been in this one too, and I wish this book were available on Kindle. 

Grateful as I am to the Coen brothers for featuring a great western on the big screen, well, we went to see The King’s Speech for Valentine’s Day after a meal at an elegant new restaurant in town.

Now, it might not be a date movie, but it is a love story in its own fashion, and the woman sure stood by her man. My hubby, who hates period dramas and doesn’t speak British, liked but didn’t LOVE it…but we have a dear young family friend with a punishing stutter, so the movie super-resonated. And I’ve always loved Colin Firth (starting with Pride and Prejudice, another period drama; I do speak British. )

But he’s a man’s man and hubby likes him, too, esp. the Bridget Jones movies. Much as I love Jeff, I think it’s an against-all-odds win for him this year. I think the Oscar will go to Colin Firth.

     Either way, I love them both and always will.  

the  Hearts Crossing Ranch series , books 1 and 2 available now

When I begin the planning process for a new book, several things come into play. First of all I ask myself general questions. Where shall I set it, who is the heroine, and what situation is she in? I’ve known who was going to be the heroine of my next book for a while now. And I knew the basic situation. I had to come up with a new setting – done. I can flesh all these things out as I go along. But the next crucial ingredient that I’ve been missing is WHO IS GOING TO COME ALONG TO SCREW EVERYTHING UP?

That’s right. The hero. The guy that waltzes in, turns the heroine’s goals on their ear, and generally causes mayhem.

I love hero planning.

My heroine is very TOGETHER. She likes things a certain way and gets them done on time (this isn’t like me at all, no sir *rolls eyes in sarcasm*).  Her plans are even more important because other people are relying on her. Who will drive her crazy? Someone who is not as committed as she is. Someone who appears – at least on the outside – to be rather lax about certain things. She’s scrambling to balance the books; he’s got more money than he knows what to do with. She hates violence; he’s serving community service.  She believes in earning your way; he appears to have a HUGE entitlement complex.

And he’s got to be tall. With a sexy grin. That’s because as soon as I filled out certain parts of my character background one person came to mind as the perfect visual casting.

Not sure if any of you have watched JUSTIFIED with Timothy Olyphant, but he’s a US Marshal and a rather cool customer when all is said and done. He does some stupid things but he’s on the RIGHT side of the law. His ex? She could pull off the snooty/sexy librarian look all day long.

LOVE LOVE LOVE the role. Love how he rocks the hat (the hat is in EVERY episode) and the boots.  Love how he ends up looking for trouble. And the one liners? Priceless.

So that’s my casting as I work on my next proposal. There are some days that my job is a true pleasure.

In the meantime, I have two releases out this month – SOLD TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER from Samhain Publishing is out in print, and PROUD RANCHER, PRECIOUS BUNDLE hits shelves tomorrow from Harlequin Romance. You can check out excerpts from both on my website.

One of the things we’ve done lately is subscribe to Netflix through our Wii. While the latest movies aren’t usually listed, it has definitely paid for itself in tv series and older movies. We’ve watched the first season of Justified with Timothy Olyphant and there are a number of western movies waiting to be watched.

I watched The Quick and The Dead over the Christmas break – the Sharon Stone/Gene Hackman movie and not the Sam Elliot one from the eighties. (Though to be honest – I’ll watch just about anything with Sam Elliot.)

Anyway, I liked the idea of a woman being the “hero” of this story. Ellen is out to avenge her father’s death, and enters a shooting contest to face the man who killed her father when she was a girl – and a man who rules the entire town by fear. Ellen’s a fantastic shooter – which really resonates later in the movie as certain details of her childhood are revealed.

Rotten Tomatoes terms the film “stylish but empty” and I’d agree with that to some extent. It’s dusty, dirty, whiskey swilling and predictable. Russell Crowe is fine as the preacher, Cort. Sharon Stone is beautiful and tough, but she made the same facial expression over and over that I think was supposed to express anger and fear at once. It was this kind of flat-foreheaded, wild-eyed look that was a bit weird. Leonardo Di Caprio was just as annoying as The Kid as he was as Jack Dawson in Titanic – the whole exuberant youth thing gets old quickly. No, the one true thing that saves this movie is Gene Hackman.

As the movie began, I kept thinking “What this needs is Gene Hackman as the villian” and lo and behold he appeared on cue. He is an easy man to hate and you quickly realize he’ll stop at nothing to get what he wants. He is a man without a heart.  In fact, what kept me watching throughout this movie was hating him so much and wondering how many people were going to die before he finally got what he deserved.

I know it sounds like I didn’t like the movie, but I did. Not something I’d rave about, but I did enjoy watching it. I think I’ll watch ALL THE PRETTY HORSES next – have you seen it?

If someone had told me a year ago that I’d be eagerly anticipating a remake of  True Grit, I’d have laughed.  I’ve enjoyed the 1969 version with John Wayne and Glen Campbell for years. Who could possibly replace John Wayne as Rooster Cogburn?  No one.  To try would be a sacrilege . . .  I really couldn’t imagine it. 

Well, I can now.

Who else has seen the trailer for the remake that’s coming out this Christmas? If you haven’t, here it is . . .

What do you think?  Can Jeff Bridges pull off the role that gave John Wayne his only Oscar?  Judging by the trailer, I’m more than optimistic. Jeff Bridges has a solid track record of doing unique things with a role. My husband’s a fan of The Big Lebowski and so are my sons. I haven’t seen that movie, but I’ve seen Crazy Heart and I thought Jeff was great in it. He does burned-out and cantankerous extremely well!  I also remember him from Starman with Karen Allen.  He’s a solid actor and he looks the part of Rooster.

The new movie is by the Coen Brothers.  I find their work a little off-putting, but my husband loves their movies, particularly No Country for Old Men. As for No Country, once I got over the gruesome beginning with Javier Bardem and paid attention to the story, I had to agree with my husband.  The Coens are brilliant film makers. The movie is haunting.  As for Javier, is that really the same guy who’s in Eat Pray Love?  He’s another amazing actor.

I’m just as enthused about the supporting cast as I am about Jeff Bridges as Rooster Cogburn.

In the 1969 version, Kim Darby played fourteen-year-old Mattie Ross, the girl seeking justice for her father’s murder.  In the remake, the part went to an unknown actress named Hailee Steinfeld. In reviews I’ve read, it seems that this movie is her story to tell. The directors stuck more closely to the original book than the 1969 version.  As a fun aside, I was visiting with a neighbor last night.  I didn’t know it, but the producers of True Grit did a casting call here in Lexington, Kentucky for the role of Mattie. They needed a teenage girl who could ride. What better place to look than the city known as “The Thoroughbred Capital of the World?”

Josh Brolin plays Tom Chaney, the thief who killed Mattie’s father, and Matt Damon is Texas Ranger La Bouef. He’s also after Chaney. Glen Campbell played that roll in the 1969 version.  La Bouef meets up with Cogburn and Mattie and the chase begins.

As a final touch, would anyone like to guess who does the song for the trailer?  It’s Johnny Cash. I can’t think of a better fit.

The movie opens December 22nd.  After all the family celebrations, I just might see if I can talk my husband into going to a movie on Christmas night. (Honey, if you’re reading this, I want movie passes for Christmas!) Anyone else? Are looking forward to this movie?

The most famous gunfight in the history of the West took place on October 26, 1881, in a vacant lot behind the OK Corral in Tombstone, Arizona.  Anyone who’s seen the movies/TV series, or read any of the uncounted books knows that the winners were legendary gunman Wyatt Earp, his brothers Morgan and Virgil, and their friend, a shady, alcoholic dentist known as Doc Holliday.  But who were the losers?  Did they deserve to die as they did?  Let’s take a closer look.

Ike and Billy Clanton were two of three brothers from a small ranching family.  Ike, the elder, wasn’t the brightest light in the candelabra.  Known as a loudmouth who liked to drink and gamble, he was also a hard worker.  Younger brother Billy was still in his teens.

Tom and Frank McLaury, also small ranchers, were known to be honest and respectable.  They’d made good money selling cattle to the army, but were planning to move away because of the growing Apache problems.  Their only fault, it appears, was being good friends with the Clantons.

A complicated trail of events led up to the gunfight. It started when some stolen government mules were found on the McLaury ranch. Tom and Frank were away at the time and it was later proven that a friend had left them there.  Tom and Frank were never charged but the Earps publicly branded them as thieves.  Other incidents and accusations followed, fueling the bad blood. 

On the night of October 25, Tom McLaury and Ike Clanton rode into Tombstone.  Ike planned to buy supplies for his ranch and find a card game.  Tom was there to settle his accounts prior to moving away.  In the saloon, Ike ran into Doc Holliday, drunk and spoiling for a fight.  Doc began baiting Ike and challenged him to a gunfight.  He was soon joined by Wyatt Earp (photo) and his two brothers.  The slow-witted Ike fought back with the only weapon he had, his mouth.  He shouted that he and his friends would come looking for the Earps and Holliday, and they would have to fight.

Fade to the next day.  After more blustering and baiting, Frank McLaury and young Billy Clanton rode into town, unaware of what had happened.  When Frank was told, he tried to calm things down and get Ike and his brother out of town, but it was too late.  Like a giant clock, fate moved the players toward the final confrontation.  Here’s how the two sides stacked up.

Carrying guns was patently illegal in town.  But Morgan and Virgil Earp were both peace officers.  They’d deputized Wyatt and Doc Holliday, so all were legally armed.  All of them had pistols, and Doc also carried a deadly sawed-off shotgun.

Billy Clanton had a pistol and had been told he could keep it because he and Ike were leaving town.  Frank McLaury also had a pistol, which he was about to turn over to Sheriff John Behan.  Ike Clanton and Tom McLaury were unarmed.

The Earps and Doc walked onto the scene with their guns drawn.  Ike put up his hands and Tom opened his vest, both declaring they weren’t armed.  But the Earps and Doc opened fire.  Frank and Billy fired back in self defense.

When the shooting ended thirty seconds later, Frank McLaury was dead.  Tom and Billy were mortally wounded.  Virgil Earp had been shot in the leg; Morgan had a bad shoulder wound, and Doc was winged.  Ironically, the only member of the “Clanton Gang” to escape unscathed was Ike, who knocked Wyatt Earp off balance and fled.

There’s a lot more to this story.  I’ve cut some wide corners for the sake of brevity.  If you have any corrections or anything to add, I’d welcome your comments.  Did Wyatt Earp deserve all his “fame and glory?”  What do you think?

Margaret Brownley

Staff Reporter 

Howdy Partners

I thought it might be fun to run an occasional (once a year or so) blog that highlights western movies, TV, music and any other cowboy news of interest.   So here it is, folks.  All the western news that’s fit to print and maybe even some that ain’t.  Let me know what you think.

Mother Nature Will Make or Break Three Montana Ranching Families in this New Series-

A new documentary series The Last American Cowboy profiles three Montana cattle-ranching families.  Freak storms, deadly diseases, forest fires and hungry predators are just some of the challenges these families will battle in the weeks ahead. Who knew that ranch life could be this tough?  Love the show but not so much the name. The last cowboy?   It airs Mondays at 10 p.m. on Animal Planet.

Look who just landed in the Cowboy Hall of Fame!

Tom Selleck was recently inducted into the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma for his body of work—and what a body it is.   His work ain’t bad either.   He’s starred in such favorites as the The Sackets, Quigley Down Under, The Shadow Riders and Last Stand at Saber River.  

Known for his witty charm, craggy face and sparkling eyes he looked great in his Hawaiian duds, but he’s a natural in cowboy boots and hat.   On or off the screen, Tom is the real McCoy Not only did he do many of his own stunts, he enjoys puttering around his 63 acre ranch (although now that I’ve seen The Last Cowboy holding down the fort is more like it).  His many acting awards include an Emmy and Golden Globe, but he claims none meant more than this one.  “I don’t think for an actor who works in westerns there is a bigger thrill,” says Tom.  That’s our boy.

 The Old West has Gone Virtual

If you’re a fan of video games (and even if you’re not) you might want check out this trailer for “Red Dead Redemption.”    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEMxSUGZ6TU.  Okay, so it’s not how we played cowboys and Indians, and John Wayne is nowhere in sight, but the old west is looking pretty good—even if it’s only virtual.  (Warning this game is R rated)

Mark your Calendars:

Hee-Haw!  July 24^th is the National Day of the Cowboy and we fillies plan to celebrate big time. 

That’s all Folks!

Romance Writers of America RITA Finalist 

A Lady Like Sarah (A Rocky Creek Romance)

An outlaw calls a man out for tampering with his horse – only to find out there’s nary a pistol in town.  You can’t have a showdown with an unarmed man!  This north of the border Wild West tale had me in stitches!

I love Paul Gross.  Love him.  I loved him in Due South and I was so impressed with Passchendaele (despite the Oscar ending rather than the Hollywood ending, and yes, I’m still bitter about that).  So when I heard that he was in a new movie – and that he played an outlaw – I knew that I had to see it.  So one afternoon my writer friend Julianne MacLean and I headed to the theatre to sneak in a matinee.

Gross plays The Montana Kid, who after a failed attempt at being hanged (never hang a man from a dead tree branch) ends up in Barclay’s Brush.  He doesn’t realize he’s crossed the border into Canada, and his mere presence puts the town’s residents (all dozen or so of them) in a state of excitement.  Within minutes he’s challenged the town smithy to a shootout – except Mr. Montana Kid has the only pistol in town.  Well, almost.  You see, the widow Jane has a pistol.  It’s broken, but wouldn’t you know it’s the blacksmith that sets out to fix it.  In the meantime, Jane exchanges the pistol for some hard labour on the farm.  The Montana Kid is dirty.  I mean really dirty.  And he’s rough around the edges.  And of course, there’s a bounty on him.   

It has all the making of a gritty western, but it’s not.  It’s firmly tongue in cheek.  If there’s one thing we seem to be able to do in Canada, it’s not take ourselves too seriously.  So when the Kid gets cleaned up, it’s hard not to snicker when he reappears from the Chinese laundry wearing this:

It takes a special kind of man to get away with that particular shade of purple.  And silk. Especially with the long hair. 

Come to find out his real name is Sean, and this hardened outlaw is no match for Jane, played by Sienna Guillory.  Add in the town doctor, who is very adept at removing bullets from posteriors, an unflappable Indian (played by the always wonderful Graham Greene) and a host of Mounties (including one particularly fresh-faced man in red serge who is quite sweet on Jane as well) and there are some true gems.  We have horses and donkeys, a sweet school marm and a pair of bumbling “boys” quite awestruck at having a real live outlaw in their midst.

And yes – we must get back to the baddie.  I was thrilled to see that Callum Keith Rennie was playing Ben Cutler.  I like Callum a lot – most recently as Leoben in Battlestar Galactica and as Lew Ashby in Californication. 

It goes without saying that two things needed to happen in this movie – there has to be a shootout, and the guy has to get the girl.

Check out the trailer if you don’t believe me. I guarantee you’ll have a giggle!