Appaloosa

Ok. Well I was all set with a rant about how they announced a new secret screening last night at 11:00, ten minutes after I'd left for the day, then they put the rest of the tickets up for sale at 11:00 Wednesday morning (instead of 90 minutes before the first show time), so that when I arrived at noon Wednesday to get my Thursday tickets, they were all sold out, then how I didn't want to see stupid Burrowers anyway and I'd rather go give me dinner money to Maudie's again.

Then my optimism prevailed and I stood, in the lobby, while the secret screening sat, Burrowers sat, the other two films sat, and I was left as the last man standing, literally. When Ed Asner failed to show, I was offered one of the reserve seats and got to see this preview screening of Appaloosa.

So, I retract all those bad things. It worked out.

One of the ways I define "adventure" is a film that seems to have run through a solid story arc, and then it picks up and keeps going in a new direction, often (but not always) in a new locale. This western fits the bill, with a well-told, complex story, much longer than expected. If you yearn for the days of western film, and still enjoy the way Hollywood makes them now, this is well worth admission.

Appaloosa
2008, 114 minutes, directed by Ed Harris