Seldom have I been anticipating a movie more and, after seeing it on the first day of its release, been more disappointed. Horizon, an American Saga, is actor/director Kevin Cosners' attempt to illustrate and revive interest in the American West during the pre and post-Civil War years of the 1850s.
It's painful to suggest you can save yourself money and spend three hours and one minute of your time on far more enjoyable or important things by staying away from this "massive boondoggle of misguided and excruciatingly tedious cinematic experience".
That's one of the conclusions you'll find on Google, and unfortunately, for those who enjoy good movies and past Cosner excellence, it's absolutely correct. Horizon, the name of a fictional town trying to make it in opening up the American West, is the first of four episodes promised by Cosner, which, as another critic said, "feels like a threat" based on what unfolds in the first release.
Horizon is not a true story but based on fictional characters that are a compilation of people and an unsettled nation that truly existed and is deserving of being preserved through great epic films. Sadly, Horizon is not one of them with the L.A. Times calling it "Overindulged Tedium". Cosner says to really appreciate Horizon you have to take in all four movies (the next comes out in August) but that sounds like someone who gambled 38 million of his own dollars in the 100 million dollar budget, which the justly acclaimed actor did as director, actor and co-writer.
In episode one, Cosner has a relatively small acting role as Hayes Ellison, whose character will undoubtedly increase as the series grinds on. While Cosner got a lengthy standing ovation when the movie opened at the Cannes Film Festival, an unusually poor 42 percent of initial audiences said they "liked" Horizon when asked by Rotten Tomatoes.
An opening weekend box office of 12 million or less is being forecast, nowhere near what's needed to recoup Cosners' investment, let alone a profit. I predict word-of-mouth recommendations for Horizon will be few and far between.
While there are several intense, bloody scenes in installment one, it's challenging to follow where the movie is headed and easy to lose interest. Horizon is beautifully filmed, and a montage of scenes near the end partially previewing action to come in future episodes is artfully done.
But if you're looking for anything close to the story and character development from Cosners' Yellowstone, which he abandoned to make four Horizons, you'll be greatly disappointed.
Perhaps the most interesting and unexpected aspect of this movie is the Christian song "Amazing Grace" chosen to end the movie as the credits roll. That music, which can be interpreted as reflective of the "grace" all of us alive today have compared with the hardships of living in the times reflected by Horizon, could be the most impressive lesson some will take away from spending three hours watching it painfully unfold.
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