An Epic Chronicle of Family Ties

Rating: Null/10 (3 May 2002)

Based on Jim Harrison's novel with the same name, "Legends of the Fall" is a story, a family saga, of the life and evolution of three brothers: Tristan (Brad Pitt), Alfred (Aidan Quinn) and Samuel (Henry Thomas) Ludlow, as they grow up on a small ranch in Montana with their father, an esteemed colonel (Anthony Hopkins) after their mother has left them. Samuel, the youngest of the brothers, leaves his home, but soon returns to inform that he has engaged to be married to Susannah (Julia Ormond), a well-mannered, sophisticated woman who soon finds a home on the humble solitary ranch and quickly gets aquainted to the rest of the Ludlow family.
The saga takes the viewers through the beginning of the 20th century, World War I, the 1930s and all the way to the 1960s, following the events of the brothers as they begin to live their own lives, finding love and happiness but also facing tragedies and heartbrakes.
"Legends of the Fall" is an epic drama, that could be considered to be about love between both the brothers and the woman, or the story of how one man learned to live life and return home, since the movie mostly focuses on the events of Tristan Ludlow. But perhaps what I saw as the main point of it all was the importance of family ties: how the Ludlow family always joined together and at the end of the day, found trust and comfort in each other.
It's very understandable that this particular movie won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography, since perhaps the most breathtaking of all is the surroundings, the nature of Montana rising above the ranch, constantly shown in it's true beauty in the forms of lush forests, high rising mountain peaks and wide open fields.
I've always been an eager fan of Anthony Hopkins and his acting talents, and "Legends of the Fall" is, in my opinion, yet another success for him, as is it for Quinn and Pitt, both carrying out their roles as opposite-natured brothers with both a well-made fashion and intensity.
As a concluding short summary, "Legends of the Fall" is perhaps not a movie to see if you're searching for action and war, or if you're merely interested in seeing your favorite actor/actress playing in "just another movie".
But if your intrested in rather an intriguing and touching saga, a chronicle of the life and endevours of a family, that mixes rebellious and heroic feelings amongst the love and tragedy, look this one up, it's worth the view!