Right Off The Hollywood Assembly Line

Rating: 3/10 (8 June 2010)

Muddled story about gunslingers in 1879 Tombstone, boom town of the Old West. Too many speaking parts and a lack of character focus make a mess of the plot. Cast extras number in the hundreds if not thousands. This is a big-budget Hollywood production, bombastic in tone, with lots of violent action, and not much depth.
The film's casting is generally atrocious. Kurt Russell, complete with ugly mustache, looks too young to play a retired Wyatt Earp. Powers Boothe, who was quite good as preacher Jim Jones, is not convincing in a story set in the nineteenth century. The cast even includes old-man Sam Elliott, a has-been actor from the 1970s. And the women, cast mostly as ornaments, make no significant impression.
Despite being too young to play Doc Holliday, Val Kilmer gives a fine performance as the alcoholic but eloquently spoken Doc. Unlike other actors who phone in their performances, Kilmer at least tries to imbue his character with some uniqueness.
Wyatt Earp yearns for some peace and quiet amid retirement. Of course, things don't work out that way, as a gang of thugs invokes Earp's wrath. Lots of shoot-em-ups initiated by scowling villains who, in stereotyped fashion, have no sense of humor. Even the dialogue is clichéd. Costumes are way over done, and feature black suits and capes, Hollywood stylish in the 1990s.
Cinematography features an unfortunate widescreen projection that leaves lots of black space above and below the images. Some of the dusk scenes are evocative, with human silhouettes set against an orange sunset. Most of the film looks like it was shot on studio sets and back-lots. The film's thundering score is overbearing and manipulative, totally in keeping with a film that is in-your-face blunt. Sound effects are needlessly exaggerated.
There's nothing subtle about "Tombstone". Except for Doc Holliday, there's no depth to the characters. And there's no depth at all to the contrived story. This is a film that's benefited from lots of marketing and a big-name cast. Like most Hollywood assembly-line films, the effect of "Tombstone" is momentary. It will leave no lasting impression.