Appaloosa (2008) on Netflix
The New Mexico town of Appaloosa lives under rancher Randall Bragg's rule. Its citizens hire Virgil Cole as marshal and Everett Hitch as his deputy. A young widow, Allie French, arrives.
- Netflix3.4/5
- IMDb6.7/1068,447 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes76%
Featurette
Plot summary
Appaloosa, New Mexico, 1882. The town marshal and his deputies were killed by rancher Randall Bragg when they came to arrest two of his men, so the town's leading citizens appoint Virgil Cole as marshal, with authority to lay down the law, and Everett Hitch as his deputy. At the saloon, four of Bragg's men are making trouble, and when three of them draw, Cole and Hitch shoot them. Cole and Hitch refuse to be intimidated by Bragg or his men. Bragg claims connections to President Chester A. Arthur. Cole begins a romance with Allie French, a young widow, and they buy a house that is still under construction.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Appaloosa (2008)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- While publicizing A History of Violence at the Toronto International Film Festival, Ed Harris handed Viggo Mortensen a copy of the novel and asked him to consider the part. Harris called it "a totally awkward proposition, handing another actor a book like that".
- Diane Lane originally signed on to play Allie French but left when the film stalled. The project got back on track thanks to the success of the Deadwood series on HBO and the remake of 3:10 to Yuma, and Renee Zellweger was signed to replace Lane.
- Harris was drawn to Robert B. Parker's bestselling novel because it was constructed like a classic Western while including crime themes still relevant to contemporary society; he purchased the rights himself and hired Parker to adapt his own book into a screenplay.
- To get into character, Viggo Mortensen studied Frederic Remington drawings and other images of the American Old West in order to master the proper way to stand during a gunfight.
- Director and star Ed Harris kept the casting in the family: his father, Bob Harris, appears in the film in a small role as Judge Elias Callison.
