In Contention

Tag: Robert Parker

  • R.I.P. Robert B. Parker

    Robert B. ParkerThis is one of those fleeting AP reports that causes a double take, since I wasn’t aware of any illness or anything.  Apparently it’s a sudden death, natural causes kind of thing, when the universe just decides your time is up.

    I had a nice email exchange with Parker, who is most famous for his series of “Spencer” novels, roughly a year ago.  He agreed to a few questions on the western genre, the subject of my thesis at the time, and as I had already spoken to Warner Bros. honcho Alan Horn and actor/filmmaker Ed Harris, I thought the author of “Appaloosa” would be a nice addition to the piece.  His perspective on the future of the genre and its evolution (the precise topic at hand) differed slightly from mine, but nevertheless was refreshing in its honesty and, most importantly, its confidence.

    I dug back through my old emails to see if I could find our exchange, and there it was.  One excerpt was particularly indicative of the man, as far as I could gauge him from afar and electronically…

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  • REVIEW: “Appaloosa” (**1/2)

    New Line Cinema\'s AppaloosaI don’t think it’s much of a secret around these parts that I really wanted to be on board for “Appaloosa.” I’m in love with the new resurgence of the western genre, even if I get irritated when people refer to “No Country for Old Men” and “There Will Be Blood” as evidence of it.

    This, of course, redirects credit due to a modern lineage that began with Kevin Costner’s back-to-basics “Open Range,” exploded with creativity with David Milch’s “Deadwood” and settled into a hell of a groove last year with James Mangold’s “3:10 to Yuma” and Andrew Dominik’s “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert ford.”

    But lulls and misfires are to be expected of a genre finding its footing in a brave new Hollywood seemingly willing to finance such efforts, and it pains me to say “Appaloosa” is an example.

    Lifted from the pages of a Robert Parker novel painstakingly simple in its narrative approach, Ed Harris’s adaptation suffers in its admittedly commendable insistence to be faithful to the source. The result is a stilted narrative with vague characterizations and otherwise awkward interaction.

    Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen star as Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch respectively, gun-hands that move from town to town restoring order for a fee, establishing the law and governance of the country’s last frontier. Fifteen years together can breed a relationship of intuition. Virgil and Everett sense each other’s disposition, depend on each other like extensions of themselves. The interplay was fascinating in novel form and is almost there on the screen.

    When the duo arrive in Appaloosa, the city has been forced to its knees by a quick-draw rancher, Randall Bragg (Jeremy Irons) and his band of misfits. By-laws are posted, Cole is given command of the town’s law and order and the wheels are set in motion for plenty of steely-eyed encounters and enough shoot-outs (and near shoot-outs) to satisfy the appetite.

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  • Robert Parker’s ‘Appaloosa’

    Appaloosa by Robert ParkerBefore I head out today on a whirlwind of pre-Toronto screenings that will take me away from the work at hand, I wanted to follow up last week’s brief comments on Robert Parker’s novel “Appaloosa,” which is being adapted for the screen by director Ed Harris this year (and will play at the festival next week).

    I’ll reiterate here that the most interesting dynamic of the entire narrative is the relationship between Virgil Cole  and Everett Hitch.  Two gun hands that swagger from town to town to clean up messes, make up “laws” that must be followed and represent order for a small time before moving on, they’ve got a 15-year partnership that goes to the bone marrow.  The Hitch character relays the story in the first person, which makes the wordless conversations between the two men, the subtle nuances of knowledge, the all around ability to intuit each other’s disposition — especially where Hitch is concerned — all the more intriguing.

    Consider a scene that depicts Cole flying off the rails and beating a giant bar patron to a pulp, furious at some outside irritant more than the patron’s loud antics.  Only Hitch can pull him off the man, and he does so with a calm, inevitable touch, lifting Cole off the ground and pulling him back until Cole tells him, twice, and equally calm: “You can let me go.”  It’s an awesome dynamic these two have.

    Cole and Hitch will be played by Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen respectively in the upcoming film, and I really hope they can pull off this chemistry (I’ll know soon).  The narrative itself might be a touch trite and Renee Zellweger’s Allie character is certainly it’s most irritating aspect, but the peculiarities of character that Parker writes into the two leads more than make up for that.

    So if you’re a fan of the genre, I’d recommend it.  Don’t expect a miracle of substance, but you’ll get some nice grit and hard-nosed simplicity to sink your teeth into.

  • Touchdown in Houston

    No this ain’t football talk. Apologies on the content drought from my end. Travelling, family, friends, bridezillas and all the drama they entail.

    I notice tonight that Anne Thompson has beaten me to the Viggo Mortensen story I was looking forward to cranking out tomorrow. Oh well, it’s worth it just that SOMEONE is writing it. “Good” presenting itself in the festival landscape makes Mortensen a prime commodity if “The Road” and “Appaloosa” didn’t already sell you.

    Speaking of which, Robert Parker’s novel is making for a nice and breezy (if somewhat cliched) in-flight read. I’ve pushed through well over 100 pages since Raleigh.

    What’s most striking is the relationship between Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch, the nuances, the wordless conversations, the ease of the chemistry. If Mortensen and Ed Harris can carry that much across on screen we’ll all be in for a treat.

    But more on that when I finish the book.

    Back in L.A. midnight-ish. Things should be back to normal next week. Thanks to John and Guy for keeping things moving around here.