If I had a nickel for every time a director claimed they had a passion project that went through development hell, it would release in 2024. I’d have three nickels. Now, if I had a nickel for every time a so-passionate project that went through development hell premiered at Cannes, I’d have two nickels. The real question is: will Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1, be another passion project that unfortunately doesn’t hold up to expectations, or will it succeed expectations and be a film worth talking about amongst the greats that release this year?
Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1, is the beginning of a four-chapter saga that is set during the American Civil War period and depicts the expansion of the American West.
All praise has to go to Kevin Costner. It’s beyond impressive to hold onto a film idea for nearly 40 years and hold onto it even when it doesn’t work, and it for sure has paid off. This film is truly an American epic in every way and form, from its technical aspects to just the overall world-building and character development. This three-hour epic shows just how passionate Costner was about this project, and if this is only the beginning, then we have a lot to look forward to. Western cinema isn’t what it used to be, and a lot of passion isn’t put into the more recent projects. This film brings a return to what true Western cinema used to be and could inspire a future generation.
There’s a lot about this film that’s great that can also be seen as an issue for some people. The story isn’t a simple one, and we’re never following just one set of characters. There are a few characters that we meet across America, and while some of the stories have interconnected plot points, they’re all different and unique in their own way. The film starts off by simply showing you that the Americans are building on the Apache’s land. You then quickly learn what happens to these characters, and we get a better look at the gruesome attack as we witness the Apache brutally slaughter the Americans who have attempted to steal their land. The community loses most of their members, but among them are Frances Kittredge (Sienna Miller) and her daughter Elizabeth Kittredge (Georgia MacPhail). These are two of the many characters that we follow during the film, who tag along with First Lt. Trent Gephardt (Sam Worthington) and Sgt. Major Riordan (Michael Rooker).
Another storyline that’s connected to that one is about a separate group of survivors who go out to get revenge on the Apache who burned down their community. It puts things into perspective and shows how none of them really have a singular brain cell, as they don’t understand that they’ve taken their land, and now they’re going out of their way to kill the people who are only defending their rights. One of my favourite storylines, and I think the one that helps drive the film forward and help it with its pacing, is the story that revolves around the Sykes family, a family that is merciless with their actions. It follows them tracking down Ellen/Lucy (Jena Malone), their mistress, who has fled with their son. She eventually ends up in the Wyoming territories and befriends a local prostitute called Marigold (Abbey Lee). The story then splits up as we focus on Marigold, who comes across Hayes Ellison (Kevin Costner). With Hayes getting in between Marigold and the Sykes family, they end up on the run with him, now tasked with defending her and the child from this twisted family.
It’s a lot to take in, and it ends up making sense why this is three hours and split into four parts. It makes you think, though: why didn’t Costner try to make a high-end television show similar to Yellowstone, as it would’ve fit the structure better than a film would? Not every storyline is going to keep people’s attention; it didn’t with me, and anytime it went back to focus on Frances and Elizabeth, I was wondering when we were going to move on. The story was only a delight to watch because Georgia Macphail gave an outstanding performance and was one of the best performers in the entire film, depicting the trauma that Elizabeth goes through really well and expressing herself through facial features rather than dialogue. Even with all the characters and stories you’re following, it never once gets convoluted, and praise goes to Costner and co-writer Jon Baird for being able to handle such an immense and difficult task.
Georgia MacPhail isn’t the only one with an amazing performance; everyone does a great job in this film, and it has that sense of feeling that they’re all helping one another elevate their performances. I think some of the best performances in the film come from Kevin Costner, who portrays this stoic character so well, and also from the Sykes brothers, Junior Sykes (Jon Beavers) and Caleb Sykes (Jaime Campbell Bower). Cannes has been full of a lot of career-defining performances, and Horizon: An American Saga—Chapter 1 delivers another one with Jamie Campbell Bower. The makeup and costumes almost make him unrecognisable, and he plays a character unlike anything else he has done before.
The cinematography for the film is beyond beautiful; there are many landscapes seen in the film that you could just stare at for days. There’s CGI used in the film, but it blends well with the real scenery, and it’s hard to tell that any CGI was even used in the first place. It helps set the setting of the film, and it speaks to itself about how grand this film is on a scale. John Debney’s score is also one of the best things about this film, elevating every scene that it accompanies, complimenting them, and raising tensions. It’s used at its best during the first 30 minutes and during a fight between the Sykes brothers.
Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 is a film that must be watched in IMAX to experience the Western Epic that Kevin Costner has prepared. A film that was decades in the works and this first part of four has proven that it’s going to be a saga worth watching back to back once it’s complete. It can be hard to commit to at first as not every storyline that’s told is compelling enough but the performances and the visuals help the film go a long way. It’s a film that’s paced greatly well, even with its daunting runtime and it can only feel long if you have a disinterest for a lot of the characters, which for me, even when there was a storyline that I didn’t like, the performances kept me entranced. The film ends off with a decently sized teaser at what to expect from the second chapter and it only looks like things are going to be heading upwards for the rest of Horizon: An American Saga. For a film that can sometimes feel underwhelming, a side effect of films that are split into parts, it helps to know that there are three more parts on the way to fully round out this story that will be of the same quality or even higher.
Horizon: An American Saga releases in theaters June 28
