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I went to check this film out just because it is one of the most
postponed and delayed films in Hollywood history. Rumor
has it that the film was finished sometime in early 2000, but
has just now hit theaters. They canned it so many times
because they thought it was a piece of garbage. And, I
must say, I went into the theater with the same theory--it must
be a piece of garbage. Alas, as much as I hate to admit
it--I actually found myself smiling through the film, even
though I knew it to be terrible the whole way through.
Move over Emilio Estevez, here comes...Dylan McDermott???
Yes, that's right, Dylan McDermott plays Leander McNelly, the
leader of the Texas Rangers, a group of young folks who protect
women and fight bad guys. Leander's posse includes:
Usher Raymond, James Van der Beek, Robert Patrick, Ashton
Kutcher, and Randy Travis. The bad guy is John King
Fisher, played ruthlessly by Alfred Molina. One of the
chief delights I found in this film was the diversity of the
cast. I loved the little cameos from Tom Skerritt and
Vincent Spano, but not as much as I enjoyed watching Randy
Travis and Usher Raymond share screen time. When is that
going to happen again?
This
film was directed by Steve Miner--the brain behind
"Halloween H20" (in my opinion, the best one since the
first), and "Lake Placid" (come on, it was funny).
Those weren't critical successes, and "Texas Rangers"
will not be either, but I enjoyed it because I guess I was in
the mood for a good Western action movie with a lot of shooting
and zero plot. I mean, seriously, can we count the TV
stars: Dylan McDermott (The Practice), James Van der Beek
(Dawson's Creek), Ashton Kutcher (That 70's Show), Alfred Molina
(The Ladies Man), Robert Patrick (The X-Files)--it was like
watching an Emmy's rerun--but an enjoyable Emmy's rerun.
For the younger audience, the girls will love seeing Van der
Beek, Kutcher, and Usher doing their cowboy things, while the
guys can watch simply for Rachael Leigh Cook, who is the object
of many affections in the film. The slightly older
audience will find McDermott pleasing (remember "The Cowboy
Way"--yikes), and your saged Western veterans will drool
over Tom Skerritt and Randy Travis. So, is there something
in it for everyone? No. If you don't like Westerns,
you won't like this, and this is surely not the film to make you
start liking Westerns. Go rent "Unforgiven" or
"Tombstone"--grow an affection for the Western--and
then rent "Texas Rangers" when it comes out on video.
I really
hate giving this a positive review after panning "Spy
Game". "Texas Rangers" is not a good
technical movie, but I found it to be a good popcorn movie.
Alas, opinions are like butt's--everyone's got one. Though
most people will probably dislike the film for it's overall lack
of originality and plot, I would advise them to stick with their
opinion, because it will be in the majority. I liked it,
but you probably won't. Sorry--it happens sometimes.
-- Billy
Ray ( 3 out of 4 pops )
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